As a member of the workforce, it can be difficult to know exactly what your rights are. All too often, employees harbor a fear of their employers or the company that they work for which prevents them from receiving everything they are entitled to. This is typically the result of the type of thinking that leads one to believe that they have no power over their state of employment and that they are virtually at the mercy of those they work for.
This isn’t always the case, however. As an employee your rights are protected under the letter of the law. No one wants to take things to the stage where it’s necessary to seek legal advice from experts, like those at wh Law, but it is important to know what protections you are entitled to. By educating yourself on this topic you can learn what situations can be handled quietly and when you need to take more drastic measures.
In order to better learn exactly where you stand with your employee rights, here are three ways that your rights are protected under the law.
1) Your Right to a Safe Work Environment
There was once a time, not that long ago in fact, when certain industries were notorious for failing to provide adequately safe environments for their employees. Workers would arrive for the day and simply have to put up with unsafe conditions that could potentially result in serious injury or worse. Thanks to the creation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1970, things have changed for the better in this regard.
If you feel as though the conditions in which you work aren’t sufficiently safe, then you have the ability to file a complaint with OSHA and they can send out an inspector to evaluate the situation. No one should feel as though they risk physical harm when they go to work.
2) Your Right to Take Leave
If you have suffered a medical condition or injury that will make it difficult to work for a while, or if you need to take extended leave for a valid family reason such as the birth of a child, you have every right to do so. Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, you have the ability to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for any of the valid reasons that qualify under this legislation.
3) Your Right to a Fair Wage
One of the ways in which the law has evolved to prevent employers from exercising nearly autonomous power over their workers is the development of legislation that protects employees’ rights to fair pay. A minimum wage must be given to all employees no matter what field they work in. While, of course, there are certain professions that allow individuals to achieve high earning potential, there should be no circumstance in which the compensation that someone receives is so low that they cannot even afford to live.