While you enjoy working for your Texas-based employer, you sometimes get the feeling that your boss may take advantage of you. Does your employer violate workplace laws?
U.S. News & World Report explains employment laws that companies commonly violate. Learn more about your rights so that you can protect them.
Not discussing your salary with co-workers
Are you at liberty to discuss your salary with co-workers? While your boss may not want you talking about wages with your co-workers, no law exists that prohibits you from doing so. Companies that pressure employees to not bring up their salary with each other could engage in the illegal act of keeping workers from unionizing or organizing.
Requesting that you work off the clock
Sometimes, companies ask employees to work during a break or knowingly allow them to work off the clock. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers cannot ask nonexempt workers to work off the clock. Alternatively, some employees ask to work off the clock in exchange for cash payment, potentially because the employee wants to avoid paying taxes.
Treating independent contractors like employees
As an independent contractor, do you sometimes feel more like a traditional employee? The company you work for may force you to work during certain hours or otherwise exercise control over you. Employers may classify workers as independent contractors to lower overall costs, such as taxes owed and benefits.
Permitting or creating a hostile work environment
You may feel underlying hostility while at the office. If your company knows about sexual harassment, microaggressions, racial discrimination or anything similar and does not stop it, it could fumble in fulfilling its obligation to create a safe work environment for all employees.
