Do you know you have rights as an employee and member of the United States labor force? Labor laws govern the employment system of the country. It includes anything that relates to employment, workplace, and wages. More than often, employees don't know they have rights that guarded them against abuses.
Here are some of the highlights of labor laws:
- Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Employees are entitled to 12 weeks unpaid but job-protected leave for medical purposes. It includes birth or adoption of a child, and when a member of the family or immediate relative including parents. Employees cannot force an employee to report to work or fire the employee due to the long leave.
- Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It can considered as the governing and fundamental labor law. It covers the wage and overtime pay of employees, both of private and public. Under this act, employers of nonagricultural sectors cannot force 16 years old employees to work more than the minimum number of hours. In the same way, this act protects children under 18 years old from dangerous jobs.
- Occupational Safety and Health Act. To protect employees from dangerous jobs, there are regulations and standards on safety and health. This way workplaces are ensured to be safe and hazard-free to avoid accidents that may lead to injuries or death of employees. Asbestos-related cases are examples of this labor law.
- Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This act commands employers to include employees on a group health plans. With this labor law, employees are protected from discrimination due to health status. Instead of choosing few employees within the organization, this act dictates that all employees, irrespective of circumstances, should be included in a group health plan.
- Comprehensive Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). When employees or their beneficiaries lose their company health benefits through the group health plan for a certain period of time, COBRA gives them the choice to continue participating on the plan or not. These circumstance of company health plan forfeiture include reduction of worked hours, job transition, involuntary job loss, divorce, death, or other life events.
- Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Act. If you have been working on a regular job prior entering the armed forced service, you are entitled for re-employment with your former employer. This way those who are called up for the National Guard or as reserves have security of employment after the tenure of service.
Now that you know your labor rights, be sure to fight for them. The federal and the state governments are working to protect the American workforce from outright abuses.
