Understanding HR compliance in the US: A law-by-law guide

The US regulatory landscape is vast and constantly evolving, comprising a complex mix of federal, state, and local laws. Each of these laws has its own set of rules and regulations designed to protect both employees and organizations. Staying on top of these regulations is critical to ensuring compliance, minimizing risks, avoiding costly legal consequences, and staying audit-ready.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and anti-discrimination laws

1. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964)

➤ What the law covers: Prevents discrimination based on an employee's gender, religion, race, nationality, age, and more in every aspect of employment, including hiring, performance, training, promotions, and pay decisions.

➤ Who it applies to: Federal and state government organizations, and private organizations that have more than 15 employees.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: To ensure that every journey in the employee lifecycle is free from biases and favoritism of any sort. This includes establishing merit-first hiring, fair performance reviews, equal pay benefits, anti-discrimination policies, and more.

➤ Required documents: Every employment record relating to hiring, leave, attendance, performance, training, pay, and firing has to be documented for at least two years to provide evidence for EEO. Additionally, HR teams should have clear notices and statements that offers guidance to employees on their non-discriminatory practices.

➤ Critical deadlines: HR teams must acknowledge a discrimination charge notice from the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) within 10 days, and they should submit their position statement within 30 days. 

2. Equal Pay Act (EPA)

➤ What the law covers: The Equal Pay Act ensures that no individual at the organization is discriminated against based on their gender when it comes to pay. Employees who perform substantially equal work in similar roles should receive equal pay.

➤ Who it applies to: Every employer in the US has to ensure that the pay they offer, including salary, bonuses, overtime pay, incentives, and profit-sharing plans, remain equitable.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should apply anti-gender-discrimination laws to ensure that compensation decisions are made based on merit, seniority, and quantity or quality of the work.

➤ Required documents: Maintain records that provide detailed information on the compensation details of each employee for at least three years. Records that were used to decide the final pay should also be retained for at least three years.

➤ Critical deadlines: It should be an ongoing effort to comply with the Equal Pay Act when it comes to deciding employee pay.

3. Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) 

➤ What the law covers: This particular act ensures that individuals over the age of 40 are not discriminated against based on their age when it comes to hiring, performance, training, promotion, and more.

➤ Who it applies to: Private organizations with more than 20 employees, federal and state government organizations, and labor organizations.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams need to ensure that their HR practices are free from age-based discrimination by reviewing their hiring criteria and performance evaluations. Managers should also be trained to avoid age-based biases and address harassment.

➤ Required documents: HR teams should maintain all records, including wage rates, payslips, performance evaluation documents, benefits documents, and more. Payroll records should be maintained for three years, and other documents should be retained for two years.

4. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 

➤ What the law covers: With respect to employment, the ADA prohibits discrimination against any individual based on their disabilities when it comes to hiring and other HR practices. It also requires employers to offer reasonable accommodation to employees with disabilities who are qualified for the role. 

➤ Who it applies to: Private employers with more than 15 employees are expected to comply with the ADA.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: Have discussions with managers about introducing reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities, such as flexible start and end times, modified work schedules, modified break times, and hybrid and work-from-home arrangements.

➤ Required documents: ADA-related records like employee accommodation requests, medical documents, accommodation decision documents, ADA training records, and more should be retained for at least one year.

➤ Critical deadlines: Accommodation for disabled employees should be made within a reasonable timeframe.

5. Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) 

➤ What the law covers: The PDA states that employer cannot discriminate against an employee based on pregnancy, childbirth, or other related medical conditions. Expecting mothers should be treated the same as other employees with similar abilities and inabilities in every aspect of employment.

➤ Who it applies to: Any employer with 15 or more employees is covered under the PDA.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should review their policies and processes to ensure that they do not discriminate against pregnant women. Every manager should be trained to avoid discrimination in hiring, promotions, training, pay hikes, and more. They should also coordinate with team leads to make possible adjustments that can keep pregnant employees comfortable. Time off, sick leave, health insurance, and other benefits should be administered fairly. Keep PDA obligations consistent with the requirements of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and applicable state laws to ensure full legal compliance.

➤ Required documents: Equal Employment Opportunity policies, medical documents (if applicable), and records concerned with the hiring, promotions, pay changes, leave approvals, and workplace adjustments of pregnant employees.

➤ Critical deadlines: Respond to discrimination complaints as early as possible. 

