Summary: Employment Law Compliance Plan
MEMORANDUM
TO: Traci Goldeman, Manager, Atwood and Allen Consulting
FROM: Anita Dunn, Consultant
SUBJECT: Landslide Limousines Employment Law Compliance Plan
DATE: June 28, 2015
Bradley Stonefield is opening a limousine service. The business name will be called Landslide Limousines and he will focus on providing first-class transportation. Mr. Stonefield is opening the business in Austin, Texas where his goal is to have 25 employees within the first year. I have included four laws that could potentially affect his business if handled improperly. Employment law is the area of law that covers all aspects of employer and employee relationships. Most employment laws are set to protect the rights of employees (Supervisor Essentials Training …show more content…
Performance Management and the Law 230, 2014). In order to be in compliance with both federal and state, we will review a few important laws that the organization must follow such as Occupational Safety and Health Act, Texas Minimum Wage Law, Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and Equal Pay Act of 1963.
Occupational Safety and Health Act The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act was passed to "assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women." The OSH Act created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) at the federal level and provided that states could run their own safety and health programs as long as those programs were at least as effective as the federal program (United States Department of Labor (n.d).
Any employer who willfully or repeatedly violates this Act, any standard, rule, or order of this Act may be assessed civil penalties for each violation. Any employer who fails to correct a violation for which a citation has been issued under section 9(a) within the period permitted for its correction may be assessed a civil penalty for each day during which such failure or violation continues (United States Department of Labor (n.d).
Texas Minimum Wage Law The current minimum wage rate in Texas is $7.25. The Texas Minimum Wage Act establishes a minimum wage for non-exempt employees and requires covered employers to provide each employee with a written earnings statement containing certain information about the employee 's pay and designates Texas Workforce Commission as the agency responsible for disseminating information about state minimum wage requirements (Texas Workforce Commission). If this law is violated, the employee can claim the amount of unpaid wages plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damage (Landry …show more content…
Employment Lawyers (2015).
Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 Both the Texas Labor Code and the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”) prohibit age discrimination against employees over the age of 40.
These laws make it unlawful for an employer to consider an employee’s age when making decisions related to hiring, firing, promoting, training, compensating, or other terms of employment. These laws also prohibit an employer from retaliating against an employee for making a good faith claim of age discrimination to the employer. If an employer is found to be in violation and a lawsuit is filed, an employee may be able to recover lost wages and benefits to the time of trial, liquidated damages equal to the amount of lost wages, punitive damages, attorney’s fees and compensatory damages (The Cook Law Firm,
2015).
Equal Pay Act of 1963
The Equal Pay Act makes it illegal to pay men and women working in the same place different salaries for similar work (Equal Pay Act of 1963 (n.d). The Texas Equal Pay Act provides that all women employed by the state of Texas must be paid the same as men performing the same kind, grade, and quantity of service and that no distinctions in compensation may be made based on sex (BLR Simplify Compliance Drive Success, 2015).
An individual alleging a violation of the Equal Pay Act may go directly to court and is not required to file an EEOC charge beforehand. The time limit for filing an Equal Pay Act charge with the EEOC and the time limit for going to court are both within two years of the alleged unlawful compensation practice or, in the case of a willful violation, within three years (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (n.d).
Conclusion
Employment laws are very important in any size and type of business. It is imperative that Mr. Stonefield remain in compliance and stay updated with all applicable laws. He should be able to implement any changes that occur immediately without problem. He must also understand the consequences of violating them. Violating any of these laws could financially affect Landslide Limousines. I would love to speak with Mr. Stonefield more to explain the above mentioned laws in detail and offer a few more that will be beneficial in starting his new business and reaching his goals.
References
Supervisor Essentials Training Performance Management and the Law 230 (2014) Tooling University, Retrieved June 25, 2015, http://www.toolingu.com/class-950230-performance- management-and-the-law-230.html
Texas Workforce Commission, (n.d) Last Verified: June 10, 2015, Retrieved June 26, 2015, http://www.twc.state.tx.us/jobseekers/employee-rights-laws
Landry Employment Lawyers, (2015) Retrieved June 26, 2015 http://www.paywizard.org/main/salary/minimum-wage/texas
The Cook Law Firm (2015) Retrieved June 26, 2015 http://rcooklaw.com/practice-areas/age- discrimination/
Equal Pay Act of 1963 (n.d) Retrieved June 27, 2015 http://www.nps.gov/subjects/civilrights/equal-pay-act-1963.htm
BLR Simplify Compliance Drive Success (2015) Retrieved June 27, 2015 http://www.blr.com/Compensation/Discrimination/Equal-Pay-Acts-in-Texas#
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (n.d) Retrieved June 28, 2015 http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/equalcompensation.cfm
United States Department of Labor (n.d) Retrieved June 28, 2015 http://www.dol.gov/compliance/laws/comp-osha.htm
United States Department of Labor (n.d) Retrieved June 28, 2015 https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=OSHACT&p_id=3371
TO: Traci Goldeman, Manager, Atwood and Allen Consulting
FROM: Anita Dunn, Consultant
SUBJECT: Landslide Limousines Employment Law Compliance Plan
DATE: June 28, 2015
Bradley Stonefield is opening a limousine service. The business name will be called Landslide Limousines and he will focus on providing first-class transportation. Mr. Stonefield is opening the business in Austin, Texas where his goal is to have 25 employees within the first year. I have included four laws that could potentially affect his business if handled improperly. Employment law is the area of law that covers all aspects of employer and employee relationships. Most employment laws are set to protect the rights of employees (Supervisor Essentials Training …show more content…
Performance Management and the Law 230, 2014). In order to be in compliance with both federal and state, we will review a few important laws that the organization must follow such as Occupational Safety and Health Act, Texas Minimum Wage Law, Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and Equal Pay Act of 1963.
