Employment law is broad reaching and consists of thousands of federal and state statutes, administrative regulations, and judicial decisions. Many employment laws were enacted as protective labor legislation. Other employment laws have been enacted to ensure fairness and equality and some take the form of public insurance, such as unemployment compensation or workers' compensation. Federal and State employment laws affect virtually every employment decision. These laws include:

• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Civil Rights Act of 1866 (since amended numerous times)
• Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation Act (COBRA)
• Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
• Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• Federal False Claims Act
• Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970
• Workers Compensation Acts (state by state)
• Other Federal, State and local statutes

A significant portion of an individual's life is spent at work. The above laws, and many others, have been enacted to attempt to ensure that the environment in which an employee operates is safe and healthy and that fairness during the hiring, employment and departure phases of the individual's employment cycle is applied.

Employees need to understand their employer's hiring and personnel policies, compensation practices, workplace safety and privacy issues, potential breaches of contract, wrongful termination or dismissal and defamation policies. Some of these concerns are highlighted below.

Wrongful Discharge

Employees who have been wrongfully discharged or subjected to harassment or discrimination in connection with their employment need legal guidance. These cases are highly complex and require specialized knowledge of both the governing laws and the procedures of the administrative agencies that investigate these claims.

There are many types of wrongful dismissal. One type of wrongful discharge occurs when an employee "blows the whistle" on an employer. These types of dismissals have been receiving significant press recently for a number of reasons. Some of these include recent corporate governance legislation like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which changed many ways that business is reported and conducted, and changes to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines that revised the penalties for irregularities. Others relate to working conditions, discrimination issues and general employment concerns.

These and many other issues have raised awareness amongst employees, which in turn has created an increase in employees reporting suspected unethical or illegal activities. These areas include accounting irregularities, violations of governmental regulations, fraud, falsifying/destruction of company records, workplace violence, substance abuse, conflicts of interest and the release of proprietary information. If an employee is dismissed for disclosing these violations, then the employee may have been wrongfully dismissed.

Other types of wrongful discharge include employees who refuse to participate in illegal activities or who refuse to contravene public policy. State and Federal laws prescribe which actions are illegal and under which circumstances an employee may have rights against an employer.

If an employee is employed pursuant to an employment contract and is discharged in breach of that contract, that employee may also have a claim against the employer. A review the terms of the individual contract is necessary to determine if the employee has any rights and the extent of those rights.

Discrimination

Employment discrimination laws, mostly governed by the EEOC, prevent discrimination based on age, sex, religion, national origin, physical disability and pregnancy by all employers, including all non-profit and governmental agencies. A number of the above laws and other state laws and statues also protect employees against this discrimination.

In addition it is illegal for any employer to discriminate in any aspect of employment, including: hiring and firing; compensation, assignment, or classification of employees; transfer, promotion, layoff, or recall; job advertisements; recruitment; testing; use of company facilities; training and apprenticeship programs; fringe benefits; pay, retirement plans, and disability leave; and other terms and conditions of employment. Determining whether an individual, or a group of people, have a valid discrimination issue/case, requires a comprehensive understanding of all of the governing laws.

Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment has been defined by the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) as "unwelcome sexual advancements, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature...when... submission to or rejection of such conduct is used as the basis for employment decisions... or such conduct has the purpose or effect of... creating intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment." Sexual harassment is far broader than threats of discharge for rejecting sexual advances.

Sexual harassment statutes are in effect in various forms in all states, generally modeled on the Federal law. The primary differential is the remedies and damages given in successful sexual harassment claims. Some states allow money damages for personal injuries, while others also allow punitive damages to be rewarded.

Employment Accidents

Another key area of employment law addresses workers who are injured while on the job, who have been injured in association with their job, or who have safety or health issues directly related to their job. These work-related issues are covered under numerous Federal Laws and state workers' compensation laws. These workers' compensation laws, the length and amount of coverage, the amount of the payments and the procedures all vary from state to state.

Workers' compensation is a type of insurance that nearly all employers are required by law to provide for their employees. This obligation applies to both private and public employers, regardless of the number of persons employed. It makes no difference whether an employer is characterized as a for-profit business, a non-profit or a charitable organization. In each case, workers' compensation insurance must be provided.

Most employers buy coverage from an insurance company and the insurance company pays the benefits. Some employers are self-insured; this means that the employer pays benefits directly. Very few employees are excluded from coverage. Major exceptions include the Federal Government, railroads, shipyards, and maritime employers. Employees in those industries are covered by other compensation laws, such as the Longshoremen and Harborworkers Act and the Federal Employers Liability Act.