Many federal employment laws are administered and enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). Some of the employment-related laws the agency oversees include the following:
Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). This Act's reporting requirements for continuation of health-care provisions is administered by the DOL's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA).
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Title I of this Act is administered by the EBSA and regulates employers that offer pension and welfare benefit plans for their employees.
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This Act governs wages and overtime pay for most private and public employers. The Act is administered by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the DOL's Employment Standards Administration.
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). This Act is administered by the WHD and requires certain employers to grant up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave to eligible employees for the birth or adoption of a child or for their own serious illness or the serious illness of a spouse, child, or parent. It also requires employers to provide 12 weeks of leave to employees who have a spouse, parent, or child who is on or has been called to active duty in the Armed Forces when they experience “any qualifying exigency,” and up to 26 weeks of leave to employees who are the spouse, parent, child, or next of kin of a servicemember who incurred a serious injury or illness on active duty in the Armed Forces.
Immigration and Nationality Act. The labor standards portion of this Act is enforced by the WHD and includes some nonimmigrant visa programs, such as H-1B.
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