Archives : 2010 : March
California Labor Law Poster Reminder: New OSHA Safety Poster is Not a Required Change
March 31st, 2010Although the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) recently issued a new version of its state labor law poster called “Safety and Health Protection on the Job”, this update is not a required change.
In fact the listing for this required safety poster on the Cal/OSHA Publications Page, which has a link to the new November 2009 version, includes the following statement: “Previous edition may be used.”
The “previous edition” referred to is the February 2006 Cal/ OSHA poster. This poster is included on our current California labor law poster with a publication date of 12-08.
Although we posted a blog on this topic on March 4th, we feel it is important to emphasize that the February 2006 version of the Cal/OSHA poster is still in compliance since other poster companies have issued numerous news releases stating that California employers must update their state labor law poster.
Poster Compliance Center prides itself on being “the employer’s most reliable resource”. An essential part of being reliable is that we only tell our customers they need to update their labor law posters when the change is required.
For further information about the California labor law poster or other labor law poster questions, go to the Poster Compliance Center California state poster page or call 1-800-322-3636.
Workers Compensation Poster Changes in Missouri
March 24th, 2010The Missouri workers compensation poster has gone through a change from top to bottom, beginning with a new layout featuring responsibilities for employers in one column and those for employees on the other. Missouri employers are required to post the new version of this poster.
One of the most important sections on any workers compensation poster outlines what steps to take when an injury occurs.
Employers must take these steps:
- Be sure first aid is administered and the employee is taken to a physician or hospital for further medical care if necessary.
- Report the injury to the insurance company.
- Pay medical bills related to the work injury.
Injured employees must take these steps:
- Notify your employer immediately.
- Seek medical attention.
A brand new section on the workers compensation poster covers fraud and noncompliance committed by employees, employers and insurers. This section gives definitions, what type of misdemeanor or felony each crime would be and penalties including monetary fines or imprisonment.
Another new section explains survivor benefits, including weekly death benefits that surviving dependents may receive, funeral expenses and college scholarship opportunities.
For more information about the Missouri labor law poster or to learn more about a 1-Year Compliance Protection Plan, go to the Poster Compliance Center Missouri state labor law poster page or call 1-800-322-3636.
New Federal Labor Law Poster – For Agriculture Employers Only
March 22nd, 2010A new federal labor law poster has been issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)—but it is only required for certain agricultural employers.
The “Employee Rights Under the H-2A Program” poster from the Wage and Hour Division is one of the new requirements for employers who employ H-2A visa workers that went into effect March 15, 2010.
“The H-2A temporary agricultural program establishes a means for agricultural employers who anticipate a shortage of domestic workers to bring nonimmigrant foreign workers to the U.S. to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature,” according to the U.S. DOL.
The new H-2A poster will not be added to the Poster Compliance Center all-in-one federal labor law poster since it is industry specific and not a general requirement.
Information about the Temporary Agricultural Workers (H-2A Visas) program and a link to the new H-2A poster can be found in the U.S. DOL Employment Law Guide at www.dol.gov/compliance/guide/taw.htm.
If you have any questions about state or federal poster requirements, go to www.postercompliance.com or call Poster Compliance Center at 1-800-322-3636.
Arkansas Updates Wage Collection Act on Labor Law Poster
March 17th, 2010The latest change on the Arkansas state labor law poster is about the Wage Collection Act. The information is found on the poster from the Arkansas Department of Labor called “Notice to Employer and Employee” regarding minimum wage.
The minimum wage poster is required for employers with 4 or more employees.
The Wage Collection Act provides assistance to any employee who needs to collect wages due for work they have performed. The maximum amount an employee may collect under this state law has increased from $1,000 to $2,000.
If an employer owes an unpaid last paycheck of less than $2,000 to a worker, the worker (including independent contractors) may file a wage claim with the Arkansas Department of Labor. If workers are owed less than $5,000, they may file suit in Small Claims Court without an attorney, according to the Labor Standards Division of the DOL.
For more information about the Arkansas labor law poster or to find out about a 1-Year Compliance Protection Plan, go to the Poster Compliance Center Arkansas state labor law poster page or call 1-800-322-3636.
Workplace Discrimination Complaints at High Levels
March 15th, 2010Workplace discrimination complaints filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) are at the second-highest level in its history. For FY 2009 (which ended Sept. 30, 2009), total complaints numbered 93,277.
Retaliation, race and sex continued to be the top three most frequent types of discrimination complaints as they have been over the past decade. Retaliation and race had almost matching numbers in 2009, each accounting for 36% of the charges filed with EEOC (retaliation 33,613 complaints and race 33,579 complaints).
The breakdown of the next most frequent complaints includes sex discrimination at 30%, age discrimination at 24.4% and disability discrimination at 23%.
