Knowing What the Law Says Regarding Labor Law Posters

Labor law posters have now become an integral part of the workplace. With the government making them mandatory to be placed in all workplaces, employers are realizing the benefits that it provides to them. With the need for such posters increasing, so is the need for service providers.

The posters that you see in the workplace come under three categories, mainly divided on the basis of the laws that they have on them:

•  Federal labor law posters

• State labor law posters

• Provincial labor law posters

These posters provide a simplified way of presenting the laws and regulations that are applicable to them in the workplace in a simplified manner. These posters are required to be out in the most accessible and frequented places of the office so that all employees have the opportunity to see the information it provides.

These posters not only provide information about the rules and regulations that are applicable but they also contain vital information regarding the rights, needs and obligations of the employees of the company. Labor law posters also need to be constantly updated so that they are concurrent with the latest laws that are in regulation.

Employers have been mandated by the government to place the beneficial information for employees in easy to read fonts and locations so that employees can easily access them without any trouble. Furthermore, information regarding some of the important requirements of the employees is also provided, including:

• Minimum wage criteria

• Minimum number of working hours

• Safety requirements to be maintained in the workplace

• Leave and medical benefits for employees

• Disability benefits and workers’ compensation available to the employees

This information is gathered from the laws and by-laws that applicable in the state and according to the policy of the company. These should be updated on a regular basis as the government also updates laws on a regular basis. 

The federal labor law posters are considered as the benchmark for employee rights in the country. In addition to these state posters are also required as they have been modified to help employees by keeping the local differences in mind. In most cases, the federal laws are applicable to the employees unless the state labor laws are more beneficial for them. Therefore, it is important for businesses to keep both the state and federal labor laws in mind so that their employees are provided with complete information regarding their rights.

The benefit that employers get from putting up appropriate labor law posters in their workplace is that they also get a Certificate of Compliance with the posters. By putting up this certificate in your workplace, you can showcase to the employees that you are complying with all the latest rules and regulations of the nation. This will help in creating a much better working environment.

In addition to that, these posters will also have relevant information regarding the steps one should take if they feel their rights are being infringed. This will help to create a transparent complaint procedure which will help in ensuring problems are solved in a much simpler method.

So, if you are a dedicated businessman with a workforce of hired staff, then getting the latest labor law posters will be a good idea for both you and your business.

Growing Payrolls Probably Cut Unemployment: U.S. Economy Preview

Employers probably added jobs in July at about the same pace as in the prior month, helping trim unemployment as the U.S. economy emerged from a second-quarter slowdown, economists said before reports this week.

Payrolls rose by 185,000 after a 195,000 gain in June, and the jobless rate fell to 7.5 percent from 7.6 percent, according to the median forecast of economists in a Bloomberg survey ahead of Labor Department data due on Aug. 2. Other figures may show gross domestic product grew at a 1 percent annualized rate from April through June compared with 1.8 percent in the previous three months.

Growth was held back last quarter by the effect of cutbacks in federal government spending and higher taxes that are projected to fade in the remainder of 2013, allowing a pickup in demand that would sustain hiring. Federal Reserve policy makers, set to meet this week, will evaluate progress in the economy and the job market as they consider trimming monthly bond purchases.

“Hiring has been remarkably stable for the most part and there’s no reason to suspect that won’t continue,” said Brian Jones, a senior U.S. economist at Societe Generale in New York. “Economic growth is going to accelerate in the second half. Everybody is penciling in a tapering by the Fed in September.”

Overall payroll gains averaged 202,000 a month in the first half of this year, up from 180,000 in the final six months of 2012. Such gains are typically linked with GDP growing close to 3 percent, about double what government data may show this week, say economists at UniCredit Group and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.

GDP Revisions

The Commerce Department’s second-quarter GDP report on July 31 will also include comprehensive revisions that could affect data back to 1929. The new figures may help narrow the difference between employment and growth, the economists said.

The Fed will begin trimming its $85 billion in monthly bond in September, according to a growing number of economists surveyed by Bloomberg from July 18 to July 22. None of the 54 respondents expect the reductions to begin following the central bank’s meeting on July 30-31.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 (SPX) Index was little changed last week as investors weighed second-quarter earnings against the prospect for a change in Fed policy. The gauge has climbed 18.6 percent so far this year.

The GDP report may also show consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, grew at a 1.6 percent annualized rate from April through June, according to the Bloomberg survey median. The prior quarter’s 2.6 percent pace was the strongest since the first three months of 2011.

