Employment Law

By the time you turn 18, you may already have a job. Until this point, you were protected by various child labor laws, but these no longer apply once you become an adult. That doesn’t mean, however, that you have lost all protections in the workplace.

Employment Law

By the time you turn 18, you may already have a job. Until this point, you were protected by various child labor laws, but these no longer apply once you become an adult. That doesn’t mean, however, that you have lost all protections in the workplace. This article covers your rights and responsibilities in the workplace after hitting the age of majority (adulthood). 

What is employment law? 

Employment law governs the relationship between employers and their employees. The employment relationship is complex as it involves many different areas of law, including contract law, property law, and all levels of government law from local to federal. 

Whether you are an employee or someone who employs others, it’s important that you know your legal rights and responsibilities. The employee-employer relationship includes a wide range of important matters, from job postings to post-termination obligations.

This resource is intended to provide an overview of these employment principles: 

  • Employment types include at-will employment, Union (i.e., labor law), and Non-Union (i.e., employment law);
  • Job protections including discrimination and retaliation (i.e., Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, Age Discrimination Act, etc.);
  • Pay laws, such as wage and hour laws (i.e., Fair Labor Standards Act); and
  • Leaves of Absence.

At-Will Employment

At-will employment means that either the employer or the employee can terminate the employment relationship at any time without advance notice for any reason without cause except for an illegal reason. Other than Montana, every state in the United States is an at-will employment state, so all employment relationships in Texas are assumed to be at-will relationships unless an employment contract exists that says otherwise. This means that employees may be terminated without notice or compensation. This also means that keeping your job relies on good performance and your relationship with others. The opposite of at-will employment is an employment relationship that is defined by contract.

What are Unions?

A union is a group of people who join together to advocate for their rights as employees. A union can represent those who work for the same employer or they can represent folks who are all in the same industry. For example, let’s imagine that you work at Jimmy’s coffee shop in Fort Worth and Jimmy’s is a chain of coffee shops throughout the United States. You could join or create a union of Jimmy’s employees. Or maybe there is a union of baristas in Fort Worth, Texas, that advocates for baristas across different coffee chains. The union would hope that by organizing more people into one collective voice, they would have a better chance to advocate for higher pay, better hours, better benefits, etc.

Unions can exist in almost any business. Examples of unionized workforces include retail, hospitality, pilots, nurses, teachers, engineers, truckers, delivery drivers, steelworkers, miners, and many others. 

Together, members of unions and their leaders negotiate with their employers to come up with a collective bargaining agreement. This collective bargaining agreement is the contract that is created as a result of negotiations between employers and unions and it will define the employer-employee relationship, including pay, time-off, absences, holidays, pay increases, bonuses, and insurance benefits, among other issues.

Labor Law vs. Employment Law

Labor refers to the relationship when a workforce is unionized (organized into unions) and employment refers to the relationship without a union. 

Labor law protections are granted under the National Labor Relations Act. Disputes about these rights are resolved by the National Labor Relations Board, a federal agency. Labor laws can also protect non-unionized workforces in their efforts to create a union. 

Employment law protections fall under applicable federal, state, and local laws. Disputes go to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (or equivalent state agency, such as the Texas Workforce Commission), the Department of Labor, state or local agencies, and federal and/or state courts. 

Interesting fact: The first labor union in the United States was formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1794. This union, the Federal Society of Journeymen Cordwainers (leather workers and cobblers), was sued by their employers and the court ruled in favor of the employers. This was long before protections for unions were in place!

Job Protections

At-will employees may typically be terminated without notice or severance (compensation). However, they may not be terminated under some protected categories. These categories include gender, sex, race, national origin, mental or physical disability, veteran status, and more. Terminating an employee for these reasons may violate certain laws, including the following:

  • Civil Rights Act of 1964
  • Pregnancy Discrimination Act
  • Americans with Disabilities Act
  • Age Discrimination in Employment Act
  • Uniformed Services Employment & Reemployment Rights Act (“USERRA”) 

In essence, employees are protected from discrimination, harassment, or retaliation on the basis of a protected trait or being associated with a protected trait. That means employers must treat similar employees in a similar manner. 

Pay Laws

Various laws protect employees’ earnings, including:

Fair Labor Standards Act

  • Minimum Wage: This states the minimum amount of wages an employer may pay you. State and local laws may overrule these requirements and your minimum wage may be higher. In any case, it cannot be less than this amount. 
  • Overtime: This section of the law has two key provisions:
    • Companies must pay you a premium if you work over 40 hours in a workweek; and
    • There are exemptions that allow companies to pay you a salary and avoid overtime requirements. These exemptions are specific to the job. Common exemptions include managers or professionals. 

Pay Equity

This refers to the concept of equal pay for the same or similar job duties without regard for gender or other similar protected characteristics. 

  • The Equal Pay Act requires that men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. The jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal.
  • The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act helps to ensure that individuals subjected to unlawful pay discrimination can effectively assert their rights under the federal anti-discrimination laws.

If you’re interested in learning more, please visit the resources below:

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SPECIAL THANKS
This project was made possible thanks to a generous grant from the Texas Bar Foundation
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