6. EEO-1 report

➤ What it involves: HR teams must submit an EEO-1 report to the EEOC every year. This particular report captures demographic data like race, ethnicity, and gender by job category, helping federal agencies stay on top of workplace diversity.

➤ Who it applies to: Private organizations with 100 or more employees, federal contractors with 50 or more employees. Organizations with fewer than 100 employees may need to file an EEO-1 report if they are part of an organization with more than 100 employees.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should collect the demographic details of their part-time and full-time employees and file the report online through the EEOC portal.

➤ Required documents: Employee demographic data, job category mapping documents, payroll records, company details, EEO policies, and other compliance records.

➤ Critical deadlines: The exact reporting period and deadline vary by the year, depending on the EEOC's annual reporting cycle. HR teams should check the dates each year. For EEO deadlines, please check the official website.

Wages, hours, and classification

1. Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

➤ What the law covers: Managed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division, the FLSA establishes standards for minimum wages, overtime pay, record-keeping, and child labor to prevent the exploitation of employees in the name of labor.

➤ Who it applies to: All organizations that make a turnover of $500,000 through sales and those that have interstate commerce are covered under this law.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should run the specific salary and duties test to classify exempt and non-exempt employees. Non-exempt employees should be given the minimum wage. They should implement proper time-keeping processes to ensure that non-exempt employees are paid fairly for their overtime hours under the law. They should maintain accurate payroll records, too.

➤ Required documents: Employee classification records, time-keeping records, and payroll records.

2. Worker classification

Worker classification in the US is governed by both federal and state laws, so rules can vary by region. Classification standards are used to determine if an individual qualifies as an employee or an independent contractor, and misclassification can leads to penalties and other legal consequences. HR teams must stay aware of the applicable laws so that employees receive wages, overtime eligibility, benefits, tax withholding, and other protections that they are legally entitled to.

3. State-specific wage and overtime laws

There are several state-specific laws that govern minimum wages, overtime rules, meal times, and break times. Since these laws differ from state to state, HR teams should closely monitor them for updates, including for regions where remote employees work.

Leave laws

1. Federal and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

➤ What the law covers: The FMLA offers 12 weeks of unpaid leave to qualifying employees so that they can better manage family or medical situations like childbirth, adoption, personal illnesses, caring for a sick family member, and more.

➤ Who it applies to: Employers who have 50 or more employees within 75 miles, all public organizations, and schools are covered. To qualify for FMLA leave, employees must have been employed at the organization for at least 12 months—they don't need to be consecutive—and completed at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months immediately before the leave.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams are responsible for identifying eligible employees, managing their leave, and offering health insurance benefits during their leave period. They also have to ensure that employees come back from their leave to the same or an equivalent role.

➤ Required documents: FMLA eligibility notice and leave designation notice.

➤ Critical deadlines: HR teams should inform employees about their eligibility for FMLA leave within five business days and offer designated leave within the next five business days.

2. Federal Employee Paid Leave Act (FEPLA)

➤ What the law covers: This law offers 12 weeks of paid leave to federal government employees who go through childbirth, adoption, or fostering of a new child.

➤ Who it applies to: Federal government agencies based in the US are covered.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: Under the FEPLA, HR teams have to ensure that employees qualify for FMLA leave, verify the documents they provide, and approve their leave requests.

➤ Required documents: Paid Parental Leave (PPL) request forms, FMLA eligibility form, supporting documents, and service agreement.

➤ Critical deadlines: HR teams have to ensure that employees make use of this leave within 12 months of the qualifying event.

3. Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act  (USERRA)

➤ What the law covers: USERRA mandates that no US-based organization should discriminate against its employees for performing military service, and they should be offered protected leave during their service. The same law states that employees returning from military service should be given the same level they would have attained in their role if they had stayed.

➤ Who it applies to: All organizations operating in the US fall under this law.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should hold the employment status of the employee in service and reemploy them while they return.

➤ Required documents: DD214 - certificate of release, military orders, and reemployment application.

4. Jury Systems Improvement Act

➤ What the law covers: This act was introduced to make sure that individuals are able to complete their jury duty without the fear of losing their jobs. The act mandates that no employer should terminate, intimidate, coerce, or retaliate against an employee for attending their jury duty.

➤ Who it applies to: Every employer in the United States.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR professionals should ensure that neither leadership nor managers treats employees differently for carrying out their jury duty. They should have a clear process in place to handle these absences.

➤ Required documents: Jury summons documents and jury duty documentation.