Payroll Tax

Some of the slowdown in consumption may have been the lingering effect of the payroll tax, which reverted to its 2010 rate of 6.2 percent in January after holding at 4.2 percent for two years, resulting in lower take-home pay.

At the same time, gains in property values and share prices are lifting consumer confidence and helping households keep spending. A July 30 report from the Conference Board, a New York-based research group, will show its sentiment gauge in July was little changed from the five-year high reached in June.

Americans are increasing purchases of big-ticket items such as automobiles. Cars and light trucks sold at a 15.9 million annualized rate in June, the strongest since November 2007, according to figures from Ward’s Automotive Group.

Ford Motor Co. (F:US), the second-largest U.S. automaker, reported second-quarter per-share profit excluding some items that beat the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The Dearborn, Michigan-based company said it’ll hire 3,000 salaried employees this year, 800 more than originally planned.

Factory Rebound

Automobile sales are also helping to sustain factory activity. The Institute for Supply Management’s index of manufacturing, due on Aug. 1, advanced to a five-month high in July, according to the Bloomberg survey.

United Technologies Corp. (UTX:US), the maker of Carrier air conditioners, Pratt & Whitney jet engines and Otis elevators, is among companies citing gains in auto sales and housing starts as reasons to expect an improvement in coming quarters.

“The economy is recovering and we are seeing strength in the leading sectors,” Gregory Hayes, chief financial officer at the Hartford, Connecticut-based company, said on a July 23 earnings call. “Talk about economic uncertainty remains, but overall, our orders position us well for growth in the second half of the year.”

Other reports this week may show consumer confidence is rising amid the real-estate rebound. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 U.S. cities rose 12.4 percent in May from the same month in 2012, the biggest year-over-year increase since February 2006, economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted. The figures are due on July 30.

Source from: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-07-28/growing-payrolls-probably-cut-unemployment-u-dot-s-dot-economy-preview

California Employers and Labor Law Posters

 

All employers in California must adhere to the workplace obligation postings by displaying various notices and regulations through California labor law posters. These postings are usually available at no cost from the requiring agency. The posters must give information regarding wages, hours and working conditions where it may be easily read during the workday.

Mistakes that Small Business Owners Often Make

Owning a business whether large or small is a complex job. There are many things that need to be considered and many laws and regulations need to be followed. The law varies from place to place and thus it is important that you be aware of what is required from you as an employer. With a multitude of rules and regulations that are applicable to small businesses, it often happens that oversights take place by the owner. Mentioned below are some general oversights that can cause trouble for you as a business owner.

·Firing employees for taking leave of absence

Though this may seem like something you are allowed to do but the truth is that an employee is allowed by the government to take a leave of absence for a valid reason and on his return be given his old job back or a comparable one. The reasons that are valid are taking care of a sick family member (FMLA), going for overseas military duty (USERRA) and others.

·Cutting loan repayments directly from the paycheck

This may seem like an act of generosity by lending them money and then directly cutting it from their paycheck. Seems pretty convenient, doesn’t it? Well the truth is that no employer is allowed to make any deductions from the paycheck of an employee other than pay and other benefits available to the employee. Instead you can come up with some other sort of agreement in which the repayments can be made to you.

·Flexible lunch breaks

Every state has strict rules regarding the lunch breaks and rest breaks that every employee gets. It is important that you follow these rules to the dot, so that you can be compliant with the rules of the state. It often is easier to give the employees a flexible lunch break but this is not allowed and it is not even conducive for the growth of the company.

·Absence of labor law posters

This is one of the most severe mistakes that small business owners can make. You may feel that you are providing all the necessary information to the workers while hiring them but every employee has a right to know the rights which he has. To ensure this, it is important that the necessary labor law posters be put up in the workplace so that all the information is easily available. If you are on the lookout for labor law posters then you can find them by clicking here.

·Using “use it or lose it” vacation policies

Some businesses have a policy that employees are required to utilize their vacations in a month or they will lose it. However, many states prohibit such kind of policies. Vacations are to be taken on the desire of the employee and if the vacations are not taken, then they have to be compensated to the employee.

These are some of the mistakes that are made unintentionally by business owners. However, these activities are not allowed by many states and could lead to illegal practices in your workplace. Therefore, it is a good idea to check with the rules and regulations that are valid in your state and ensure that they are being followed in your workplace.

Why the Revival of US Labor Might Start With Non-Union Workers

For workers in America, it can be hard to know where to turn when a boss pays you late or not at all, doesn't provide benefits, or just yells at you for no good reason.

