The U.S. government has enacted a great deal of legislation focused on preventing all types of discrimination, including age discrimination, in the workplace. The Federal laws prohibiting age discrimination in the workplace are enforced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC"). The EEOC enforces the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 ("ADEA"), which focuses on providing protection to employees over 40 years of age. The ADEA is age discrimination legislation that prohibits employers from making employment hiring decisions based solely on a candidate's age, and also prohibits employers from treating employees differently (whether better or worse) because of their age. The ADEA applies to federal, state and local governments, employers with at least 20 employees, and employment agencies and labor organizations. The Civil Rights Act of 1991, which provides many different protections, allows for money damages where employment and age discrimination was intentional on the part of the employer. If an employee or candidate suspects that they have been the target of age discrimination, the EEOC encourages those individuals to utilize the protections of the age discrimination legislation and file a complaint within 180 days of the alleged discrimination.