The government is very active in the area of labor law. The amazing part of this is that very few labor laws actually benefit the employee. Most are designed to penalize the employer for inconsistency or arbitrary behavior - actions that are generally immoral, unethical, uneconomical, and contrary to common sense. However, there are a few government regulations you should watch for.

Ads for hiring should state the requirements of the job, but not include items not related to the job. For example, an ad stating "idea for housewife" could be considered discriminatory against single males in some parts of the country. As a general rule, it is best to stick with requirements that are directly related to the needs of the job itself. Also, be careful in interviews. We have heard from business owners who had applicants comment on a family picture on their desk. When the business owner asked about the applicant's family (just to be polite), then later when the applicant was rejected the owner found that a complaint of discrimination was filed for favoring married people over singles, when no such bias was ever intended.

You may need to be creative in locating employees in the current tight marketplace. Consider advertising in free weekly newspapers, offering hiring bounties to employees who find new employees, etc. Try to keep at least one or two prospects in your applicants file at all times, so you are ready when employees suddenly quit.

When you hire someone you should start a personnel file. At a minimum the file should include any application used, a W-4 (federal and state) and a I-9 form (an immigration form that is required for ALL new hires, not just foreigners). Also, you may want to include a copy of your state's notification of new hire form. This form is now required to be sent to your state's new hires office within 20 days after each employee starts work. There are penalties for not having each of these forms.

Employment posters notifying employees of their rights is becoming a source of revenue for government agencies in some states as government auditors get more aggressive in penalizing employers. Most lawyers and accountants are not aware of the poster requirements, the posters come from several government agencies, and there are no government agencies responsible for telling you about the posters. You simply are expected to know - or pay the $7,000 per poster fine.

Required Employment Posters

Call your local office of the federal Department of Labor for where to order the federal posters. Call your state's Labor Department for most of the state posters. Call your local state unemployment office for the posters required regarding unemployment and workers compensation coverage.

Every state handles the posters issue differently, so it can be very difficult to find all the proper posters. However, that will not prevent auditors from assessing huge fines - usually $7,000 per poster if OSHA catches you, or up to $10,000 on some federal posters. The easiest way to get all the posters is to buy a low cost laminated version of all federal and state posters at your local office supply store.