Compliance Conundrum: Can Employers Use Electronic Labor Law Postings Instead of Physical Postings in their Workplace?

 The quick answer to this question is no, electronic labor law posters are not a substitute for physical labor law posters displayed in the workplace. Most of the laws requiring labor law posters to be displayed in the workplace do not address the concept of distributing this information by electronic methods. However, electronic posters can supplement physical posters. 

Employers traditionally comply with labor law posting requirements by placing posters on bulletin boards in a conspicuous area in the workplace frequented by employees such as break rooms, cafeterias, and areas where employees clock in. And the laws require this. However, as work has evolved, and remote work became the norm during COVID, and has continued well after the pandemic ended, many employees never come into the workplace. So, what is an employer to do? Employers are required to communicate labor law rights to all their workers. 

However, there are a few laws and certain situations in which electronic posters may supplement the physical posters or are allowed.  

Electronic Labor Law Posters for Remote and Hybrid Workers

If an employee never comes into the office, an employer may provide the employee with the labor law posters via electronic delivery. This can be done through the employer’s intranet site or the employer’s handbook. When using electronic posters, employers should take reasonable steps to inform employees how to access the posters and provide appropriate information so employees can easily determine which electronic poster is applicable to them and their workplace. 

For employees who work a hybrid schedule and are in the office some days and work remotely others, the physical posters displayed in the office suffice for labor law poster compliance for them. 

Department of Labor Guidance on Electronic Posters

In December of 2020, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued Field Assistance Bulletin 2020-7, which provided guidance to the DOL’s field staff on enforcing posting requirements in circumstances where there is no traditional workplace. Here are some highlights: 

• Physical posters are still required for on-site employees, and the DOL “encourages” electronic posting for the teleworking employees. 

• Employers with an entirely remote workforce may satisfy continuous-posting obligations using electronic-only means if they meet the following requirements: 

• All employees exclusively work remotely; 

• All employees customarily receive information from the employer via electronic means; 

• The electronic posters must be readily available to employees at all times without requiring the employee to ask permission to see them; 

• The employer must inform employees of where and how to access the postings electronically. 

• If the employer has multiple groups of employees to whom different notices apply, the employees must be able to easily determine which posting is applicable to them. 

• For laws that require posters to be visible to applicants, electronic posting is permitted if the hiring process is itself conducted remotely and the applicants have readily available access to the electronic posting at all times. 

While this information is helpful for employers, note that this guidance only applies to federal posting requirements enforced by the DOL. It does not address posting requirements enforced by other federal agencies or the multitude of state, city and county mandated posting requirements. 

Source(s): GovDocs, received on January 14, 2025