HR Legal Provided by Advisor HR
As a client of Advisor HR you have access to HR Legal for all employment law support.
This level of client services allows Advisor HR’s service team to protect and help reduce any risk for the employers. Our in house counsel helps guide businesses through some of the most challenging issues that employers face.
What is HR Compliance?
Compliance is an integral requirement of the Human Resources department. Aside from GDPR compliance, internal KPI assessments, and the regular auditing of documents and records, there are many factors managers need to be aware of to ensure HR compliance at all levels of a large or small business.
HR, payroll and executive managers need to be aware of these changes and review all policies and practices to ensure HR compliance with updated applicable laws.
Key HR Laws Facing Human Resources
There are various legal aspects that employers needs to be aware of to ensure compliance with HR labor laws. Here are some of the key HR laws facing Human Resources:
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Employee Time Tracking Laws
Time and attendance tracking is one of the core functions of HR. Thus, it is important to make sure that employers are adhering to all relevant legal requirements of employee time tracking.
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According to the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA), records must include the date and time when employees start and stop working, as well as the number of hours employees clock each day and each week. State law may provide further specifications as to how employers can track employee hours and allocate overtime or time-in-lieu.
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Confidentiality
The employers HR department has access to a broad spectrum of sensitive employee information. This can include tax and social security numbers, health records, personal addresses and phone numbers, and employment contracts. This personal data needs to be safeguarded to ensure compliance with data protection regulations.
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Onsite HR must also protect the confidentiality of data relating to management strategies and company data. Data protection can be especially challenging in the case of workplace investigations and disciplinary measures. The right balance between transparency and confidentiality needs to be found. Ensure data privacy in your company by tailoring your policies to fit local law.
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Employee Benefits
HR managers must ensure all employees receive compensation and benefits in line with federal employment law. This includes salaries, annual leave and sick pay, pensions (for employee retirement income security), and overtime pay. Salaries detailed in contracts must be in line with the established minimum wage and comply with the Fair Work Act.
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Workplace Discrimination
Workplace discrimination laws ensure employees are protected against discrimination in the workplace at all stages of employment. This includes recruitment, employment terms and conditions, training, pay and benefits, promotion and transfer opportunities, dismissal and redundancy.
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Discrimination can be based on gender, race, sexual orientation, and religion. Employers must ensure there is no discrimination based on marital and family status, disability, and veteran status. All business practices must be compliant with anti-discriminatory laws. If an employee feels that they were discriminated against and suffered an adverse action such as employment termination or lack of promotion, they are entitled to file a discrimination lawsuit.
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Employers are also required to inform employees about their rights under EEOC laws. Employees must be aware that any filed discrimination complaints do not impact their working conditions or job security.
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Harassment
Another important legal issue in human resources is preventing harassment. Companies must create anti-harassment policies that strive to create and maintain a work environment in which people are treated with dignity, decency, and respect. These policies must be made readily available to all new and existing employees. In addition, training should also be provided to all managers to ensure they are able to detect potential cases of harassment and conduct, fair, impartial and thorough investigations in the event a claim is made by an employee.
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The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has reported a significant increase in reported cases of sexual discrimination in recent years, owed, in part, to the increasing popularity of the #metoo movement. Consequently, states including California and New York State have passed new legislation to implement workplace sexual harassment prevention training.
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Workplace Safety
The human resources department is responsible for ensuring all employees are provided with a safe working environment. They also need to create a culture of safety at work and make sure all staff receive adequate training and guidance on all matters relating to health and safety.
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In the event of an accident or incident, all information needs to be documented and investigated and regular risk assessments and other preventative methods must be undertaken.
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Labor Rights
Employers must be aware of all labor rights. Managers need to ensure relevant policies and procedures are implemented and communicated to all employees. Aside from equal pay, this includes overtime pay. This extra allowance is monitored and calculated in line with the FLSA, and minimum rates per hour in the case of waged employees. It also takes into account rights relating to working hours, breaks, and compensation plans.
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The Department of Labor enforces approximately 180 employee job protection laws, ranging from pay requirements to termination notice periods, and parental leave benefits. Other protections are supervised by agencies such as the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. These legal protections provide a minimal level of income to employees and safeguard them from unfair practices in the workplace.
