2008 Minnesota Labor Law Posters

December 19th, 2007 Posted by Amelia

The past year has brought myriad changes in labor law throughout the nation. And, more changes are on the way. California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado and ten other states will be raising their state minimum wage as of January 1, 2008. 

Every employer in Minnesota should take a few minutes during this busy season to update his or her 2008 Minnesota labor law posters.

Many of these changes affect labor law posters, which is why it’s important to update the posters at least once per year.

The official list of required 2008 Minnesota labor law posters include:

  • Minimum Wage
  • Leave of Absence/Parental Leave Rights
  • OSHA – Health and Safety Protection on the Job
  • Workers’ Compensation
  • Discrimination Notice
  • Unemployment Insurance

In addition to the state posters, federal law requires that every employer in the nation display a number of posters. These include:

  • USERRA – Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act
  • Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law
  • Federal Minimum Wage
  • Employee Polygraph Protection Act
  • Family and Medical Leave Act
  • OSHA-Job Safety & Health Protection

A number of these posters have been updated for 2008.

The minimum wage is scheduled to go up again in 2008. On July 24, the federal minimum wage will increase from $5.85 to $6.55 per hour. As with the increase in 2007, several other states will bump up their minimum wage, too, as a result of the federal minimum going up.

In other changes to labor law in 2007, Illinois also enacted a tough law regarding smoking. Almost every work environment, even restaurants bars and casinos are now non-smoking. Labor law posters will need to be updated as a result of these changes.

Until October, teens in Alaska could be employed by a gas station or convenience store that sold cigarettes. And though it was already illegal in Alaska for anyone under the age of 19 to buy cigarettes, people were concerned that these teens could be selling cigarettes to friends who might be underage. The Child Labor Laws, therefore, were amended to prohibit anyone under the age of 19 from selling cigarettes.

The past year also saw a number of significant minimum wage violations. In September, two companies agreed to pay nearly $1 million in unpaid overtime to 382 workers employed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The workers were employed by L&R Security Inc. of New Orleans and HKA Enterprises Inc. of Duncan, South Carolina as subcontractors for CH2M Hill of Englewood, Colorado under a FEMA contract. Employees worked as security guards at FEMA trailer sites and in debris removal, but were not paid overtime in accordance with federal law.

In early July, the U.S. Department of Labor forced 107 subcontractors of KBR, Inc. of Virginia to pay some $1.5 million in back wages and benefits for up to 2,600 workers who participated in the Hurricane Katrina recovery project. The construction workers were involved in repairs to the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Gulfport Mississippi or the Naval Air Station/Joint Reserve Base in Belle Chasse, Louisiana. The U.S. Department of Labor is still searching for some of the workers involved in that case. Anyone who believes that they are owed back wages for these projects can contact the nearest U.S. Department of Labor office. The average payment per worker in that case was $616.

In August, five jointly-operated restaurants in Long Island, New York were ordered to pay almost $1 million to 191 low-wage workers. The employees had been forced to work long hours for wages less than the minimum wage, without overtime pay.  The court ordered that if the employers did not pay up, their restaurants could be sold and the proceeds used to pay the employees.

In addition to the changes in 2007, more changes are scheduled to occur in 2008.On January 1 and July 1, 2008, over 20 states will increase their state minimum wage.

No Comments >> Posted in Compliance Issues,Employer Requirements,Labor Law Posters,Minnesota

Minnesota USERRA Poster

May 31st, 2007 Posted by Amelia

One of the purposes of the new USERRA regulations is to protect employees who serve in the military’s job benefits and prospects while they are away on active service.  When the employee returns to their civilian jobs after a period of service they are entitled to benefits and promotions that they would have receive had they been present.

There have been a number of test cases involving veterans returning from military service. The results were that in some cases they were awarded cost related pay rises and annual salary increases equal to those they would have received if they had not been on military service. Some were also awarded promotions that they would have received to due length of service in their civilian jobs.

The final USERRA regulations were recently released by the Dept. of Labor and these provide a welcome clarification to the rights of those serving in the military that have to leave civilian jobs for a period of time. Although it was relatively well known that a veteran’s civilian job had to be kept open for a period of five years, these regulations were not so well known.

Now would be a great time to ensure that there is an up-to-date Minnesota USERRA poster in your workplace. The most recent regulations state that members of the Air Force, Navy or Army reserve are entitled to have their civilian jobs protected for a period of up to five year. The regulations also apply to returning veterans. The period of five years does not have to be continuous. For example, a volunteer who serves for a period of two years, returns to their civilian job, and then serves for another period of three years is still protected under the USERRA regulations.

It is recommended that employers familiarize themselves with the recent USERRA regulations and make sure that all concerned parties understand how they affect the work force.

