Businesses Warned of Deceptive Labor Law Poster Offers
Sunrise, Florida (May 31, 2007) – The new minimum wage law is expected to cause an onslaught of misleading marketing offers from poster companies to businesses of all sizes. “Businesses will now be bombarded with dozens of look-alike mail pieces that imply they are from the government and sound threatening,” said Ashley Kaplan, compliance attorney with G.Neil, the nation’s leading provider of personnel management products. “Typical offers prey on business owners’ fears of being out of compliance and threaten fines up to $17,000.”
Due to the new minimum wage increase, businesses are required to post an updated federal minimum wage poster advising employees of the increase to $5.85 per hour effective July 24, 2007, to $6.55 per hour effective July 24, 2008, and to $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009. “Such a widely publicized change to federal posting requirements opens the floodgates for fly-by-night poster sellers who go into business just to make a profit on this one change, and then disappear,” said Kaplan.
What’s more, these inexperienced poster companies promise compliance but don’t always deliver on that promise. “Complying with labor law posting regulations requires understanding the nuances of the laws, and that often calls for interpretation by an attorney,” said Kaplan. Qualified poster providers employ labor law attorneys to properly interpret every regulatory change and make sure the posters they sell are 100% compliant at all times.
“Not all changes are going to be as highly publicized as a federal minimum wage increase, which means that keeping up-to-date with mandatory poster changes presents a very real challenge for businesses,” continued Kaplan.
In 2006, G.Neil’s legal research team tracked more than 100 mandatory posting changes across all 50 states. “At least 13 states are expected to implement state-level minimum wage increases immediately following the federal increases,” said Kaplan, “so businesses need to watch for new state posting requirements, as well.”
A business owner with the know-how and time could get all the appropriate posters free of charge direct from government agencies. However, rather than keep track of up to 16 federal and state postings issued by up to seven different agencies, business owners seeking a hassle-free solution often turn to third-parties to save time and manage the process cost-effectively. Some companies like G.Neil offer to manage the process for you for a small annual fee and will automatically update your postings whenever required by a government agency.
Businesses should be careful to select a reliable poster provider when updating their current minimum wage labor law poster in order to be compliant with the new law. “Outsourcing to an honest partner that guarantees compliance on all their posters and keeps its service and delivery promises is the most practical way to eliminate your posting compliance risks,” said Kaplan.
Kaplan suggests taking the following steps before choosing a labor law poster provider:
* Verify whether posters meet exact agency specifications for font size, poster size, color and layout.
* Confirm with the seller that the people who monitor changes are labor law experts and attorneys qualified to interpret the posting requirements and ensure any changes are properly communicated.
* Check with the Better Business Bureau to ensure the seller has a satisfactory rating.
In addition, businesses can review updated federal and state labor law posting requirements and changes by visiting www.gneil.com/posterguard.
Source: gNeil
