What you’ll learn to do: summarize the key laws affecting human resource practices

In the United States, federal, state, and local laws exist that affect employees and employers. They help protect workers from unsafe work settings, discrimination, harassment, and unfair business practices. Every business must abide by these laws or face fines and other legal consequences. Human resources professionals are the people who must learn about these laws, implement policies to follow them, and keep up with changes in the laws. Managers, too, must understand the laws and policies and follow them as they make decisions that affect hiring, firing, work conditions, and other issues.