That's why a Working America, a "community affiliate" of the AFL-CIO that focuses specifically on nonunion workers, launched a website last month that makes it easy to get that kind of information. FixMyJob.com is a bit like WebMD, but instead of typing in your aches and pains, you tell it about problems at your workplace. Launched on June 5, the site has already garnered 5,000 visitors, according to Working America organizer Chris Stergalas.

After choosing from a comprehensive list of workplaces and problems, visitors to FixMyJob.com get a set of resources and options for taking action. While unionization is a part of the solution for many problems, the site also informs workers about labor laws and instructs them on how to advance proposals to defend their rights. The site is a part of Working America's expanded new campaign to organize people in their communities in all 50 states, says Executive Director Karen Nussbaum.

In both online and offline campaigns, Nussbaum said, the aim of Working America is to reach beyond the workplace and rally support at the local level for a pro-labor agenda. Working America's list of priorities includes living wage laws, expanded health care, adequately funded public schools, and the protection of voting rights.

Before the launch of Working America, Nussbaum had served as founder and director of 9to5, National Association of Working Women; as director of the Women's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor; and as an advisor to former AFL-CIO president John Sweeney. I recently spoke with her about her vision for Working America, about FixMyJob.com, and about what the 50-state expansion means for the prospects of union revival.

Working America was founded in 2003 partly as an answer to the question of how to mobilize people who are not union members but would benefit from activism by and for working people. Nussbaum said that, from the beginning, her staff "concentrated on talking to workers in their communities." Scoring success in mobilizing blue-collar voters for electoral campaigns, the organization created a foundation of members, and it is increasingly attempting to mobilize them around broader issues like working conditions, paid sick leave, and the right to join unions.

She added that the ultimate goal of Working America is "finding the connections with collective bargaining." But she's experimenting with different ways of organizing that might lead there. "It's about taking whatever path opens on the way."

In past years, Working America focused on battleground states during elections. But regional and statewide labor federations have pushed the organization to expand to all 50 states over the next five years. At first, Nussbaum said, that goal seemed "preposterous," but she has come to embrace it. Ultimately, she said, she appreciated the strategic value of supporting local labor structures as they connect with community allies and work on issues that go beyond a single workplace.

One reason why the 50-state strategy is necessary is the national proliferation of so-called "right-to-work" laws and attacks on voting rights, two issues that Working America has taken up in Pittsburgh, Penn..

Nussbaum describes the approach taken by activists leading the Pittsburgh campaign:
These are a group of mostly white people in their 40s and 50s. They decided that voter protection actually was the key issue for them. Their group set a goal of reaching a million people in the Pittsburgh area on the issue. Part of that million was going to be reached by doing letters to the editor and circulation of the newspaper and so on. It also included things like a guy who said, "I go to my hardware store every weekend and everybody there knows me, so I will set up a table at the hardware store every weekend," which is what he did. Another woman said that she dropped her father off at adult daycare every day, and so she would talk to the workers and other people at the adult daycare center.

This type of organizing taps into the existing frustrations that people have -- in the Pittsburgh case obstacles to voting -- and showing them how they can make a difference. "It's everybody recognizing their own networks," Nussbaum said. "I think that's the key to organizing, isn't it?"
She explained that Working America encourages people to see themselves as leaders within their own social circles, and, as it did in the case of the man in the hardware store, this recognition makes it easier to take action.

Nussbaum sees FixMyJob.com as a complement to these offline campaigns and as a means for introducing people to the labor movement. "Some people who use these tools will get turned on and they will become activists for life," she said. "Some will fail, but it will help create a new environment that I think supports what we're already beginning to see bubble up."

Source from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/amy-b-dean/why-the-revival-of-us-lab_b_3607972.html

Combating Discrimination in Texas Workplaces

Discrimination is a scourge of society as nobody has the right to prevent another from equal employment on the basis of their age, race, religion or sex. However, discrimination in the workplace is a more common malady than one would like to agree. The government has taken great steps to prevent discrimination in the workplace. The state of Texas has taken significant steps that prevent any organization from discriminating on the basis of:

Age

Discrimination on the basis of age is a practice that does take place in the workplace but the Texas Labor Code states in Chapter 21 and the ADEA also reiterates that no individual above the age of 40 is to be discriminated on the basis of their age.

To ensure this many regulations have been set which include:

· No age requirements or limitations are to be mentioned in any job ads or notices.

· Age should only be mentioned if the age of the employee has some relation with the job to be done.

· Information regarding date of birth shall only be required for official purposes and not with the intention to discriminate.

