Federal Employment Standards
- The Fair Labor Standards Act provides guidance for setting the wages you pay employees and provides protection for child labors, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. It also specifies the requirements you must follow to be able to pay a special minimum wage to employees with disabilities. The Consumer Credit Protection Act contains the laws regarding the garnishment of an employee's wages, and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act sets forth the provisions regarding protection for agricultural workers.
- The Occupational Safety and Heath Administration administers laws created by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. The four main categories of standards for different workplaces include general industry, agriculture, construction and maritime, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The standards provide the guidance for employers regarding an employee's right to know if the materials they are using could damage their health, the use of personal protective equipment and allows representatives of OSHA the ability to inspect records containing information about employees' exposure to harmful substances.
- The employee Retirement Income Security Act contains the standards for employee benefit plans if your business provides benefits. You do not have to provide benefits for your employees, but if you do you must follow the laws regarding benefits and retirement plans, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act and the Defense Base Act contain special standards for employers of longshore and harbor workers, and defense base employees. If you employ miners, you must follow the standards set forth in the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977.
- The federal government has standards in place to protect employees if you do not adhere to the laws regarding employees. The Occupational Safety and Health Act contains provisions that protect employees from retaliation if they report safety violations. The Employee Polygraph Protection Act protects employees from the illegal use of polygraph tests by private-sector employers, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act contains the standards that employers with 100 or more employees must follow when the facility will be closing or will have a mass layoff. The Family and Medical Leave Act contains the standards about job protection if an employee must be off work because of a personal or family medical issue.
- The Immigration and Nationality Act governs the employment of non-US citizens. The government has added special sections to the Act regarding visas for certain types of workers including temporary agricultural workers, workers in specialty occupations, non-agricultural temporary workers, crew members, nurses and workers who want to work in the U.S. permanently, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.