You Might Be Violating Federal Labor Laws — Use These 6 Tools to Find Out Before It's Too Late

In an effort to help employers avoid violations of workplace regulations, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is encouraging the use of several voluntary "self-audit" programs. These tools are designed to help businesses proactively identify and correct compliance issues — often reducing the risk of costly fines, penalties and lawsuits. Here are six key programs every business owner should be aware of:

Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP)

If you have a 401(K) or similar retirement plan in your business you're likely aware that there are many rules that hold you, as the plan sponsor, liable for not choosing low-cost, diversified investment options that benefit employees (and not the employer or a third party), failing to review investment performance quarterly and replacing underperforming funds or high-fee providers or not comparing provider fee disclosures and conducting periodic benchmarking studies to confirm costs are in line with industry standards.

The best way to ensure that you're in compliance with all of your responsibilities is to self-audit using the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program. Under this program, plan sponsors and fiduciaries can proactively correct certain violations under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, such as incurring prohibited transactions, making improper loans, or untimely participant contributions, to avoid Department of Labor enforcement actions. The program was first launched in 2002 and was most recently updated in 2025 to include easier processes and a self-correction path.

Related: Workplace Safety Law: What You Need to Know

Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (DFVCP)

Another requirement with 401(K) and similar retirement plans is the filing of required documentation — like Form 5500 — with the federal government. If you have fallen behind in these filings, you are setting yourself up for hefty daily fines from both the Department of Labor and the Internal Revenue Service. The good news is that there's a program called the Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program, which helps plan administrators submit overdue annual reports voluntarily and pay reduced civil penalties for late filings.

Operating an unsafe workspace can impact your business in many ways, including opening yourself up to significant fines, subjecting yourself to potential legal liabilities and significantly hurting your ability to recruit and retain workers. My best clients have strong workplace safety programs and seek advice from outside safety experts so that their environment goes above and beyond even what the federal government requires. But when it comes to the federal government, there's help to also make sure you're in compliance.

Run by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), this program aims to "prevent fatalities, injuries, and illnesses through a system focused on: hazard prevention and control; worksite analysis; training; and management commitment and worker involvement." In this program, employers are basically assuring OSHA through their own internal processes that they are operating a safe workspace and, assuming they get approved for the program, become exempt from OSHA inspections while they maintain their status.

On-Site Consultation Program

This is another OSHA program geared towards small businesses. Under this program, employers can request a free visit from an OSHA consultant and together "identify ways to improve safety and health" in their workplace. Business owners commit to fixing any issues found and implementing other recommendations made by the OSHA consultant. The program is carried out by OSHA personnel separate from the formal inspection group and is intended to help small businesses not only operate a safe workplace but also be in compliance with OSHA rules that impact them.

Request Employer Technical Assistance (SALUTE)

Many of my clients have had excellent experiences hiring workers who are military veterans, thanks to their discipline, training and competence in many technical areas. If you're interested in doing the same, it may be worthwhile checking out the SALUTE program, which is designed to help employers work with military veterans. Recently the Department of Labor added new resources to assist employers with things like recruitment strategies to attract veteran and military-connected talent and to better understand military culture and skills as well as to help them help veterans in their civilian roles and ensure that employers are complying with laws like the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act which includes legal obligations when employees are called to military duty, reemployment requirements, including seniority and benefits restoration and provisions against discrimination and retaliation.

Running a business means knowing federal rules. And there are many to track. Among the most substantial are complying with federal minimum wages and ensuring that you're properly classifying your workers who are exempt and non-exempt from receiving overtime pay. In addition, the Family and Medical Leave Act requires employers with more than 50 employees to provide unpaid leave for some time when meeting specific requirements. In some cases, not doing so could open up your company to wage theft litigation and subject your business to federal investigations. Also important is the negative perception among your other employees and to your community.

The rules can be complicated, but the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division offers a program that can help employers determine if they're not in compliance with these rules. Not only that, but employers, by enrolling in the program, can proactively correct their mistakes and ensure that their employees are receiving back wages or making other remedies and avoid litigation. The program provides guidance for conducting self-audits and then reporting any violations. You'd then have the opportunity to work in good faith while these mistakes are corrected.

Many of my clients are hesitant to "self-report" to the federal government. They fear that they'll be put on some "list" and open up a can of worms that can subject them to future audits or investigation because they're on the government's radar. I'm not so sure that's the case.

The government doesn't have unlimited resources and can't go after everyone. Much of the reporting we do is on the honor system, and this is no different. What's important to know is that self-reporting any violations or working proactively with government agencies can significantly reduce any fines, penalties, legal problems and public relations headaches for a business that has been in violation of rules.