· The TWC Civil Rights Division allows you to submit complaints if you think you have been discriminated on the basis of your age.

Sex

The Texas Labor Code Chapter 21 protects employees from any sort of discrimination on the basis of sex and sexual harassment. The definition of sex discrimination includes:

· Being treated different due to being of the opposite sex.

· Being victim stereotypical assumptions on the basis of sex.

· Unlawful actions that denial of employment, promotion or the termination of employment.

Sexual harassment is also a major concern for employees in the workplace. This term can include requesting sexual favors, unwelcome advances or the physical touch of a sexual nature. Any of these behaviors can cause severe problems to the working of the employee. Therefore companies have in place certain complaint mechanism that allows the grievance to be met before it becomes a major issue.

Companies are also required to put up labor law posters that explain the term of sexual harassment and how to combat it if you are a victim of it. To find such posters all you need to do is click here.

Color

Color discrimination often takes place between members of different ethnicities or even the same race. Chapter 21 prevents any sort of discrimination of the basis of color of an individual and the US Equal Employment Opportunity Company ensures that discrimination doesn’t take place for any race of people, including Caucasians.

Race discrimination often includes:

· Ethic jokes and slurs

· Offensive and derogatory comments regarding one’s color

· Creation of hostile and intimidating environment

· Physical or verbal conduct that harasses another individual

In addition to these types of harassments, employees undergo other types of discrimination including:

· Religious

· National

· Disability

· Retaliation

Irrespective of the type of discrimination that you are facing the Texas Workforce Commission allows you to lodge complaints against any sort of activity that is causing you harassment. Even if you are not sure what harassment means then you can find the relevant information in the labor law posters that are put up in your workplace.

Know and Post Labor Law Compliance Posters

 

There are some rules and enforcements enacted by various agencies that require organizations to display labor law compliance posters. The Department of Labor provides electronic copies of the required posters and organizations can use them by printing them. Some of these posters are also available in languages other than English.

Labor Law Updates for the State of California in 2013

Labor laws are constantly being amended and upgraded by the state and federal government according to the need that they see. Laws regarding minimum wage need to be updated regularly to keep in touch with the rising expenses and standard of living. Even the state of California is not far behind in providing for its employees in the form of labor laws that are meant to protect their rights. 

All through the last year a number of California labor laws were being prepared to be passed. Many of the laws have been made effective since the 1^st of January 2013. These laws are related to workers compensation insurance, payroll tax limits and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. 

The following labor law updates have taken place in California in the year 2013:

• AB 2370 and SB 1381 Intellectual Disabilities
• SB 1193 Human Trafficking
• AB 2675 Employment Contract Requirements
• SB 1255 Itemized Wage Statements
• AB 1964 Protection of Religious Dress and Behavior
• AB 1844 Social Media Password Restrictions
• AB 2386 Breastfeeding in the Workplace
• AB 2674 Inspection of Employee Files
• AB 2103 Wage and Hour Overtime Laws
• AB 1775 Wage Garnishments: Exempt Earnings
• AB 2396 Employment of Infants in the Entertainment Industry
• SB 1038 Transfer of FEHC duties to DFEH

The various updates that have taken place in relation to these laws are required to be displayed in the workplace so that all employees are aware of the changes taking place. Labor law posters need to be updated so that they are compliant with all the changes that have been implemented. You can find well designed and recently updated labor law posters at this link, http://www.easybusinessposters.com/products/california-total-labor-law-poster.html, and provide the relevant information to your employees. 

Health Care Reforms Instituted in 2013  

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is quite an extensive and complex work of legislation. With over 2500 pages and around 450 provisions, it covers a large number of sectors including small businesses, individuals and up to the Federal government itself. 

According to the PPACA each state is to establish a government agency known as the American Health Benefit Exchange. The function of this organization will be to:

• Facilitate purchases of health plans qualified by the government
• Provide all needs for the establishment of Small Business Health

This organization is to assist employees in forming small group health benefit plans. One exchange can perform both the function or a state can put together separate exchanges for each of the functions.

From the year 2014, all employers who employ more than 50 full time employees will be required to provide their employees this coverage or face significant penalties. Further ignorance of this plan will lead to even more severe penalties in the coming years. 

These amendments come at a time when California could make the most of them. In the spirit of these laws all employers must aim to provide the best risk management and safety conditions to their workers so that the productivity will be best. By practicing regular inspections, providing safety training and active claims management you can reduce the amount of workplace injuries and reduce your risks and health costs.