Overview Compliance Assistance Materials Basic Information Fact Sheets E-Tools Applicable Laws and Regulations Related Topics and Links DOL Contacts Return to Main Menu

Frequently Asked Questions See DOL's FAQs, especially Laws & Regulations

OVERVIEW

New and growing small businesses often need help identifying and understanding the specific U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) laws and regulations that apply to them. A variety of the Department’s compliance assistance resources can help in this regard, including the elaws FirstStep Employment Law Advisor and the Employment Law Guide, which describes 24 major laws enforced by DOL in plain, easy-to-understand language. These tools, and a variety of other compliance assistance materials, provide employers with the introductory information they need to develop wage, benefit, safety and health, and nondiscrimination policies for their business.

COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE MATERIALS

BASIC INFORMATION

• Employment Law Guide - Describes DOL’s major laws using plain language covering various employment issues including minimum wage, overtime, safety and health, pensions, family and medical leave, nondiscrimination, and more.

• Workplace Poster Requirements - Helps small businesses and other employers learn which DOL posters to display in their workplace.

• Wage and Hour Labor Standards Information for New Businesses - Provides an overview of basic wage and hour information.

• COBRA Continuation Coverage - The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provides for premium reductions and additional election opportunities for health benefits under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, commonly called COBRA. The TAA Health Coverage Improvement Act of 2009, enacted as part of ARRA, also made changes with regard to COBRA continuation coverage.

• Easy Retirement Solutions for Small Business - Provides help for Small Businesses who want to start a retirement plan.

• SIMPLE IRA Plans for Small Businesses (PDF) - Information on SIMPLE (Savings Incentives Match Plan for Employees of Small Employers) IRA plans.

• 401(k) Plans for Small Businesses - Highlights employers’ options and responsibilities when operating a 401(k).

• Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Small Business Assistance Portal

• OSHA Handbook for Small Businesses (PDF) - Helps small businesses establish their own safety and health programs.

• Mine Safety and Health Administration's Small Mines Office

• Equal Employment Opportunity Guide for Small Businesses with Federal Contracts

FACT SHEETS

• Showcase of Compliance Assistance Tools - Small Business Spotlight

• Wage and Hour Division Fact Sheet: New Businesses Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

• Wage and Hour Compliance Assistance Fact Sheet - A two-page summary of wage and hour laws and where to go for help.

• OSHA Compliance Assistance Fact Sheet - A fact sheet on the compliance assistance resources available from OSHA.

E-TOOLS

• FirstStep Employment Law Advisor - Helps new businesses or other employers learn which major DOL laws apply to their particular business.

• Small Business Retirement Savings Advisor - Provides answers to a variety of questions about retirement savings options for small business employers.

• Poster Advisor - Helps businesses determine which workplace posters are required for display at the place of business. Posters can be downloaded and printed free of charge directly from this Advisor.

• Employment Laws Assistance for Workers and Small Businesses (elaws) - Provides a series of interactive e-tools that cover various employment law issues including minimum wage, overtime, safety and health, pensions, family and medical leave, and more.

APPLICABLE LAWS AND REGULATIONS

DOL enforces more than 180 employment laws and regulations, and the specific laws that apply to a particular business depend upon its number of employees, the nature of its business, and numerous other factors.

RELATED TOPICS AND LINKS

• Business.gov - Provides information on federal laws and regulations for America’s small businesses.

• The Small Business Administration – Provides numerous resources to small businesses, including start-ups.

• Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act - This Act provides small entities with a meaningful opportunity for redress of excessive enforcement activities by federal agencies. Complaints can be filed with the Small Business Administration's Ombudsman or DOL’s Office of Small Business Programs.

• Office of Disability Employment Policy Small Business Portal - Provides information to small businesses on regulatory and other issues related to people with disabilities.

DOL CONTACTS*

For questions on DOL laws,
please call DOL's Toll-Free Help Line at 1-866-4-USA-DOL. Live assistance is available in English and Spanish, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Additional service is available in more than 140 languages through a translation service.
Tel: 1-866-4-USA-DOL
TTY: 1-877-889-5627

*Pursuant to the U.S. Department of Labor's Confidentiality Protocol for Compliance Assistance Inquiries, information provided by a telephone caller will be kept confidential within the bounds of the law. Compliance assistance inquiries will not trigger an inspection, audit, investigation, etc.