Your Rights in the Workplace

The impacts of the recent recession is what influenced me to find and purchase a book on this subject. With employers laying off employees and reducing wages, benefits, etc. I wanted to be aware of all the tools and options available to me to protect my employability. I realize that when times are tough employers have to make temporary sacrifices, however they still follow office politics where the worst employees are not let go (as some of those have friends in management looking after them) and perks for managers don't get cut. This book should be called "What Rights You Don't Have in the Workplace", because unless your employer does something seriously illegal to you then they are free do whatever they want (called "At Will Employment", an archaic philosophy established in the 1800's). Another unfair aspect amongst professionals is that they can't work for a competitor or will be in breach of contract with their existing employer. Although some states have outlawed this it still should not exist anywhere. Even so, this is still a great book to own and is highly recommended.

This is a must have book for every employee. It provides good information on protecting one's rights in the workplace. If you've been fired from your job, you should read this book[...]

Although it is not the most exciting book to read, it offers a lot of insight to many different aspects of the workplace.

Even after working in Corporate America for several years as a manager, it wasn't until I started my own business that I started paying attention to employment laws. And then I was amazed at how little attention I had paid to my rights in the workplace when I was an employee! I now realize that I didn't know anything about my privacy rights, or when I was being illegally discriminated against or what to do if I got fired. Part of the reason was that I had been lucky enough to work for good employers (and especially great bosses) who were very fair and I never felt the need to understand my rights because they took care of protecting them proactively through their internal guidelines and implementation.I realize now that everyone isn't as lucky when I started hearing the horror stories that some of my friends had to endure. If I had continued working for Corporate America (I started my own small business a few years back) I believe that eventually I would have encountered situations where I would need to know my workplace rights.That's where this book comes in. It gives a fantastic overview of almost every law imaginable that could apply to you if you are an employee. It is a very detailed book with countless pages spent on comparing the laws as enforced in various states so you can find your own state law and see the details. A good example is the chapter on wages - there are tables comparing the rules for overtime, meal breaks, minimum wages, etc. for each state. In this chapter, I also found an interesting tidbit of information on meal and break periods. It describes the different situations under which your employer is required to pay for meal time!The entire book is full of helpful and valuable information on your workplace rights. I personally believe that it is good to have this book handy even if you don't need it right now. It makes for interesting reading and you will feel more in control of your behavior at work and not as afraid of your lawful actions. Here's something else to think about - the book has information on the time period in which you can lodge a complaint against your employer after something unlawful has happened to you. Even if you decide not to do anything about something that has happened to you, at least you know the expiration date on your right to complain under the various circumstances!This book also happens to be one of the more inexpensive books from Nolo. If you are new to Nolo books, you will quickly realize that they do a fantastic job of explaining the law in plain English. And they are very detailed. Enjoy!

Updated version of a comprehensive classic on workplace rights from hiring through firing