The Department of Labor, (DOL) currently administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws. These laws cover a multitude of work place activities; affecting 10 million employers and their estimated 125 million employees. This information will acquaint you with some of the major labor laws, such as FMLA, ADA, and FLSA. This webinar was posted on February 29, 2012 and presented by Nancy Edwards, SPHR, HR Manager.

1. Surviving the
Regulatory Minefield
By: Nancy Edwards, SPHR
February 29, 2012

2. Important Notice
• I am not an attorney
• This is not a substitute for
experienced legal counsel
• This is not legal advice

3. Today’s Topics
• What we will review today
– Federal Required Postings
– Family and Medical Leave Act
– Americans with Disabilities Act
Amendment Act

4. Poll
• What is your function or
department at your organization?
– Human Resources/Administration
– Finance
– Production
– Quality/Regulatory
– Other

5. Federal Law By The
Numbers
• Federal Labor Laws affect all
employers
– Additional laws apply as employee
headcount increases
– Employers are required to
conspicuously post notices
– State laws may require additional
postings

6. 1 to 14 Employees
• Federal Labor Laws for Employers of 1-14 Employees:
– Civil Rights Act of 1964
– Civil Rights Act of 1991
– Employee Polygraph Protection Act 1988
– Employee Retirement Income Security Act 1974
– Equal Pay Act 1963
– Fair Labor Standards Act 1938
– Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 1996
– Immigration Reform & Control Act 1986
– National Labor Relations Act 1935
– Occupational Safety & Health Act 1970
– Uniformed Services Employment & Re-employment Rights Act
1994

7. 15+ Employees
• Equal Employment Opportunity
Act 1972
• Title I, Americans with Disabilities
Act 1990
• Pregnancy Discrimination Act

8. 20+ Employees
• Age Discrimination in Employment
Act 1967
• Consolidated Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act 1985

9. 50+ Employees
• Family and Medical Leave Act
1993
• EEO-1 Report for federal
contractors (with 50 or more
employees)

10. 100+ Employees
• Worker Adjustment & Retraining
Notification Act 1989
• EEO-1 Report for all employers

11. Required Federal Law
Posting
• Federal labor law posting requirements
(each State may have additional posting
requirements):
– Employee Polygraph Protection Act
– Federal Minimum Wage (FLSA)
– OSHA
– USERRA
– EEOC
– FMLA
– National Labor Relations Act

12. Poll
• Is the revised Federal poster that
includes the new NLRB notice
displayed in your workplace?
– Yes
– No
– What revised poster??

13. Employee Polygraph
Protection Act
• Employee Polygraph Protection
Act
– Established in 1988
– Generally prevents private sector
employers from using lie-detector
tests
– Enforced by the Wage and Hour
Division of the DOL

14. FLSA
• Fair Labor Standards Act
– Established in 1938
– Establishes the minimum wage
– Some states have a higher
minimum wage—check your state’s
minimum wage
– Establishes overtime pay for non-
exempt employees

15. OSHA
• Occupational Safety and Health
Act
– Enacted in 1970
– An agency of the DOL
– Enforces whistleblower statutes
– Exemptions

16. USERRA
• Uniformed Services Employment
and Reemployment Rights Act
– Enacted in 1994
– Protects servicemembers’
reemployment rights
– Prohibits discrimination based on
military service or obligation

17. EEOC
• Equal Employment Opportunity Act 1972
– Improves Title VII’s effectiveness since its enactment in
1964
– EEOC has litigation authority (EEOC can sue
nongovernment respondents → You)
– Educational institutions were included
– State and local governments are no longer exempt
– The Federal government is not included
– Number of employees needed is reduced from 25 to 15
– Charging parties have a longer time to file charges (180
calendar days rather than 90 days)

18. GINA
• Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act
of 2008
– Took effect November 21, 2009
– Included in the EEOC posting
– Forbids discrimination on the basis of genetic
information in regards to employment
– Prohibits harassment because of genetic
information
– Generally unlawful to obtain genetic
information

