When it comes to employment law changes, Houston business owners understand the sometimes head-spinning pace at which shifts take place. As a busy entrepreneur, you may find it challenging to keep up. However, there’s a significant risk to your business in failing to update your policies and practices to comply with new regulations.
While this responsibility can be tough to navigate, knowing what actions to take and when can offer much-needed peace of mind and help you maintain compliance at every turn.
Staying Informed of Labor Law Changes
Half the battle of navigating employment law changes is knowing when they occur. Here’s how HR and business leaders can stay informed and educated on new and evolving regulations that apply to small businesses.
Understand Key Laws
It can be difficult to make sense of changes to the regulatory landscape if you aren’t familiar with existing employment laws. As a business owner, it’s critical to be informed of foundational requirements as laid out by the following pieces of legislation:
- Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
- Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
- Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
Having a baseline understanding of these laws and the protections they provide will ensure that you’re equipped to handle changes and understand how those updates might affect employee disputes.
Use All Available Resources
When modifications to employment law are enacted, many agencies (including the Department of Labor, the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) will provide essential information and guidance via their government websites.
In addition to these official resources, you can also subscribe to industry publications and newsletters from organizations like the Society for Human Resource Management or use electronic platforms to stay on top of regulatory changes.
Invest in Continual Education
It’s important to gather information about and attend human resources-related events, such as webinars, conferences, and workshops. These gatherings will not only help you understand how to apply current labor laws to your business but also assist you in navigating new laws and upcoming changes to existing ones. Often, events like these will feature HR experts who can provide noteworthy insights on how new regulations might reshape your policies and practices.
Create a Plan to Comply With New Requirements
Staying informed about employment law changes is vital, but what you do with that information also matters. Here’s how you can create a viable plan for retooling your policies to ensure alignment with upcoming regulatory shifts.
Review and Align Existing Policies
Make a list of changes that affect your business practices. Then, review the policies you already have in place to see what needs to change. Make it a point to note the necessary changes in writing so they become part of your official policy. Additionally, you should pay close attention to legislative deadlines imposed in new laws and regulations.
These measures will help you develop an appropriate timeline for rolling out new iterations of your policies and create a concrete process for implementation. For example, you may need to update job descriptions, ready your payroll systems, and revise and redistribute employee handbooks, all of which will take time to complete and must be done in a strategic manner.
Communicate Important Changes
When your policies change as a result of shifts in employment law, it’s important to inform all employees within your organization. Doing so ensures that they’re well-informed of their rights and responsibilities under the law. It also lets employees know how the new rules will affect their employment and confirms that they fully understand and can adhere to those policies, promoting compliance across the board.
Provide Training for Management
Your managers don’t just need to know about labor law changes — they also need to know how to implement those changes in their specific departments. Training helps managers identify potential legal risks in their daily practices and take proactive steps to mitigate them so as to ensure top-down protection for your organization.
Employment law violations can happen at every level, so it’s imperative to focus on educating and training your employees and managers.
Seek Professional Assistance and Advice
Managing compliance in an ever-changing landscape can undoubtedly be daunting. As a small business owner, you should be prepared to seek help in keeping your organization compliant at every level. Consider making use of the following resources to assist you in achieving that goal:
Partner With a Professional Employer Organization (PEO)
Small business owners frequently wear multiple hats. If that sounds like you, you may be handling some human resources tasks — including employment law compliance — on your own. It can be hard to do what’s necessary to grow your business while trying to keep it out of hot water with regulatory agencies.
A PEO or similar service provider can handle critical HR tasks for you, such as payroll and benefits administration. As a bonus, the professionals who offer these services can also tackle any compliance tasks associated with them. While this won’t entirely remove the burden of legal compliance from your shoulders, it will give you someone with whom to share the load.
Consult Qualified Legal Counsel
An experienced business lawyer will have specific knowledge of current employment laws and how they affect business practices. They’ll be able to use their insights to help you grasp the particular legal requirements for your business.
Your attorney will also be able to perform a comprehensive audit of your current policies to identify potential problem areas and risk-mitigation strategies, helping you avoid business disputes and the financial and reputational risks of non-compliance.
You don’t have to navigate daunting employment law changes alone. Contact The Weisblatt Law Firm, PLLC, at (713) 666-1981 for a free phone consultation to get dependable guidance on how to align your current policies with new regulations.
Small Business Employment Laws Texas Entrepreneurs Should Pay Attention To
As you ponder your strategy for navigating employment law changes, you’ll want to pay close attention to these areas in particular:
- Artificial Intelligence: Consider HB 1709, which requires businesses to assess the impact of AI use and comply with anti-discrimination and data privacy laws.
- Non-Compete Agreements: Review Texas’s requirements for enforceable contracts and make sure yours are written and administered correctly.
- Employee Classification: Verify that you’re classifying employees and independent contractors properly, as misclassification can result in fines and penalties.
- Workplace Safety: Think about the requirements laid out in HB 915 to post notices and contact information for reporting workplace violence incidents.
Staying informed of changes related to these issues will help you maintain compliance with foundational labor laws and remain ready for whatever might come your way in the future.
Reduce Your Employment Law Compliance Risk
Staying ahead of shifts in employment law is vital for every Houston small business owner. Not only does it ensure safety and fair treatment for every employee, but it can also help you maintain a positive business reputation, mitigate legal risks, and stave off potential penalties.
Partnering with a knowledgeable business attorney can help you stay informed of significant changes and develop a reliable strategy for timely compliance. The right advice in this area can protect your business and help you maintain your sanity.
Wondering whether your policies measure up in today’s regulatory landscape? Contact The Weisblatt Law Firm, PLLC, at (713) 666-1981 to take advantage of a free phone consultation and discuss your compliance strategy.
Attorney Andrew Weisblatt
Mr. Weisblatt has practiced continuously since becoming licensed in 1992 and has represented businesses ranging in size from one person start-up ventures to multi-national corporations employing hundreds of people in multiple countries. From 2005 through 2009 Mr. Weisblatt was in-house counsel and chief operating officer of a multi-national corporation in the steel products industry. That in-house position provided valuable insight into how businesses work and what they actually need from their lawyers – both in-house and outside counsel. Attorney Bio