No Comments >> Posted in Compliance Issues,Employer Requirements,Labor Law Posters,Minnesota

State of Minnesota (MN) Employment Labor Posters

September 15th, 2006 Posted by Lindsay

OK, I know you have probably read quite enough from me concerning the labor laws and the related employment labor posters. It seems that I go on and on about this pet topic. However, this is information that bears repeating because it is such a concern. Every employer should work to remain in compliance with the law through the use of state and federal employment labor posters.

The Minnesota ( MN ) Employment Labor Posters that are required in every workplace in the state are: Minimum Wage Law, Leave of Absence/Parental Leave Rights, OSHA – Health and Safety Protection on the Job, Workers’ Compensation Notice, Discrimination Notice, and Unemployment Insurance.

Additionally, there are several Federal posting requirements. These include the following posters: USERRA – Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law, Federal Minimum Wage, Employee Polygraph Protection Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, and OSHA-Job Safety & Health Protection.

My concern is not so much whether employers are using the posters, because I am fairly sure that the majority of them know and understand the law about displaying employment labor posters. No, my concern is that employers are so busy running their business that they may not be aware of the changes to the laws. Yet they are responsible to know about the changes; otherwise they are not in compliance with the various laws in Minnesota.

One example that I was just reviewing is the new minimum wage rate. Because of the changes to the minimum wage, which affects people working for both small and large employers as well as workers who are working under the so-called training wage, the minimum wage poster in all places of business should have already been changed. Have you changed yours? If not, it would be good to check on your Minnesota ( MN ) Employment Labor Posters and update them right away.

No Comments >> Posted in Compliance Issues,Employer Requirements,Labor Law Posters,Minnesota

Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster

September 13th, 2006 Posted by Mark

I’ll assume you’re from Minnesota if you’re reading this, but what I won’t do is dig into you for where you live. Sure, I can’t understand why you’d want to live somewhere that’s so cold that you can’t even step outside in the winter for fear of turning into Frosty the Snowman. But I’m here to do a job, so I’ll just focus in on that. And what’s my job? To write about the Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster.

There’s a lot to write about too. For instance, when you mention a Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster, you have to two main things that probably catch your eye. First, there’s the labor law poster of the Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster. You want to learn more about the poster itself. That’s why you’re here. But then again, that word “free” is keeping your attention, also, and you want to know just where you can get one of these posters for free.

Let’s start there in our discussion of the Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster, because that’s a pretty easy topic to cover. It would be great to get a free labor law poster for Minnesota. The trick, though, is getting one that is accurate and one that will stand the wear and tear of real world office life. In other words, there may be a lot of free posters out there to pick from, but can you be assured that they’ll last on your work site walls for more than a month before they get shredded, vandalized, or fall apart on their own?

That other argument about the Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster—that you should make certain that they’re also accurate—is even more important. Any Minnesota labor poster, whether it’s a Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster or one that you bought, should contain the six mandatory federal postings.

But what’s more, the Free Minnesota Labor Law Poster should also contain six state postings, from the state OSHA posting, to the workers’ comp posting, from the leave of absence notice to the discrimination notice, from the minimum wage posting to the unemployment insurance notice.

No Comments >> Posted in Compliance Issues,Employer Requirements,Labor Law Posters,Minnesota

Minnesota Labor Law Poster

September 7th, 2006 Posted by Jolie

If you haven’t done so recently, I would suggest taking some time to look over the most current Minnesota Labor Law Poster. You’ll find that some changes have been made, and it’s always good to keep up on these things!

In case you aren’t aware, Minnesota law states that all employers must post a Minnesota Labor Law Poster in an area that is visible and accessible to employees so that they can be informed of their labor law rights. The Minnesota Labor Law Poster includes individual state and federal labor law notices that are mandated by the State of Minnesota. You can usually find the posters in break rooms, lunch rooms, or other rooms that employees frequently congregate in.

Did you know that the Minnesota Labor Law Poster often changes, and that it’s important for employees to be able to read current posters? Actually, it’s not only important, it’s the law!

If you are wondering what notices are included on the Minnesota Labor Law Poster, here is the basic rundown. The state notices cover Minimum Wage, Leave of Absence/Parental Leave Rights, OSHA, Discrimination, Workers’ Compensation, and Unemployment Insurance, while the federal posters explain Equal Opportunity Employment, Federal Minimum Wage, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, OSHA’s Job Safety and Health Protection Act, and USERRA.

If you haven’t looked at the Minnesota Labor Law Poster recently, you should know that the Child Labor notice has some changes. Minimum wage has increased in this sector in the following way: for small employers, it has gone to $5.25/hour. For large employers, it has gone to $6.16/hour. The training wage for employees under 20 is $4.90/hour for the first consecutive 90 days of employment.

I hope you found this information on Minnesota Labor Law Posters informative. Thanks for reading.

No Comments >> Posted in Compliance Issues,Employer Requirements,Labor Law Posters,Minnesota

1  2  3   Next >>