Complaints in several categories increased over the last year, including disability up 10%, national origin up 5%, and religious discrimination up 3%.
Other types of employment discrimination prohibited by labor laws enforced by EEOC include:
- genetic information (the nation’s newest anti-discrimination law),
- equal compensation,
- pregnancy and
- sexual harassment.
To view a complete chart of the EEOC Charge Statistics FY 1997 through FY 2009, go to http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/statistics/enforcement/charges.cfm.
The latest version of the federal EEO poster “Equal Employment Opportunity Is the Law” has a date of 11/09 and includes new information about the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This poster is required for employers with 15 or more employees.
If you need to update your federal labor law poster or have questions about labor law poster requirements go to www.postercompliance.com or call Poster Compliance Center at 1-800-322-3636.
The State of Minimum Wage Changes in 2010
March 10th, 2010There is only one scheduled state minimum wage increase this year. This is a dramatic contrast to 2009 when more than 20 states increased their minimum wage rates.
The Illinois minimum wage will increase to $8.25 on July 1 in the final step of a three-step annual increase that began in 2008. This change will affect the state labor law poster.
The Nevada minimum wage poster is due for an annual adjustment on July 1. However, it is unlikely that it will increase since none of the 9 states with a January 1 annual adjustment for inflation changed their rate except Colorado, which decreased its rate. (See more details in my last blog, “Times Have Changed for State Minimum Wages”.)
This is also the first year since 2007 that there will not be a federal minimum wage increase in July. Last year’s increase on July 24, 2009, to $7.25 per hour was the final step in a three-step increase.
Several states are considering a wide range of minimum wage proposals this year, including the following:
- A bill was introduced in the Washington state legislature that would allow reduction of the state minimum wage. (The Washington state minimum wage is currently the highest in the nation at $8.55 per hour.)
- A proposed bill in the Missouri legislature would cut the state minimum wage for teen workers (those below age 20).
- In Arizona a bill was introduced to decrease the youth wage (for those under 22).
- In Maine a bill was introduced to adjust the state minimum wage annually for inflation.
- A bill was introduced in the Hawaii legislature to increase the minimum wage.
Times Have Changed for State Minimum Wages
March 8th, 2010State minimum wage increases were becoming law at a rapid rate in recent years, especially before July 2007 when the first federal minimum wage increase in 10 years went into effect.
The momentum accelerated in November 2006 when minimum wage increase initiatives in six states made it to the ballot and all six of them passed. All of these ballot measures also included an automatic annual adjustment for inflation.
In the meantime four additional states had passed annual adjustments to the minimum wage. Currently there are 10 states with annual inflation adjustments:
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All of these adjustments occur on January 1 except for Nevada, which happens on July 1.
For several years all of the states with the annual adjustment for inflation increased their minimum wages. But it all began to change as the economy slowed down.
This became obvious as 2009 drew to a close and the nine states whose minimum wage is adjusted for inflation every January 1 determined that the annual rate of inflation had decreased– something that had seemed unthinkable a few years earlier.
Since Colorado is the only state in this group whose minimum wage law allows wage declines, it now has the distinction of being the first state to decrease its minimum wage since the federal minimum wage was adopted in 1938.
The other states that adjust their minimum wage every January 1 would have been in the same situation if their laws allowed it. Instead the end result was that not one state with an automatic inflation adjustment clause increased its minimum wage for 2010 in January.
Besides Colorado, only two of these states—Arizona and Oregon—had mandatory changes in their minimum wage posters for 2010, and these were text changes only rather than the wage rates themselves. These changes did affect the state labor law posters.
If you would like more information about your state minimum wage poster, go to www.postercompliance.com/labor-law-posters/minimum-wage-poster/ or call Poster Compliance Center at 1-800-322-3636.
New California OSHA Poster is Out But Previous Version Still OK
March 4th, 2010You may have heard that a new California OSHA poster (Occupational Safety and Health ) has been issued by Cal/OSHA.
Although Cal/ OSHA’s “Safety and Health Protection on the Job” is a required state labor law poster, the new November 2009 revision is not a required change. In fact the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) website states that the “previous edition (February 2006) may still be used”.
Issuing a revised poster while still accepting the previous version as valid is not a common occurrence, but it has happened before. For example, December 2006 is the latest version of the federal OSHA poster but the U.S. Department of Labor website states “previous versions acceptable”.
The Cal/ OSHA safety poster explains the basic requirements and procedures for compliance with the state’s job safety and health laws and regulations. The new version of the state OSHA poster has been updated with some minor changes in the contact information (which includes over 20 office contacts).
If you need to update your California state labor law poster or federal poster or you would like to order a 1-Year Compliance Protection Plan for worry-free compliance, go to the Poster Compliance Center website at www.postercompliance.com or call 1-800-322-3636.
