About Employee Benefits
Specified employers are required by law to provide certain employee benefits
to eligible workers, such as:
But, contrary to popular belief, employee rights
laws do not generally require employers to provide the benefits that
many traditionally have.
Except for the few required by laws or employment
agreements, providing employee benefits, also referred to as fringe
benefits, is voluntary for employers. Providing extras, commonly referred
to as perks, is also voluntary.
For example, no Federal law requires employers to provide employee
benefits such as vacation leave, sick
pay, paid holidays, rest
or meal breaks, or health or life insurance plans.
Fewer than half the states have laws that
require employers to provide rest or meal breaks. Even fewer states have
laws that require employers to provide disability
insurance benefits, outside of those provided by workers'
compensation.
In March 2007, Senator Edward Kennedy reintroduced
the 2005 Healthy
Families Act. If the Act or
an equivalent replacement becomes Federal law, it will require employers
in all states who employ 15 or more employees to provide at least minimal
sick leave benefits with pay, for employees to care for themselves or
family members.
Even though providing certain employee benefits is voluntary for employers,
once provided by policy, your employee rights
"legally" entitle you to them. However, because they are voluntary,
employers may call most of the shots. For example, they may impose limitations,
restrictions and other conditions.
But, to rightfully impose and enforce the conditions of employee benefits,
employers typically must properly document and ensure that employees are
aware of them in advance, along with the consequences for violations. Employers
typically document such conditions in policy manuals or similar documents,
which many states consider to be legally-binding, implied
contracts for both employers and their employees.
If your employer made you aware of the consequences for violating a properly-documented
company policy, but you don't follow the rules anyway, your employer might
have the right to deprive you of the related employee benefit and maybe
even fire you. But, if you take it to court,
the court will likely consider all factors, to determine whether or not
your employer really had good
cause to fire you for policy violation.
If your employer fires you for gross misconduct, such as for a serious criminal or sexual misbehavior,
you might not even be entitled to the employee benefits required by law,
such as state unemployment benefits.
However, you might have the right to appeal a denial of benefits.
Because employers voluntarily provide certain employee benefits, you have
few government offices to which to
turn for help, should your employer wrongfully deprive you of some aspect
of such an employee benefit. Consequently, you might have little choice
but to file a lawsuit through an attorney.
But, if your employer robs you of the pay to
which you were rightfully entitled under an employee benefit policy, the
wage and hour (or equivalent) division of the relevant state
labor department might help you collect it.
If your employer cheated you out of an employee benefit solely for a discriminatory
reason, then you likely may file a discrimination charge directly
with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or
a state equivalent, or with one or the other through an attorney.
If your employer cheated you out of an employee benefit solely as retaliation,
then you might be entitled to file a complaint with the government agency
that enforces the law under which such retaliation is prohibited. Alternately
or additionally, you might be entitled to file a lawsuit through an attorney.
A few employee benefits voluntarily provided by employers are regulated
by Federal or state government offices under relevant laws,
to ensure that employers establish and maintain them in a fair or financially-sound
manner.
For example, pension and health benefits voluntarily provided by employers
are regulated to a degree by the Federal Employee Benefits Security Administration
(EBSA), often referred to as the Employee Benefits Administration for short.
The EBSA also regulates certain employee benefits that are required by
law, such as COBRA extended group health insurance
benefits.
Browse the ESBA Web
site for more information about Federally-regulated employee benefits
and related laws. Also browse the relevant state
labor department's site for information about state-regulated employee
benefits and related laws. Alternately or additionally, consult an attorney.
If your employer deprives you of an employee benefit
to which you're rightfully entitled under a collective
bargaining agreement, it might be a good idea to consult your local
union representative before seeking a remedy as indicated above or any
other. Such agreements often include arbitration clauses,
to which union-represented employees are legally
bound.
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