Continued research on sex-based discrimination is necessary given the pervasiveness of the problem and well-documented adverse outcomes for those who experience it. One widely studied contributor to sex-based discrimination in the workplace is gender composition. While a litany of studies have predicted a linear relationship between the proportion of men in a workforce and the incidence of sex discrimination, newer research has indicated a curvilinear relationship. As the state workforce represents both an aggregation of its institutions and the broader environment in which these institutions exist, state-level analysis is needed to resolve this discrepancy. However, past studies have largely been conducted at the institutional or work-group level and no research to date has explored the effect the gender composition of a state's workforce may have on sex-based discrimination filings. Using a unique dataset compiled from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and United States Census Bureau for the years 2009-2012, I find that the state is indeed an important locus of inquiry with regard to sex discrimination outcomes. Negative binomial analysis of state sex-based discrimination filings on gender composition of state's employed population reveals a curvilinear relationship, with the least filings in the most balanced and the most male-dominated state workforces, net of all controls.

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