work discrimination

Could you or your boss be breaking a labor law? It's important to know what laws are to protect yourself as an employee. Here are some of the top legal rights you are entitled to as a worker:

Family and medical leave: This law requires some employers with 50 or more employees to give 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected sick leave for reasons like having a serious illness, caring for a sick family member, or becoming a new parent. You'll be guaranteed the same or an equivalent position when you return to work, and health insurance coverage (with monthly payments) will continue as usual.

COBRA: Although you might lose your health benefits through incidences such as being laid off or quitting, seeing a reduction in your work hours or transitioning to jobs because of death, divorce and other life events, you can still choose to participate in group health benefits (if you qualify) for a limited period of time.

Minimum wage: Basically, this provision is under the Fair Labor Standards Act and it prevents employers from hiring people for less than the minimum wage. Most states have enacted minimum wage laws except Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee. However, there is a federal minimum wage law of $7.25 per hour. Be aware of the fact that there are also a couple of exceptions to this law.

Read on for more.

Although we all agree that dressing to impress can be beneficial in a work environment, being pressured by your employer to put on makeup might be taking it a little too far. Melanie Stark, 24, who worked in the HMV department in British retailer Harrods, was so stressed out by her managers asking her to comply with the department store's strict dress code that she ended up leaving her job.

The code states that women have to wear "full makeup at all time: base, blusher, full eyes (not too heavy), lipstick, lip liner and gloss are worn at all time and maintained discreetly (please take into account the store display lighting which has a 'washing out' effect)."

It's understandable that every business has different types of dress code, and the rules will probably be stricter if your job is to meet with customers every day. However, Melanie had already been working for Harrods for five years, before they decided to implement the makeup rule. Further, they seemed to be pretty aggressive about it. She was sent home twice and she was even forced to work in the stockroom once because of her refusal to comply. Her then superiors suggested a makeup workshop for her to see what she looked like with makeup, which to Melanie implied that her face would be an improvement with eyeliner and lipstick.

The former sales assistant said that she was appalled and that she doesn't understand "how they think it is OK to say that." In a letter she wrote to Harrods, Melanie said, "To be told that one's face is inadequate is extremely degrading."

I can see how embarrassing it must feel to be pressured by your managers to put on makeup if you prefer not to wear any. Should Melanie have complied with the dress code or are her employers in the wrong?