➤ Critical deadlines: Jury duty leave must be granted for the entire duration of the jury service, as specified by the court, including jury selection and trial days.

Whether jury duty is paid depends on the state-specific laws.

5. State-specific leave laws

States have their own leave laws that decide how organizations should manage PTO, parental leave, and other leave types based on employee count, work location, and hours worked. HR professional must track state-level rules and regulations to ensure compliance and accurate leave and pay calculations.

6. Workforce eligibility 

Workforce eligibility and immigration compliance are essential aspects of HR in the US. HR teams must fill out Form I-9 to verify a new hire’s identity and their permission to work in the US. Any errors, even small ones, can result in heavy penalties. Section 1 under this form has to be completed by the new hires within the first working day, and Section 2 needs to be completed by HR teams within three business days from the date of hire.

Workplace safety and health

1. Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)

➤ What the law covers: This law was enacted in 1970 to ensure safe working conditions for every employee and to help organizations develop safety standards that protect employees from recognized hazards.

➤ Who it applies to: OSHA standards apply to most of private organizations and some public entities.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams must create a safe workplace by complying with OSHA's safety standards. This includes providing personal protective equipment (PPE) to employees working in hazardous conditions, and training them to recognize and respond to different workplace hazards. HR teams must also keep a record of all workplace accidents and illnesses. Serious incidents must be reported to OSHA within the stipulated timeframe.

➤ Required documents: OSHA form 300, OSHA form 300 A, OSHA form 301, OSHA poster, employee safety training records, hazard communication documents, employee health records, OSHA inspection records, and written safety programs.

➤ Critical deadlines: Any fatalities must be reported to OSHA within eight hours. Hospitalization of employees due to amputation or loss of an eye should be reported within 24 hours.

2. State OSHA plans

➤ What this involves: 22 states have their own OSHA-approved safety standards that cover both government and private-sector workers.

➤ Who it applies to: Every employer based in a state with its own approved OSHA plan.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams need a complete understanding of their state-specific OSHA plan and should ensure compliance with its safety standards and training mandates.

➤ Critical deadlines: The deadlines may differ from state to state and may be quite different from the federal OSHA.

3. Workplace violence, hazard communication, and recordkeeping rules

➤ What this involves: These are specific rules and regulations that detail how to meet OSHA standards. These rules are necessary for organizations to understand what to document, whom to train, and which incidents to report.

➤ Who it applies to: Most employers who are covered by OSHA must follow these rules and regulations.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should have violence prevention policies in place as per OSHA. They should also conduct hazard communication training for employees, provide employees access to Safety Data Sheets (SDS), and respond to safety complaints from employees as early as possible. Additionally, they should keep illness and injury records up to date.

➤ Required documents: Employee training records, hazard communication policies, violence prevention policies, injury and illness logs, and SDS.

➤ Critical deadlines: Hazard communication training should be offered to employees as soon as they join or when they're exposed to a hazardous work environment. Injury and illness records need to be retained for at least five years.

Employee benefits and healthcare

1. Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) 

➤ What the law covers: ERISA was passed to ensure that all employee benefit plans, including retirement plans, medical insurance, and life insurance, are compliant with the federal standards. This act protects plan participants, mandates employer transparency, holds fiduciaries accountable, and guarantees employees fair access to benefits.

➤ Who it applies to: Most private employers who offer company-sponsored benefits.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams have to make sure that company-sponsored benefit programs are well documented, aligned with federal standards, and communicated to employees. They also have to manage filings (such as Form 5500), coordinate benefit claims, and maintain required documents.

➤ Required documents: Form 5500, Summary Plan Description (SPD), plan documents, fiduciary disclosures, and participant notices.

➤ Critical deadlines: The SPD should be offered to employees within ninety days of plan coverage. Form 5500 should be filed out seven months after the plan year ends. 

2. Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) 

➤ What the law covers: COBRA mandates that organizations must offer health insurance to their employees after a set of qualifying events, such as job loss, termination, resignation, reduced working hours, divorce, and death. The benefits of COBRA extend not just to employees but also to their dependents.

➤ Who it applies to: Employers with more than 20 employees on more than 50% of their business days.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams need to keep track of employees undergoing qualifying events, issue COBRA notices, communicate with insurance plan coordinators, and make sure individuals get continued coverage.

➤ Required documents: COBRA notice, COBRA election notice, qualifying event notice, notice of unavailability of COBRA, and notice of COBRA termination.

