As an employee it is important that you should have a certain degree of familiarity about your rights and the laws concerning the workplace. You don't have to be an expert in the field, but it is a must that you should be aware so that your rights will not be violated or in case it does reach that point, then you would know how to handle the situation so you can seek some compensation.
Myth#1- An employer cannot ask about your religion, marital status, racial origin, and number of children during an interview. If they do so, then they are violating your rights.
Truth#1- No, it is not illegal for an employer to ask about those topics during a job interview. What they cannot do is they can never use those as factors for hiring or rejecting your application. So that means that there is no real point in asking those at all.
Myth#2- An employer is not allowed by the law to provide references that contain more information other than the job position and title and period of employment.
Truth#2- It is not against the law for an employer to provide detailed information with the reference. What is illegal is for them to include information there that is not accurate.
Myth#3- If your boss bullies you then you have the right to sue them.
Truth#3- Nobody likes bullies, but unfortunately being a jerk still isn't illegal, well at least not yet anyway. So if your boss is acting like a jerk in your workplace you can't sue them right away. It becomes an entirely different, though, if they are bullying you because of your race, religious belief, or gender.
Myth#4- It is your right to have paid time off.
Truth#4- The sad truth is that there is no federal law yet that states that employers are required to provide paid time off to all its employees. Some places might have laws calling for paid sick leave, but most places do not. So if your employer gives you paid time off, then good for you.
Myth#5- Your employer can't just give you new duties or a whole new job.
Truth#5- You should have this written down on a contract. If you don't then your boss can assign you to a whole new job. If you don't agree with that, then that means you're saying no to working for the company.
Myth#6- You cannot be required to attend and participate in work related events.
Truth#6- The sad news is that they can really require you to attend those events, meetings and trainings, but the good news is that they would have to pay you for attending those.
Myth#7- Employers are required by law to provide you with breaks for lunch and other stuff.
Truth#7- There's no federal law that states that. Some states have provisions for it, but most do not. So it would be totally up to your employer if they would have provisions for that.
These are just some of the myths about employment that you should know about.
Myth#1- An employer cannot ask about your religion, marital status, racial origin, and number of children during an interview. If they do so, then they are violating your rights.
Truth#1- No, it is not illegal for an employer to ask about those topics during a job interview. What they cannot do is they can never use those as factors for hiring or rejecting your application. So that means that there is no real point in asking those at all.
Myth#2- An employer is not allowed by the law to provide references that contain more information other than the job position and title and period of employment.
Truth#2- It is not against the law for an employer to provide detailed information with the reference. What is illegal is for them to include information there that is not accurate.
Myth#3- If your boss bullies you then you have the right to sue them.
Truth#3- Nobody likes bullies, but unfortunately being a jerk still isn't illegal, well at least not yet anyway. So if your boss is acting like a jerk in your workplace you can't sue them right away. It becomes an entirely different, though, if they are bullying you because of your race, religious belief, or gender.
Myth#4- It is your right to have paid time off.
Truth#4- The sad truth is that there is no federal law yet that states that employers are required to provide paid time off to all its employees. Some places might have laws calling for paid sick leave, but most places do not. So if your employer gives you paid time off, then good for you.
Myth#5- Your employer can't just give you new duties or a whole new job.
Truth#5- You should have this written down on a contract. If you don't then your boss can assign you to a whole new job. If you don't agree with that, then that means you're saying no to working for the company.
Myth#6- You cannot be required to attend and participate in work related events.
Truth#6- The sad news is that they can really require you to attend those events, meetings and trainings, but the good news is that they would have to pay you for attending those.
Myth#7- Employers are required by law to provide you with breaks for lunch and other stuff.
Truth#7- There's no federal law that states that. Some states have provisions for it, but most do not. So it would be totally up to your employer if they would have provisions for that.
These are just some of the myths about employment that you should know about.
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