Employers in the United States are subject to more than 180 federal laws enacted by the U.S. Department of Labor. The laws in this guide apply to the many businesses, workers, job seekers and contractors, and you can read them below:
Pay
As an employer, you are required to pay your employees the federal minimum wage or the minimum wage in the state of your business. Many states have recently raised their minimum wages, including Washington State which has a minimum wage of $17.13/hour in 2026. If an employee works overtime, you must pay one and a half times the employee’s rate of pay for the extra hours worked. You are not allowed to discriminate against any employee based on race, gender, age, religion, color, national origin, genetic information or disability. This means that the rate of pay or the benefits you offer to one person must be offered to your other employees as well.
Benefits
Employee benefits include retirement programs, overtime pay, insurance, sick leave and vacation. Every employee must have the same right to these benefits, but there is an exception if you have older employees. In this case, you have the discretion to reduce the benefits that your older employees receive if the cost of providing benefits for your older workers is equal to the amount you provide for your younger workers.
Discharging an Employee
You may not discharge an employee because of the employee’s race, gender, religion, sex, color, disability, national origin, age or genetic information. This means that, if one employee steals from the company, you may not discipline this person differently from another employee who may have committed the same offense. If you are forced to lay off some of your workers, you are prohibited from choosing the oldest workers solely because of their ages.
Harassment
You cannot legally harass your employees because they belong to the protected groups listed above. Included with these individuals is a worker who complained of discrimination in the past. If the employee has ever charged you with discrimination or participated in a discrimination lawsuit, you are not allowed to harass this person.
Reasonable Accommodations
Pregnancy
As an employer, you are required to provide reasonable accommodations for protected classes. This includes pregnant women, those who have a related medical condition or those who have given birth recently. The exception is if the reasonable accommodation would be prohibitively expensive or would be particularly difficult for you to implement. Reasonable accommodations include changes you make for someone with limitations due to the conditions listed above. For example, the accommodations may allow additional break times for a pregnant employee. They may also allow an employee to sit while performing her duties.
Religion
As an employer, you are also required to provide reasonable accommodations for your employees’ religious practices. The exception is if the accommodations would cause you an undue hardship or difficulty. For example, you must allow your employee to switch shifts with a willing employee so that he or she can attend a religious service.
Dress
You are entitled to have a dress code at your place of business, but the dress code must apply to everyone in a particular job category. There are also exceptions in this area. For example, you cannot prohibit your employees from wearing traditional ethnic attire if you allow your employees to dress casually in the office. This treats one group less favorably than the other.
Sometimes, employers are required to post notices at their workplaces so that their employees know that they have these rights. The Department of Labor offers employers free copies of these statutes and regulations, and they come in English and other languages as well.
