Many small business owners today think about regulations or laws, they are usually only thinking about which ones directly concern the business. Nonetheless, some laws can be easily missed, too.

When you think about it, there are some laws which are surprising that they get missed. However, ignorance is no excuse in the eye of the law, so it makes it that much more important to be aware. At the law office of Douglas Healy, they can give you an explanation of which laws are missed more often as well as go into detail concerning the laws we’ve listed below.

Laws Concerning Sexual Harassment

With the “Me Too” movement gaining more momentum, many of the laws and regulations governing the movement are being tightened by states and local governments. The laws differ by state so you’ll need to check the specifics for your area.

Currently, there are 10 states that have or are considering an increase in protections against sexual harassment. These states include New York, Washington, Vermont, Tennessee, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Connecticut, and California.

Laws Concerning Antitrust

When it comes to antitrust laws, it can easily be understood as “not applicable” to a small business. But the truth of the matter is that the law surrounding antitrust is applicable to all business types whether big or small. The reason why is because monopolization, collusion, and price-fixing can occur in any business environment.

If any businesses are found to have violated antitrust laws, both criminal and civil punishment can take place as defined by the Sherman Act. The penalties for breaking antitrust laws include imprisonment for 3 years and being fined a max of $350,000. So when you think about it, it’s not really worth the time or money.

Laws Concerning Workers’ Compensation Insurance

When it comes to laws concerning workers’ compensation insurance, many small businesses don’t realize it as being a requirement to have employees. In some places, it is even considered illegal. Regardless of it being a requirement, many small businesses continue to go without it.

If a small business is in a state that requires workers’ compensation insurance and they do not provide it, then the fines for noncompliance are usually pretty heavy. In some states, if a business fails to provide it for their employees, whether full-time or part-time, could experience fines made up of a certain amount for every 10 days that it is not available. This is on top of the extra fines and costs that could develop if an employee ends getting hurt while working on a job that doesn’t offer it. With punishments varying by state, it really isn’t a good idea to ignore this law when the risks outweigh any rewards that a business plans for.

This is why it is critical that you, as a business, truly understand the law governing workers’ compensation insurance.

Laws Concerning Criminal Background

Laws concerning criminal background continue to grow and change concerning felony convictions and employment. This is referred to as the “Ban the box” movement where the effort is being made to remove the disclosure requirement for felony convictions from all job applications. The idea behind it is to eliminate the chance that an employer can discriminate an applicant based on their criminal background although their time has been served.

Currently, the movement has made many changes in several states regardless of business size including Washington, Minnesota, Vermont, Oregon, Massachusetts, Hawaii, and Connecticut. Several other states have also banned the requirement for businesses that employ a minimum of 4 employees. These states include Rhode Island, Illinois, California, and New Jersey and as well as the District of Columbia. Besides the state level, there are also individual laws that exist in many of the major cities around the country.

Businesses that violate this law can be faced with a fine that is stipulated by their jurisdiction as well as being threatened with a stint in jail. A good example of a possible violation can be individual fines being as high as $5,000 and an entire company getting hit with a $50,000 fine. If warranted, the law can also imprison violators for a max of a year.

So, if you don’t want your business to get into hot water with the law, you really need to keep these laws in mind so that you will always remain in compliance and not have to worry about any surprises down the road. If you are not sure of which other laws surround a small business, you need to get ahold of the law firm of Douglas Healy prior to launching your small business