Work-from-home arrangements are becoming increasingly popular in the United States, and that is creating compliance challenges for employers. Almost all private sector employers are required to place posters in their physical locations that inform workers about the rights provided to them by federal and state labor laws. Remote workers cannot view these posters, so the information found on them must also be provided in a digital format.
Electronic Labor Law Poster Regulations
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is the federal agency tasked with providing compliance guidelines to employers. In 2020, the DOL changed its posting guidelines to require all employers to provide their employees with access to electronic and physical labor law posters even if they do not work remotely. A growing number of states have similar rules. The law in New York was amended in 2022 to require employers of all sizes to make electronic labor law information available to employees and job applicants, and the Illinois labor laws were revised in 2023 to require employers to provide remote workers with digital access to labor law information.
Electronic labor law posters should be just as clear and accessible as those placed in physical locations, so simply attaching a PDF to an email would not be enough to comply with the regulations. Instead, employers should place the information in online locations that remote workers visit on a regular basis. Putting electronic labor law posters on a rarely used internal company website would likely lead to compliance problems.
Are All Employers Required to Post Labor Law Posters?
Employers with at least one employee must post physical and electronic labor law posters, but they do not all have to provide their employees with the same information. Some labor laws only apply to employers with 10 or more, 15 or more, 20 or more, 50 or more, or 100 or more employees and some Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations only apply to employers with workers who perform hazardous tasks. If your business has no employees or only hires independent contractors, you are not required to post physical or electronic labor law posters.
Federal Labor Law Posters
To help employers navigate the complex and confusing regulatory landscape, the DOL has created an online tool that can be used to determine the labor law posters a business is required to display in physical or online locations. Some posters are only required in certain industries. Still, most employers must inform their employees about rights provided by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA Act), and the Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA).
This information is almost always required because these laws’ workplace protections are so important. The FLSA established the federal minimum wage and overtime rules, the FMLA gives employees the right to take unpaid medical leave, the OSH Act regulations ensure workplaces are safe, and the EPPA prohibits employers from requiring employees to take polygraph tests.
Employers must provide this information in English and any other language that a “significant portion” of their employees speak. This is a nebulous term, so it is best to err on the side of caution.
State and City Labor Law Posters
All states and many cities have their own labor laws and posting requirements. For example, we mentioned New York and Illinois labor laws earlier in this post. These laws cannot take away rights provided by federal law, but they can add to them. State and city labor laws can mirror federal laws but extend their scope, establish a higher minimum wage, or provide rights not found in federal laws.
The Penalties for Not Providing Electronic Labor Law Information
The penalties for not placing up-to-date posters that inform workers about their rights can be severe, and employers who fail to take timely action to remedy violations or appear to have willfully disregarded the rules are treated especially harshly. The fines for not providing access to electronic federal labor law posters vary widely depending on the type of poster involved, and they were increased by the DOL in 2023. The current maximum penalties range from $204 for FMLA posting violations to $24,793 for EPPA posting violations. State labor laws also include penalties for posting violations.
Tips for Electronic Labor Law Poster Compliance
When employers face penalties for violating labor laws, their “good-faith” efforts to remain compliant can be a mitigating factor leading to far more lenient treatment. Here are some tips that could help you comply with federal and state electronic labor law poster regulations:
- Post electronic labor law posters conspicuously. Physical labor law posters must be placed conspicuously in areas where all employees will see them. Electronic labor law posters must be displayed on internet portals that remote workers visit frequently, and some electronic labor law posters must be placed where job applicants can see them. A prominent link to electronic labor law posters should be placed on an employer’s website home page or intranet landing page, and remote workers should not have to click multiple times to access them.
- Ask for electronic signatures. The law may not require employers to collect electronic signatures from remote workers to verify that they have reviewed and understand electronic labor law posters, but the DOL and OSHA both recommend it. Electronic signatures could be collected as part of a remote worker’s onboarding process.
- Send employees emails about electronic labor law poster updates. Workers at physical locations will know about revisions to labor laws when the posters they see daily in their workplaces are changed, but remote workers do not use locker rooms, break rooms, or cafeterias. When electronic labor law posters are updated, sending remote workers emails to notify them about the changes is a good idea.
The Future of Compliance
Electronic labor law posters are the future of compliance because so many people now work remotely. These digital posters provide employees with important information about their rights and must be updated whenever labor laws are changed.