Occupational Safety and Health Act The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act was passed to "assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women." The OSH Act created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) at the federal level and provided that states could run their own safety and health programs as long as those programs were at least as effective as the federal program (United States Department of Labor (n.d).
Any employer who willfully or repeatedly violates this Act, any standard, rule, or order of this Act may be assessed civil penalties for each violation. Any employer who fails to correct a violation for which a citation has been issued under section 9(a) within the period permitted for its correction may be assessed a civil penalty for each day during which such failure or violation continues (United States Department of Labor (n.d).
Texas Minimum Wage Law The current minimum wage rate in Texas is $7.25. The Texas Minimum Wage Act establishes a minimum wage for non-exempt employees and requires covered employers to provide each employee with a written earnings statement containing certain information about the employee 's pay and designates Texas Workforce Commission as the agency responsible for disseminating information about state minimum wage requirements (Texas Workforce Commission). If this law is violated, the employee can claim the amount of unpaid wages plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damage (Landry …show more content…
Employment Lawyers (2015).
Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 Both the Texas Labor Code and the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”) prohibit age discrimination against employees over the age of 40.
These laws make it unlawful for an employer to consider an employee’s age when making decisions related to hiring, firing, promoting, training, compensating, or other terms of employment. These laws also prohibit an employer from retaliating against an employee for making a good faith claim of age discrimination to the employer. If an employer is found to be in violation and a lawsuit is filed, an employee may be able to recover lost wages and benefits to the time of trial, liquidated damages equal to the amount of lost wages, punitive damages, attorney’s fees and compensatory damages (The Cook Law Firm,
2015).
Equal Pay Act of 1963
The Equal Pay Act makes it illegal to pay men and women working in the same place different salaries for similar work (Equal Pay Act of 1963 (n.d). The Texas Equal Pay Act provides that all women employed by the state of Texas must be paid the same as men performing the same kind, grade, and quantity of service and that no distinctions in compensation may be made based on sex (BLR Simplify Compliance Drive Success, 2015).
An individual alleging a violation of the Equal Pay Act may go directly to court and is not required to file an EEOC charge beforehand. The time limit for filing an Equal Pay Act charge with the EEOC and the time limit for going to court are both within two years of the alleged unlawful compensation practice or, in the case of a willful violation, within three years (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (n.d).
Conclusion
Employment laws are very important in any size and type of business. It is imperative that Mr. Stonefield remain in compliance and stay updated with all applicable laws. He should be able to implement any changes that occur immediately without problem. He must also understand the consequences of violating them. Violating any of these laws could financially affect Landslide Limousines. I would love to speak with Mr. Stonefield more to explain the above mentioned laws in detail and offer a few more that will be beneficial in starting his new business and reaching his goals.
References
Supervisor Essentials Training Performance Management and the Law 230 (2014) Tooling University, Retrieved June 25, 2015, http://www.toolingu.com/class-950230-performance- management-and-the-law-230.html
Texas Workforce Commission, (n.d) Last Verified: June 10, 2015, Retrieved June 26, 2015, http://www.twc.state.tx.us/jobseekers/employee-rights-laws
Landry Employment Lawyers, (2015) Retrieved June 26, 2015 http://www.paywizard.org/main/salary/minimum-wage/texas
The Cook Law Firm (2015) Retrieved June 26, 2015 http://rcooklaw.com/practice-areas/age- discrimination/
Equal Pay Act of 1963 (n.d) Retrieved June 27, 2015 http://www.nps.gov/subjects/civilrights/equal-pay-act-1963.htm
BLR Simplify Compliance Drive Success (2015) Retrieved June 27, 2015 http://www.blr.com/Compensation/Discrimination/Equal-Pay-Acts-in-Texas#
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (n.d) Retrieved June 28, 2015 http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/equalcompensation.cfm
United States Department of Labor (n.d) Retrieved June 28, 2015 http://www.dol.gov/compliance/laws/comp-osha.htm
United States Department of Labor (n.d) Retrieved June 28, 2015 https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=OSHACT&p_id=3371