Private companies are again trying to sell Idaho businesses the required labor law posters they can get from the Idaho Department of Labor for free.
The most recent report was from a business in Blaine County that had been contacted by the Labor Law Compliance Institute in Clearwater, Fla., about purchasing the material it must post for $139.
Posters that meet the legal requirements to display information on minimum wage, workplace safety, unemployment insurance and other labor laws are all available free of charge from the Idaho Department of Labor Web site, http://labor.idaho.gov.
Idaho Labor Director Roger B. Madsen said taxpayers fund this service, yet every year the agency hears from businesses that have been contacted by individuals or companies offering the same material for a fee. Some go so far as to send business owners second and third “notices” that threaten legal action and criminal penalties if they refuse to pay.
“Small businesses are targeted by these companies,” Madsen said. “The posters are required, but every business in Idaho can download them without charge from our Web site.”
Employers are encouraged to place the state-mandated posters on safety, wage and discrimination in the workplace in a physical location where they can easily be seen by employees.
A complete package of all the posters Idaho businesses are required to display can be found on the Labor Department homepage – http://labor.idaho.gov - under the “Top Picks” listing. Each packet in either English or Spanish contains the following posters:
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Law
Idaho Minimum Wage Law
Job Health and Safety Law (OSHA)
Employee Polygraph Protection Act
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993
Idaho Unemployment Insurance Benefits
Federal Minimum Wage
Idaho Anti-Discrimination
Military Family Leave
Other federal employment posters for specific employment situations are available at http://www.dol.gov/osbp/sbrefa/poster/matrix.htm.