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Regional and Area Office Alliances > Region IV > Small Business Tool Kit > Chapter 6	Printing Instructions
SMALL BUSINESS TOOL KIT
CHAPTER 6 EMPLOYMENT LAW Alabama Right-to-Work and At-Will Child Labor Provisions Federal Employment Law Employee Threshold A. ALABAMA IS A RIGHT-TO-WORK AN AT-WILL EMPLOYMENT STATE RIGHT TO WORK "Right-to-work" has nothing to do with "at-will". The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 allowed the states to prohibit agreements requiring membership in a labor organization as a condition of employment. In 1953 Alabama passed such legislation, and it is incorporated in Title 25-7, Code of Alabama, 1975. Section 25-7-32 states: "No person shall be required by an employer to become or remain a member of any union or labor organization as a condition of employment or continued employment."  AT-Will At-will means that the employee or employer can terminate employment on a moment's notice for any reason - good, bad, indifferent -- or no reason at all. Unless the  termination violates federal or state law, company policies, or an implied contract, there is very little that an at will employee can do to protest such action.  For cause employment means the opposite: the employer cannot discharge the employee without a legitimate reason -hence the term for cause. Examples of situations where an employer cannot fire without good reason:  (1) Your company's employment policy requires for-cause justifications for firings. (2) A contract exists (either implied, oral or written) with the employer that contains such a provision. (3) The employee is a member of a labor union and protected by a collective bargaining agreement. (4) The employee is a government employee under the protection of civil service laws. (5) Your state's law prohibits at will terminations (Alabama does not.)  (6) Employee termination would violate protective state or federal law (such as whistleblower's protection, civil rights, age, or disability protections). (The term whistle blowing refers, typically, to workplace safety violations of the employer for which a complaint is lodged by the employee to the employer or outside government agency. The employee is protected from retaliation by the employer under these circumstances.)  For cause employment is recognized either in (1) a written employment contract or, (2) in some states, the employer's verbal statements, such as you'll have a job here as long as your performance is satisfactory. B. CHILD LABOR PROVISION The minimum age for employment outside school hours is 14. The minimum age for most employment is 16, including many manufacturing jobs. However, teenagers under 18 may not work in jobs that have been declared hazardous by the Secretary of Labor. In Alabama, employees under the age of 21 are prohibited from dispensing alcohol in places where those beverages are served for consumption on the premises. Teenagers under the age of 16 may not exceed 40 hours of work in a week during summer vacation and no more than 18 hours a week when school is in session. Also, during school session, students who are under age 18 may not work past 10:00 P.M. on nights preceding a school day. All teenagers under age 17 who are employed must obtain a work permit for each job they hold. C. FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT LAW In addition to your knowledge of the product end of your business you will need to develop familiarity with the employment law issues that you must comply with.  Non-compliance can lead to high costs in lawsuits, and fines. As can be seen below, even with only one employee there are several applicable laws, and most of these laws contain record keeping requirements in addition to operational requirements. The "Acts" passed by Congress are codified in the "U.S. Code", and the regulations that provide particulars for implementation first come out in the "Federal Register", and are then incorporated in the "Code of Federal Regulations". Federal Employment Law Requirements by Company Size 1 or more employees: Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) wage and hour provisions Child Labor laws Equal Pay Act Employee Polygraph Protection Act Employee Invention Rights Immigration Reform and Control Act -Form I-9 Requirement Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) Hazardous Communications Act (if hazardous materials or chemicals on site) Withholding of federal income taxes Workers' Compensation Insurance coverage Unemployment Insurance coverage Withholding of Social Security (FICA) and Medicare taxes Form 5500 required under ERISA if company offers retirement and pension plans, health plans, severance plans, etc. Fair Credit Reporting Act New Hire reporting Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) Civil Rights Acts of 1866 and 1871 2 or more employees covered by a group health plan Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) 15 or more employees Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Americans with Disabilities Act Pregnancy Discrimination Act 20 or more employees Age Discrimination of Employment Act (ADEA) Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1983 (COBRA) 50 or more employees Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) EEO-1 Report (if company is a federal contractor or subcontractor with affirmative action requirement) 100 or more employees Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act EEO-1 Report required by September 30th  Federal Contractors Executive Order 11246 Handicapped AAP Veterans AAP Vets-100 due by September 30th Drug Free Workplace Act Applicant Flow Chart Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Davis-Bacon Act wage and hour provisions of $2,000 Copeland Act wage standards for all government contracts, regardless of size McNamara-O'Hara Act wage and hour provisions for federal contractors of $2,500 or more Walsh-Healy Act wage and hour provisions for federal contractors of $10,000 or more. <<Previous Chapter Next Chapter >>

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