Employees might wonder, “What are the paid holidays in Virginia for 2011? The answer depends upon the employer. There is no federal law which requires an employer anywhere in the U.S. to observe any holiday, nor is there a federal law requiring employees be provided with
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Voting laws requiring employers to provide some type of time off for workers to vote have been established in the majority of the states in the U.S. In all 50 states, however, employers are prohibited by law from attempting to influence a worker’s vote, or to threaten discipline or
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Employers are required to give employees time off to vote in Arkansas. Like Arkansas, Iowa is one of thirty-two U.S. states, including Alabama, Arizona, Massachusetts, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Wisconsin and Wyoming, that has enacted laws requiring employers to give workers time off to vote. In addition, Iowa is
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The majority of the states in the country have established some type of voting laws which allow employees time off to vote. Some pay the employees for the time; others provide unpaid time off to vote. In general 2 hours of time off is considered sufficient for employees to
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Hosting a holiday party for employees can be enjoyable, but can also be a liability nightmares for employers and HR pros. Depending on the venue and the activity, the employer can be held liable for any accidents that occur during holiday parties. Problems can arise from drinking,
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Many employers this time of year are planning holiday parties. While parties can be a welcome break from office routine, experts at SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, suggest that it is important to make them inclusive. Remember that not every employee is Christian. Unless
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Which federal law governs maternity leave for small businesses in Indiana? Many people are surprised to find that there isn’t one, nor is there a law at the state level for small businesses in Indiana. Many states have enacted leave laws for small business, but Indiana hasn’t.
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The primary law in the United States governing maternity leave is the federal FMLA (Family and Medical Leave Act). This law, however, applies to employers with 50 or more employees. That excludes most Mississippi small businesses. So, what state or federal law governs maternity leave for employees
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Are small businesses in New Mexico required by state law to provide maternity leave? There answer is no, because there is no New Mexico state maternity leave law which applies to small businesses. The determining factor regarding granting of maternity leave is the employer’s size.
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Many Ohio small business employers are confused about their responsibility for providing maternity leave–paid or unpaid. There is no federal law requiring Ohio small businesses to grant maternity leave, unless they are covered under FMLA. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides up
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Amy recently left her job in Alabama to move out of state, but didn’t receive pay for my unused vacation time. She wonders if that is legal. The answer is it depends. From a state law point of view, yes it’s legal. Alabama does not have
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An employee working at a Kansas company has a boss who constantly yells at the employees and calls them names. Does this constitute a hostile work environment? It depends. The legal definition of hostile work environments includes two conditions that must be met. The employee is
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Is an employee allowed to “double dip” by taking unpaid leave under both the federal FMLA and the Wisconsin family leave act during the same year? The answer is sometimes yes, but at other times, no. Under federal law, an employee is entitled to unpaid, job-protected to
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Can an employee be required to attend meetings or other events while on continuous FMLA? The answer is no. An employee on FMLA is not required to work. The employee is off and cannot be expected to answer phone calls, check email or stop by the office for meetings.
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There is no federal law that requires most Florida small business owners to grant paid or unpaid maternity leave to employees. The primary law used for maternity leave in the U.S. is the federal FMLA, the Family and Medical Leave Act. However, the FMLA applies only to
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At least 18 states have made changes in their mini-COBRA laws since February 2009. In most cases, these changes were made to permit employees of smaller companies to take advantage of the federal COBRA subsidy under ARRA, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Mini-COBRA laws
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If an Idaho employer loses a case in which he or she has been charged with allowing or creating a “hostile work environment,” it can be very costly. In two cases that went before the EEOC recently, for example, the companies involved had to pay out more than $1
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Illinois employees are wondering if their benefit funds are protected by law. The answer is yes, for most plans. The majority of private industry pension and health plans, including 401ks are protected by ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974). This federal law applies to Illinois
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According to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), an employee’s disability information must be kept confidential. Other federal laws, such as HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, mandate that certain types of employee data can be
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“Reasonable accommodation” is a phrase often heard when discussing issues of accessibility in the Connecticut workplace. What does it mean? How should it be interpreted? The term comes from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), passed in 1990. According to this federal law, businesses must
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Most employers and employees know that it is illegal to discriminate in against disabled workers when it comes to hiring, training, promotions, working condition, discipline, and the like. Most of them also realize that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 requires firms to make reasonable
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Every Arizona employer should have a plan in place for dealing with a swine flu epidemic this winter. Some agencies have already taken action. The CDC, for example, issued an alert on Swine Flu in April of 2009. Meanwhile, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security,
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Oklahoma employees wonder if employers are required to provide employee with paid holidays. No. There is no Oklahoma or federal law that requires a company to give workers paid holidays. Most companies do, though. Generally, employers provide workers with 5 to 7 paid holidays per year.
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Pennsylvania employers have wondered how many smoking breaks per day they are legally obligated to give employees. The answer is none. Pennsylvania employers are not legally obligated to provide any smoking breaks, ever. No federal law mandates it, nor is there a Pennsylvania law requiring
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In the event of a pandemic (a global epidemic), Iowa employers and those throughout the nation should already have a plan in place to handle the problem. OSHA has been recommending this step for at least 5 years. Unfortunately, until the recent outbreak of Influenza 2009 H1N1 Flu (
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Discrimination is prohibited by many federal laws. One of the most notable laws on this topic is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex and religion. Other federal laws soon followed, prohibiting discrimination against persons with
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Age discrimination against employees 40 to 70 years old is generally illegal in Colorado, under federal law. However, in several cases, courts have recognized age as a “bona fide qualification”. This applies to both older and younger employees. Occupations involving public safety are a good example. Police departments have
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Disciplining an employee for an infraction of company policy can be awkward and difficult. There are no New York laws governing disciplinary measures, but some Human Resources professionals have put a few methods into practice. In most large companies and franchises, these disciplinary methods have become standard operating procedure.
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Most Virginia employers have put into place a procedure for disciplining an employee who breaks a company policy. This procedure usually involves a verbal warning, followed by written warnings. Most companies use the one verbal, three written standard, but the exact number is completely under their control.
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Most Michigan employers provide their workers two paid breaks per day, usually lasting 10 to 15 minutes. Michigan employees are asking if Muslim workers are permitted to take additional breaks for prayer. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employers are prohibited from discriminating
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