The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has published a new “Know Your Rights” workplace poster, which replaces the “EEO is the Law” poster and informs employees of their rights to be free from unlawful workplace harassment and discrimination under federal law.

Like the old poster, the new poster summarizes federal law prohibiting job discrimination based on based on race, color, sex (including pregnancy and related conditions, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, religion, age (40 and older), equal pay, disability or genetic information (including family medical history or genetic tests or services), and retaliation for filing a charge, reasonably opposing discrimination, or participating in a discrimination lawsuit, investigation, or proceeding. The new poster also explains how employees and job applicants can file a complaint if they believe they have experienced prohibited discrimination or retaliation.

Compared to the old poster, the new “Know Your Rights” poster includes the following changes:

  • Uses straightforward language and formatting; 
  • Notes that harassment is a prohibited form of discrimination;
  • Clarifies that sex discrimination includes discrimination based on pregnancy and related conditions, sexual orientation, or gender identity;
  • Adds a QR code for fast digital access to the how to file a charge webpage; and
  • Provides information about equal pay discrimination for federal contractors.

Covered employers required to display the poster are those with 15 or more employees for at least 20 calendar weeks in this year or last. Employers can download and print it from the EEOC’s website and must place it in a conspicuous location in the workplace where posters/notices to applicants and employees are customarily posted. In addition to physically posting, the EEOC encourages covered employers to publish the poster on their websites in a conspicuous location. The EEOC also asserts that, for covered employers with no physical location or for employees who work remotely and do not visit their employer’s physical workplace on a regular basis, posting the “Know Your Rights” poster digitally online “may be the only posting.” The new poster should also be made available in an accessible format, as needed, to persons with disabilities that limit the ability to see or read. Failure to post the “Know Your Rights” poster may result in a fine of $569 per offense.

Ballard Spahr’s Labor and Employment Group regularly advises clients on employment-related workplace postings, both mandatory and recommended, including where these postings should be placed, and are available to assist employers in complying with federal and state law posting requirements.