You Have Rights as an Employee: US Labor Laws

Even though you may be surprised to hear this but there are really no U. S. Labor laws of any kind to which mandates how an employer must treat you as a person. In other words there are no laws in saying that an employer cannot be a jerk towards you, in which it will keep a bad boss from making your life miserable by going to work every day. So, in case you wonder, yes even those jerky bosses are entitled to their rights. After all, we live in a democracy in which government regulation is discouraged and employment is at will.

There are laws set up for overtime pay and minimum wage. But there are no labor laws that tells an employer how much to pay an employee. Also, most benefits are not mandated by labor laws. This includes severance pay, sick leave, and vacation pay. To your surprise your employer even has the right to spy on you without your knowledge, make you take a drug test and unfairly terminate your employment just to name a few. You may think you are getting the wrong end of the stick but it may not be illegal for your employer, even though you may think otherwise.
The good news though is that there are a handful of labor laws that do generally protect U.S. workers. Most employers will adhere to these basic laws, because if they don't they very well could end up in court.

But that's generally is at the HR and legal department levels, where the employees are properly trained in such matters. Companies are also made up of other employees, who might not have heard of labor laws or fully understand their significance. That is why HR and legal departments should properly train those in control like that boss is a jerk. Another big problem that goes on is that the HR and legal departments are unlikely to admit that an employee complaints and accusations have little or no merit, and the company is liable. The worst thing about this is that the perpetrators are more protected then the victims.

You may feel like you are getting a raw deal, but just showing your employer the appropriate labor law if there is one might not mean a thing. You might have to go to court or arbitration and prove that your employer violated your rights by breaking a specific labor law.

Ulises Tarmet is a paralegal who has worked with many California Overtime Lawyers educating many clients about California Overtime Laws.