Effective July 5, 2016, the maximum penalty for employers violating the notice-posting requirements under certain nondiscrimination laws enforced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) increases from $210 to $525 for each separate offense.

The “EEO Is The Law” Poster Employers with 15 or more employees who have worked for the employer for at least 20 calendar weeks (in this year or last) are required to post a notice describing the federal laws prohibiting job discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, or genetic information. The notice must be posted in a conspicuous location in the workplace where notices to applicants and employees are customarily maintained.

Posting Guidelines and Tips The EEOC provides the following additional guidelines and tips for employers regarding the required “EEO Is The Law” poster:

• In addition to posting the notice, employers are encouraged to display the electronic notice on their internal websites in a conspicuous location. In most cases, electronic posting supplements physical posting but does not itself fulfill the basic obligation to physically post the required information in the workplace. In some situations (e.g., for employees who telework and do not visit the employer’s workplace on a regular basis), electronic posting may be required in addition to physical posting.
• The Americans with Disabilities Act requires that notices of federal laws prohibiting job discrimination be made available in a location that is accessible to applicants and employees with disabilities that limit mobility.
• Printed notices should also be made available in an accessible format, as needed, to persons with disabilities that limit the ability to see or read. Notices can be recorded on an audio file, provided in an electronic format that can be utilized by screen-reading technology, or read to applicants or employees with disabilities that limit seeing or reading ability.

Note that many states have their own nondiscrimination laws with notice-posting requirements that apply to smaller employers.

To learn about other federal notices required to be displayed in the workplace, visit our section on Federal Poster Requirements within the Client Resource Center HR Library.