Employment laws vary by state, but there is no question as to federal employment laws. Indeed many depend upon factors like the number of employees a business has. Let’s look at them by kind:
New Hire Related:
The Immigration Reform and Control Act (“IRCA”)
This governs the required form I-9 upon hire, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees.
Additionally, the IRCA prohibits employee discrimination on the basis of national origin for employers with four (4) to fourteen (14) employees.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”)
This governs background checks and references of new hires, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees.
Wage & Hour Related:
The Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”)
This addresses wage and hour topics like minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor among private sector employers, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees.
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (“EPA”)
This prohibits employee wage discrimination on the basis of sex, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees and if the employer is covered by the FLSA.
Benefits Related:
The Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”)
This ensures that employees may receive unpaid, job-protected leave for certain family and medical concerns, and applies to employers with fifty (50) or more employees.
The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (“COBRA”)
This allows employees to opt for limited, but continued, group medical benefits upon job separation, and applies to employers with twenty (20) or more employees that maintain a group benefit plan.
Health & Safety Related:
The Occupational Health and Safety Act (“OSHA”)
This ensures employers protect their employees from hazards by presenting certain safety measures, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees.
Discrimination Related:
The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (“USERRA”)
This prohibits employee discrimination among military service members and veterans based on their service, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as amended
While IRCA prohibits national origin discrimination of smaller employers, employers with fifteen (15) or more employees must comply with Title VII by prohibiting employee (and applicant) discrimination and retaliation on the basis of race, color, religion, sex and national origin.
The Civil Rights Act of 1866, Section 1981
This prohibits employee discrimination and retaliation on the basis of race, color, and ethnicity, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees.
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”)
This prohibits employee discrimination and retaliation on the basis of a disability, and applies to employers with fifteen (15) or more employees.
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (“ADEA”)
This prohibits employee (and applicant) discrimination of employees who are forty (40) years or older on the basis of age, and applies to employers with twenty (20) or more employees.
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (“GINA”)
This prohibits employee discrimination on the basis of genetics, and applies to employers with fifteen (15) or more employees.
Other:
The National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”)
This protects the rights of private sector employees to organize and collective bargain, and applies to employers with one (1) or more employees, irrespective of whether employees are unionized.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (“WARN” Act)
This ensures that employees who are to be laid-off as part of closures or mass lay-offs receive at least sixty (60) days notice of such job separation, and applies to employers with one hundred (100) or more employees.
Legal Update: Form I-9
Forecasting a Change for HR in 2023: Pay Transparency