19. FMLA
• Family and Medical Leave Act
– The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) provides a means
for employees to balance their work and family responsibilities by
taking unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons
– The FMLA provides an entitlement of up to 12 weeks of job-protected,
unpaid leave during any 12-month period to eligible, covered
employees
– FMLA also requires that the employee's group health insurance
coverage be maintained under the same terms and conditions during
the leave as if the employee had not taken leave.
– Covered employers are required to post a notice for employees
outlining the basic provisions of the FMLA
– If a covered employer has any eligible employees, it must also provide
general notice to each employee by including the notice in employee
handbooks or other written guidance to employees concerning benefits
or leave rights

20. NLRB
• National Labor Relations Act
– As of April 30, 2012, most private
sector employers must post notice
– Failure to post notice may result in a
charge of an unfair labor practice

21. FMLA
• Family and Medical Leave Act
– Applies to employers who have at least 50
employees (F/T, P/T, Temps) for at least 20
weeks in the current or preceding year
– Applies to employees who have been employed
by a covered employer for at least a total of 12
months (not necessarily consecutive) and has
worked at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months
immediately preceding the leave

22. FMLA
• Eligible employees are entitled to take up to 12
weeks of unpaid leave per 12 month period
• For:
– Birth, adoption, or placement for foster care of a child
– To care for a spouse, child, or parent with a serious
health condition
– To care for their own serious health condition
– To handle exigent circumstances related to eligible
family members called to active federal military service
in a foreign country
– To care for immediate family member or next of kin
seriously injured servicemember (this qualifies for a 26
week period per injury or each injured servicemember)

23. FMLA: Employee Do’s
• The employee must:
– Provide employer with sufficient information to
indicate their need for FMLA leave
• Employee need not specifically mention
“FMLA”, “serious health condition”,
“qualifying exigency” or other terminology
• Simply saying “I’m sick” or “my child has a
cold” is not sufficient
– Inform the employer within 30 days of the
need or as soon as practicable

24. FMLA: Employer Do’s
• The employer must:
– Respond to the employee within five business
days of the request for leave
– If leave is denied, give the employee the
reason for the denial
– Give the employee at least 15 calendar days to
return a completed medical certification
– Give the employee written designation
notification within five business days of
receiving medical certification

25. ADAAA
• Americans With Disabilities Act Amendment Act
– ADA enacted in 1990
– ADAAA took effect on 1/1/2009
– Employment actions before that date are judged by the
prior ADA requirements
– ADA was enacted to protect disabled persons from
discrimination in numerous areas, including employment
– Applies to employers that had at least 15 or more
employees for 20 or more calendar weeks in the current
year or the preceding calendar year (weeks need not be
consecutive)

26. ADAAA Requirements
• Employer requirements
– Employers may not discriminate against a qualified
individual on the basis of a disability
– Employers must provide reasonable accommodation
unless the accommodation would impose an undue
hardship
– Employers must not tolerate any workplace harassment
– Employers must prohibit retaliation against individuals
who have complained about discrimination
– Employers must protect all medical information of all
employees (disabled or not)

27. What is a Disability?
• Under the ADAAA a person has a disability
if the person fulfills at least one of the
following:
– Has a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more major life
activities
– Has a record of such an impairment
– Is regarded by the employer as having such an
impairment

28. What is not a Disability?
• Samples of what is not a disability
– Physical attributes
– Personality characteristics
– Use of illegal drugs
– Social conditions
– Certain dangerous disorders

29. What is a Major Life
Activity?
• Major life activities include:
– Walking
– Seeing
– Hearing
– Speaking
– Breathing
– Learning
– Working
– Sitting
– Standing
– Lifting
– Reading

30. ADAAA: What To Do
• Update your job descriptions
• Know what could be a covered
disability
• Actively discuss requests for
accommodation
• Assess the reasonableness of the
requested accommodation
• Document

31. Questions?
Nancy Edwards
nedwards@gnapartners.com
713-235-8293

32. Citations
• www.dol.gov
• www.nlrb.gov
• www.eeoc.gov
• www.hrlaws.com