➤ Critical deadlines: Employers must provide a general notice within 90 days of an employee becoming covered under the health plan. When a qualifying event occurs, an election notice must be issued within 14 days, after which the employee has 60 days to elect COBRA coverage. If coverage is elected, the initial premium payment must be made within 45 days of the election.

3. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) 

➤ What the law covers: HIPAA ensures that individuals’ health information remains private and secure, while also helping employees maintain health coverage when they change or lose their jobs.

➤ Who it applies to: Every employer in the US that manages employee protected health information (PHI) through group health insurance plans.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should handle employee PHI very carefully, with adequate security protocols. Access must be limited to concerned officials to ensure proper use and protection of PHI.

➤ Required documents: Notice of Privacy Practices, HIPAA policies and procedures, HIPAA training logs, Business Associate Agreements, and HIPAA authorization forms.

➤ Critical deadlines: A Notice of Privacy Practices should be offered when employees enroll for the plan and when there are any changes to it. HIPAA documents need to be retained for at least six years. HIPAA-covered entities and business associates must update their Notices of Privacy Practices by February 16, 2026.

4. Affordable Care Act (ACA) 

➤ What the law covers: This law was passed in 2010 to give more Americans access to health insurance plans at a reduced cost.

➤ Who it applies to: Every applicable large employer (ALE) with more than 50 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees should offer health insurance coverage to 95% of its employees and their dependents.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams need to track the full-time status of employees, offer health insurance coverage, ensure compliance with the minimum value requirements of the law, and complete reporting as mandated by the act.

➤ Required documents: Form 1094/1095B, Form 1094/1095C, plan documentation, summary of the benefits offered, and marketplace notice.

➤ Critical deadlines: Health insurance coverage must be offered to employees within 90 days of their eligibility. HR teams must complete and distribute required ACA reporting forms to employees and file the corresponding information returns with the IRS each year within the prescribed deadlines. The deadline to provide Form 1095-C to employees is March 2, 2026. The deadline to file forms 1094-C and 1095-C with the IRS electronically is March 31, 2026 and by paper these forms need to be filed by February 28, 2026.

Labor relations and collective bargaining

1. National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) 

➤ What the law covers: The NLRA protects private-sector employees’ rights to form unions, bargain collectively, and take actions to support and protect one another at work.

➤ Who it applies to: Most private sector organizations in the United States.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should ensure policies don't interfere with the rights of employees in unions. They should also have proper processes in place to respond to union activities and cooperate with the union's processes.

➤ Required documents: Poster that offers information on employee rights under the NLRA, NLRB Form 502.

➤ Critical deadlines: These timelines may vary based on the directions offered by the NLRA board.

2. Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) 

➤ What the law covers: The LMRDA was passed to make sure that employee labor unions operate fairly and transparently. It protects the rights of union members, sets the standards for union leadership, and helps maintain smooth relationships between unions and employers.

➤ Who it applies to: Every employer involved in union-related activities.

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams should maintain proper and lawful interactions with employee unions. They should also make sure that the management doesn't interfere in the union's activities.

➤ Required documents: Form LM-10

➤ Critical deadlines: HR teams must file LM-10 within 90 days after their fiscal year ends if there were any payments or agreements initiated between the management and the labor union.

3. Railway Labor Act 

➤ What the law covers: This act governs the relationship between organizations and employees in the railroad and airline sector. It protects employees' rights to organize and bargain collectively for their own welfare. Its major purpose is to prevent stoppages in interstate commerce.

➤ Who it applies to: Railroad carriers and airlines

➤ Key HR responsibilities: HR teams working as part of these organizations should make sure that they coordinate well with the unions and communicate all major changes.

➤ Required documents: Union agreements, negotiation records, and dispute notices (if any).

Privacy and data protection

Privacy and data protection are significant aspects of US HR compliance. While there is no single federal employee privacy law, employers must comply with a combination of state privacy regulations, federal background check requirements, and EEOC guidance to ensure privacy and data protection.

Wrapping up

US HR compliance requires navigating a constantly evolving mix of federal and state laws that impact every stage of the employee lifecycle. For HR teams, staying compliant means understanding which laws apply, tracking state-specific variations, and maintaining accurate processes and documentation. Getting this right not only minimizes legal risk but also helps build a fair, consistent, and trustworthy workplace.

Disclaimer:
The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, US federal, state, and local employment laws are subject to change and may vary based on jurisdiction and specific circumstances. Organizations are advised to consult qualified legal counsel or compliance professionals to obtain advice tailored to their individual situation.