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Employee Rights
Understand
to Protect Yourself
Employee rights, among other
things, is the protection against harassment, discrimination,
termination and more.
In the U.S., both Federal and
State laws have been created to protect each employee with specific
rights within the workplace.
If you are an employee,
you want to be treated and compensated fairly at all times.
However,
"fair" can mean different things to different people...at different
times.
Fortunately,
there are now specific laws which address employee rights within the
workplace.
They clearly spell out how employers must deal
with all job applicants and all employees at all times.
The
majority of employees are not aware about their legal rights and
employment laws have been established in favor of the employees.
It is a good idea is to have an understanding
of some of the employee rights situations and what to look out for.
Here
is a short list of some of the more
common employees rights to consider:
Qui
Tam
- Qui Tam
allows for a private individual, or
"whistle blower", with knowledge of past or present fraud committed
against the U.S. federal government to bring suit on its behalf.
- This
provision allows a private person, known as a “relator,” to bring a
lawsuit on behalf of the United States, where the private person has
information that someone has submitted false or fraudulent
claims to the United States.
Labor
Law
- Labor law
(also known as
employment law) is the
body of laws, administrative rulings, and precedents which address the
legal rights of, and restrictions on, working people and their
organizations.
- As such, it mediates many aspects of the
relationship
between trade unions, employers and employees.
Sexual
Harassment
- Sexual
harassment is harassment or unwelcome
attention of a sexual nature. It includes a range of behavior from mild
transgressions and annoyances to serious abuses, which can even involve
forced sexual activity.
Employment
Lawyer
- Employment
is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other
being the employee.
- An an employment
lawyer is one who is an
"expert" in employment rights, rules and regulations.
- An employee may be defined as: "A person in the
service of another under any contract of hire, express or implied, oral
or written, where the employer has the power or right to control and
direct the employee in the material details of how the work is to be
performed."
Employee
Performance Review
- Employee
performance
review, also known as employee appraisal, is a
method by which
the
job performance of an employee is evaluated (generally in terms of
quality, quantity, cost and time).
- Employee performance appraisals are a
regular review of employee performance within
organizations
Wrongful
Termination
- Wrongful
termination, also known as wrongful dismissal or wrongful
discharge, is
an idiom and legal phrase, describing a situation in which an
employee's contract of employment has been terminated by the employer
in circumstances where the termination breaches one or more terms of
the contract of employment.
- It follows that the scope for wrongful
dismissal varies according to
the terms of the employment contract, and varies by jurisdiction.
Workplace
Discrimination
- Workplace
discrimination, also known as
employment discrimination, refers to
discriminatory employment practices such as bias in hiring, promotion,
job assignment, termination, and compensation, and various types of
harassment.
- In many countries, laws prohibit
employers from discriminating on the basis of race, color, sex,
religion, national origin, physical or mental disability, or age.
- There
is also a growing body of law preventing or occasionally justifying
employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender
identity.
- Some jurisdictions within countries implement
their own
non-discrimination laws.
Employee
Ethics
- Employee
ethics means, among other things, the willingness of the
employee to
act ethically. In other words, doing the right thing and
doing
things right. No matter who is looking!
- Workers exhibiting a good work ethic in theory
(and
ideally in practice) should be selected for better positions, more
responsibility and ultimately promotion.
- Workers who fail to exhibit a
good work ethic may be regarded as failing to provide fair value for
the wage the employer is paying them and should not be promoted or
placed in positions of greater responsibility.
Hostile
Work Environment
- A hostile
work environment exists
when an employee experiences workplace harassment and fears going to
work because of the offensive, intimidating, or oppressive atmosphere
generated by the harasser.
- Hostile work environment is
also one of the two legal categories of sexual harassment.
Some things you (as the
employee) can do right away to help
ensure your employee rights are
protected.
- Download employee rights protection forms and
letters to help you record and later communicate your individual
situation in an effective manner.
- Start keeping your own
pre-employment or employment records.
- Don't wait until you
do have a work-related problem. By then, it may be too late to document
what happened or what was said and by whom.
- Document your
day to day activities and keep a log of what you have accomplished and
when.
For
further information on employee
rights, please be sure to check out
the following
areas:
Similar to the employee rights, employers also have
responsibilities and rights. To learn more about this, check
out the employer
liability insurance section.
And don't forget to check out the various employment
background screening sections, especially if you are
interested in federal
government jobs.
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