In order to stay compliant with federal and state labor laws, employers must display labor posters in a conspicuous place, easily visible to employees. Labor law posters notify employees—and in some cases, job applicants—of their employment rights, including:
- Minimum wage standards, overtime pay and child labor laws under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA)
- Workplace safety under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)
- Job-protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
- Anti-discrimination provisions under Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)
- The right not to be subjected to lie detector tests as a condition of employment, with stated exceptions, under the Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA)
Penalties for non-compliance can run into the thousands of dollars. For example, violation of the posting requirements prescribed under OSHA can run as high as $12,934.
So how often do you need to update your labor law posters to avoid citations or expensive penalties?
It depends.
Whenever federal or state labor law changes are made, you need to update your posters. However, those changes don’t always occur on January 1st. Government agencies may issue postings before or after the effective date of the regulatory update. Minimum wage changes may go into effect mid-year.  So buying a new employment poster at the beginning of the year isn’t the answer.
An easy way to ensure your business remains compliant with federal and state labor laws is to enroll in a Labor Poster Subscription Program. Then, you will automatically be forwarded new labor posters when regulations change under federal law and/or for your specific state(s).
Ready to subscribe and save yourself the compliance hassle? If you have questions, please contact your Payroll Specialist.
