A type of savings account made possible by federal law. By creating a financial plan under 26 U.S.C. 401(k), employers can help their workers save for retirement while reducing taxable income. Workers can choose to deposit...
employment law
401(k)
Definition
ABC Test
Definition
A test used in some states to determine whether a person is an employee or an independent contractor for the purpose of determining state unemployment tax.
Some courts using this test look at whether a worker meets three separate...
Able to Work
Definition
Capable of employment. A person who is able to work is ineligible to receive unemployment benefits on the basis of illness or injury.
Illustrative case lawSee, e.g. International Union, et al. v. Johnson Controls, Inc...
Abusive Discharge
Definition
A fired employee's claim that the firing breached some public policy of the state. Abusive discharge claims are often brought when no claim for breach of contract or violation of a statute can be alleged. Instead of relying on an...
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ)
Definition
An independent hearing examiner who presides at an administrative hearing. An ALJ has the power to administer oaths, receive evidence, take testimony, and make initial findings of fact or law. An ALJ’s findings are subject to review...
Agriculture
Agriculture: An Overview
Agriculture includes soil preparation, seed planting, crop harvesting, gardening, horticulture, viticulture, apiculture (bee-raising), dairying, poultry, and ranching. Generally, laws grouped under the heading "agricultural law...
Alternative dispute resolution - State statutes
Alabama- Title 6, Chapter 6
Alaska
Arizona- Title 12, Article 2
Arkansas- Title 16, Subtitle1- 7
California (see Title 2, Division 3, Part 1, Chapter 4.5, Article 5)
Colorado- Title 13, Article 22, Part 2
Connecticut- Title 52, Chapter 909
Delaware-...
blue flu
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law DictionaryAn organized protest by law enforcement officers who call in sick. Police officers may stage these "sick-outs" because they are not legally allowed to go on strike.
Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-...
boycott
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law DictionaryAn organized effort to damage a business by refusing to patronize it. The goal is attract attention to and influence the business's policies. Labor unions and their sympathizers have boycotted lettuce and...
Collective Bargaining
Definition
Collective bargaining refers to the negotiation process between an employer and a union comprised of workers to create an agreement that will govern the terms and conditions of the workers' employment.
OverviewThe result of collective...
Disability Law
Overview
Disability law refers to laws related to individuals with disabilities; largely, these laws protect disabled individuals from certain kinds of discrimination, particularly regarding employment, housing, education, and access to public services...
Employment
Overview
Employment law is a broad area encompassing all areas of the employer/employee relationship. Employment law consists of thousands of federal and state statutes, administrative regulations, and judicial decisions. Many employment laws (such...
Employment Discrimination
Employment Discrimination laws seek to prevent discrimination based on race, sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, physical disability, and age by employers. Discriminatory practices include...
Employment-at-will Doctrine
Overview
At-will employment refers to an employment agreement stating that employment is for an indefinite period of time and may be terminated either by employer or employee. If an employment is at-will, such an agreement would typically be expressly...
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Overview
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) enforces federal laws prohibiting workplace discrimination. The EEOC was created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The employment section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, known as Title...
ERISA
ERISA
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), a federal statute, delineates minimum standards for the administration of private industry's pension plans and establishes the impact that federal income taxes will have on transactions...
Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)
DefinitionIllustrative caselaw A health care delivery system where the provider offers a participant a comprehensive range of health services for a fixed premium. The recipient agrees to use only these services (except in cases of emergency) and...
Immigration
Overview
In the United States, the area of "Immigration Law" refers to the laws and enforcements dealing with immigration into the United States and the deportation of individuals from the United States.
Immigration law is primarily dealt...
Jones Act
The Merchant Marine Act of 1920, known as the Jones Act, is a federal statute establishing support for the development and maintenance of a merchant marine in order to support commercial activity and serve as a naval auxiliary in times of war or...
Key employee
Definition
A "salaried . . . employee who is among the highest paid 10 percent of all the employees employed by [an] employer within 75 miles of the employee's worksite." 29 C.F.R. § 825.217. Under regulations promulgated pursuant to the Family and...
Labor
labor law: an overview
The goal of labor laws is to equalize the bargaining power between employers and employees. The laws primarily deal with the relationship between employers and unions. Labor laws grant employees the right to unionize and allows...
Labor and Employment laws
Labor and Employment Laws of the Fifty States, District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
This page links to the employment and labor laws of the states, the provisions governing the compensation, hours, and other conditions of work.
Related LII...
Labor and industrial safety - State statutes
For the laws of the states governing employment, including compensation, overtime, working conditions see the LII table page on: Employment and Labor
Alaska- Title 23 Arizona- Title 23 Arkansas (see Title 11) California Colorado (...Minimum Wage
Overview
Minimum wage laws establish a base level of pay that employers are required to pay certain covered employees. The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. In addition to a federal minimum wage, some states also have their own minimum...
Qualified individual with a disability
Definition
A term of art used as follows by the Americans with Disabilities Act:
1) Employment:Definition: "[A]n individual who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the employment position that such...
QUID
Definition
An abbreviation for qualified individual with a disability. See qualified individual with a disability.
Retaliation "Links to Articles/Legal References"
Links to Articles/Legal References
Employment Law
A. Retaliation Links
1. Title VII Retaliation For Hostile Work Environment
2. EEOC: Retaliation: Types of Discrimination
3. EEOC: Facts About...
riot
Definition
A concerted action: (1) made in furtherance of an express common purpose; (2) through the use or threat of violence, disorder, or terror to the public; and (3) resulting in a disturbance of the peace. Under common law, the crime of...
sheltered workshop
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law DictionaryA place of employment designed and managed to accommodate the needs of people with disabilities.
Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary.
Workplace safety
Workplace safety: an overview
Workplace safety and health laws establish regulations designed to eliminate personal injuries and illnesses from occurring in the workplace. The laws consist primarily of federal and state statutes. Federal laws and...
Wrongful termination
A fired employee's claim that the firing breached an employment contract or some public law.
Where an employment contract requires termination only for cause, a terminated employee can sue for arbitrary discharge....
Yellow dog contract
Definition
An agreement between an employer and employee in which the employee agrees not to join or remain a member of a labor or employer organization. Yellow dog contracts are generally illegal.
Illustrative caselawSee, e.g. Lincoln...
Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952)
Definition
A U.S. Supreme Court case in which the Court held that President Truman lacked either constitutional or statutory authority to seize the nation's strike-bound steel mills (the Court noted, however, that Congress would have had constitutional...