U.S. Department of Labor Announces New Compliance Assistance Tools

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the launch of additional plain-language, user-friendly compliance assistance materials to help employers, workers, and other stakeholders understand their responsibilities and their rights under federal labor law. The Department's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) added a number of publicly available presentations to its website, covering topics such as the Fair Labor Standards Act, federal child labor requirements, and employers' responsibilities to provide rest breaks and proper facilities for nursing mothers.

WHD provides these presentations as part of its ongoing efforts to modernize compliance assistance materials for employers and workers, and to provide easily accessible, plain-language information that will guide them to compliance. These tools offer a more streamlined design, and link to numerous additional resources and related information, including plain-language videos. These tools, in conjunction with worker.gov, employer.gov, and other recently released online tools, will ensure greater understanding of federal labor laws and regulations.

"The Wage and Hour Division believes in providing employers all the tools they need to understand their responsibilities and comply with the law," said Wage and Hour Division Administrator Cheryl M. Stanton. "We are committed to protecting American workers, and leveling the playing field for job creators who abide by the law. Compliance assistance and rigorous enforcement go hand-in-hand."

These materials join a host of other recently added content, including an enhanced digital version of the Handy Reference Guide to the Fair Labor Standards Act. This new online version of one of WHD's most popular publications assists American employers and workers with a simple, easy-to-follow resource that provides basic WHD information, as well as links to other resources. WHD also recently added electronic "Compliance Assistance Toolkits" to its resource lineup, providing compliance information on specific programs and industries in a one-stop format for download or distribution.

The Department's Office of Compliance Initiatives is part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, and fosters a compliance assistance culture within the Department designed to complement its ongoing enforcement efforts. This office focuses on helping enforcement agencies more effectively use online resources to deliver information and compliance assistance to help the American people.

For more information about the laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the Division's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the Division.