Employment

Employment laws in the United States were rooted as counter measures against labor practices during the industrial revolution. Employment law is a constantly evolving set of laws promulgated to address issues relating to labor and employment. Both the employer and the employee are given rights and obligations under employment laws to ensure that workers are treated fairly, not discriminated upon, and receives benefits and wages that are legally due them. Employment laws are based on a combination of federal and state legislation and rules and court precedents. Federal employment laws are enforced by the Department of Labor.

Many cases involving employment disputes involve "wage and hour" violations. The Fair Labor Standards Act requires standard wages and overtime pay for private and public employees. States are, however, free to enact other laws to provide additional protections to employees. Under federal law, employers are required to pay a minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for workers with health insurance coverage or $8.25 per hour for workers who do not have health insurance coverage. States can approve higher minimum wage and employers in those states must comply with those requirements.

The FLSA also requires employers to pay workers who render services beyond their required number of work hours. The FLSA does not limit the number of hours an employee can work per week, but does require that after 40 hours of work rendered, the employee should be compensated one-and-one-half times his regular pay. In "wage and hour" suits, the plaintiff may allege that he or she was paid below the required minimum wage or that he or she was not paid the overtime pay that was due him or her. The difficult part, on the side of the plaintiff, in suits claiming unpaid overtime pay would be defining what constitutes "overtime" work. Overtime is any work done beyond the regular 40-work hours per week. Numerous cases, however, have been filed seeking court determination of whether specific activities are considered "work" or not, and whether the performance of these activities would entitle workers to overtime pay. Research on case precedent regarding this issue is difficult as rulings vary from state to state. It is thus imperative to require an expert employment law attorney to conduct this extensive research.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating against their current employees, former employees, or possible employees based on ethnicity, gender, race, religious, among others. Despite this prohibition, cases arising from employment discrimination remain prevalent. An employment discrimination lawsuit is highly procedural, requiring the plaintiff to fill-up forms and obtain assessment from certain agencies prior to being given the go-signal to pursue an employment discrimination case.

Moreover, another issue arising from employment law would be the interpretation of employment contracts. Most states presume that the relationship between the employer and worker is at will. There are numerous instances, however, when both employer and worker ask a court to interpret their contract. These instances often involve employers terminating their workers following the workers' filing of a compensation claim or filing a whistleblower suit. These illegal terminations are prohibited under the law, but employers are ready to defend their action, thus a plaintiff should hire an employment law attorney to counter employers' arguments.

Areas of Law

Transportation Law - Legal Information and Resources

Transportation

Transportation law governs the transportation system in the United States, including motor cycles, motor vehicles, trucks, railways, helicopters, and airplanes, and the infrastructure that supports the transportation system. Transportation law governs the mode of transportation and the transportation industry. It is an area of law that encompasses numerous other areas of law, such as trade law.

Transportation law is comprised of federal and state legislation. Transportation, however, is within the authority of the U.S. Congress by virtue of its mandate to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. The U.S. Department of Transportation is the primary federal agency that sets policies the American transportation system. Rules and regulation The Federal Aviation Administration governs the aviation industry. Policies from the FAA range from protecting flyers, cargo in air crafts, air traffic, airport and air carrier maintenance, pilots' and flight attendants' labor issues, and ticketing issues. The Federal Railroad Administration governs the railway industry. In the United States, railroads are used more for transporting goods, usually gas and oil, rather than people, and the FRA issues policies that focus on the safety of railroads to avoid fatal derailments. The National Transportation Safety Board also provides guidelines and investigates mass transit accidents. States pass their own rules and regulations regarding transportation that are in line with federal rules and regulations and create administrative agencies in concerted efforts with the federal government to ensure safety in the transportation system. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration governs longshoring and maritime industry safety and health standards. Other workers' law ensure that workers in the transportation industry are granted the same benefits.

Transportation law ranges from compliance to manufacturing standards, licensing and registration vehicles, and regulation of cargo in both land and air travel. The bulk of the work of transportation law attorneys lies in making sure companies are in compliance with regulations as non-compliance will result to penalties. With respect to companies providing transportation services, they are required that their vehicles adhere to standards imposed by the law and the vehicles are well maintained so that no untowardly accidents will happen while the vehicle is in transit. Accidents relating to the transportation of goods, especially when the commodity is hazardous or dangerous, is not uncommon. An accident involving a train carrying crude oil in July 2013 wiped out a portion of a town in Quebec, killed more than 40 people, resulted to numerous lawsuits, filed by the victims against possible responsible parties, and possible responsible parties against each other and against government agencies. The fatal train derailment pushed the railway company to bankruptcy. It is this kind of situations that companies aim to avoid, such that they retain transportation law attorneys to, foremost, ensure they are in compliance with the law, and defend them at the time when accidents happen.

Transportation by land and air is the most common mode of transportation in the United States. Making sure roads are safe and companies are in compliance with the law ensures that transportation will continue to contribute to the economic development of the country.

Areas of Law