In Ohio, is there any law (Federal or State) regarding the number of
consecutive days an employer can make 'manditory'? The answer should
be for adult workers. Minor labor laws aren't what we are looking for
here.

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 07 Jun 2003 08:34 PDT

I haven't checked yet, but I suspect that this might depend on the
profession.  (As the disclaimer below suggests, only a lawyer can give
legal advice; so this is only a layperson's instinct.)  What type of
work does your question relate to?

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Request for Question Clarification by darrel-ga on 07 Jun 2003 19:24 PDT

I am somewhat familiar with Ohio labor laws and would like to help.

Are you hourly or salaried? How many hours a week do you work? Do you
have a contract or other written agreement with your employer?

Thank you,

darrel-ga

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Clarification of Question by googlebrain-ga on 08 Jun 2003 05:50 PDT

justaskscott-ga: I'm not asking for legal advice. Just whether or not
any laws exist restricting the number of days that can be 'mandated'
in a row.

darrel-ga: The person in question (not myself) is an hourly worker,
working eight hour days, and (currently) seven day weeks. The
"Associate's Handbook" only touches on the topic by saying "Scheduled
Overtime will be posted in the plant as soon as possible after it
becomes known".

Hello Googlebrain--

I have researched your question and have your answer.

To answer your question, there isn't any law that specifically
addresses this issue.

I deducted that the person in question is not a public employee
because you referred to "the plant." So, it is doubtful Ohio law would
come into play here. I'll talk more about that later in this answer.

However, there are Federal Labor Laws that may pertain. I searched the
Fair Labor Standards Act for information pertaining to this situation.
You may do the same online. The link is
http://www.dol.gov/elaws/aud_gen_emp.asp

The Federal Labor Standards Act does not require employers to give
their employees any particular amount of time off - either with or
without pay. Whether it be holidays or weekend or a day off here and
there, there is no law within the FLSA.

However, I do have a few options that may or may not pertain to this
particular situation. Some Federal laws have provisions concerning
time off, including but not necessarily limited to:

McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act (SCA)
http://www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/whd/wage/main.htm

Whether or not holidays, vacations or sick time must be granted to
employees in a particular state is determined under the laws of the
state.

I also found some contact information for local Wage and Hour District
Offices in Ohio. You may find some need of these if you have further
similar questions.

Cincinnati Area Office
US Dept. of Labor
ESA Wage & Hour Division
550 Main Street
Room 10-409
Cincinnati, OH 45202-5208
  
Phone: (513) 684-2942
Fax: (513) 684-2906
  
Donald W. Harrison
Asst. District Director
 
Cleveland District Office
US Dept. of Labor
ESA Wage & Hour Division
Federal Office Building
1240 E. 9th Street, Room 817
Cleveland, OH 44199-2054
  
Phone: (216) 357-5400
Fax: (216) 357-5422
  
Barry Haber
District Director
 
Columbus District Office
US Dept. of Labor
ESA Wage & Hour Division
200 North High, Room 646
Columbus, OH 43215-2475
  
Phone: (614) 469-5677
Fax: (614) 469-5428
  
George Victory
District Director
 
I then searched the Ohio Revised Code for relevant information. You
may do the same online. The link is
http://onlinedocs.andersonpublishing.com/

If in the search box you type in "4117" you will be shown a list of
all the labor laws for Ohio. As you will see, the state rules mainly
pertain to state public workers.

You'll see that the laws mainly pertain to public employees. But
again, there is no reference to laws for or against any particular
number of consecutive work days. Only references to holidays and
vacation time.

To verify that there are no laws, this afternoon I spoke with an
attorney friend of mine (who practices in Ohio). He confirmed that
there are no laws regarding the number of consecutive days you may be
required to work. He said it would depend on the agreement the
employee has with the employer.

I told him there doesn't appear to be an agreement that specifically
addresses this issue. He said the employee should try to negotiate
something that's more satisfactory but that it appears as though this
is perfectly legal in Ohio.

I hope this helps. If you need any clarification or further
information, please don't hesitate to click the "clarify" button.

I'm happy to help,

darrel-ga

Thank you for your extremely complete answer.