DOL Campaign Educates Workers On Rights

The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is educating workers with a public awareness campaign about workplace rights as part of its coronavirus pandemic response. The campaign includes a series of public service announcements in English and Spanish with information about the new paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave benefits available under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), and other worker protections.

The campaign includes TV ads, radio spot, billboards, educational videos, digital guides and social media messaging. The outreach serves to inform workers of their rights and employers about their responsibilities, and encourages those with questions or concerns about leave or pay to contact their local WHD office. The campaign’s radio spots are currently airing and reached more than 12 million listeners nationwide as of Sept. 14. Similar TV spots will begin airing throughout the fall.

“The Wage and Hour Division remains laser-focused on ensuring that the American workforce has the information needed to ensure workers can utilize the benefits and protections available to them as the economy continues to ramp up and schools reopen,” says Wage and Hour Division Administrator Cheryl Stanton in a press release. “The public information effort has already reached millions, and we remain confident that as the effort continues we will reach many millions more. Getting this critical information to workers and employers when they need it most remains a top priority.”

Since the FFCRA became law in March 2020, WHD has published extensive guidance for workers during this crisis, such as FFCRA Questions and Answers, webinars and on online tool to determine if a person is eligible for paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave. Links to those resources are provided in the DOL press release on the topic, which can be viewed by clicking here.