US federal employment law thresholds by employee count
Employee-count thresholds that trigger US federal employment laws. Each record is one law at one threshold, stating the trigger point, what the law requires, and how employees are counted for that statute.
Records32
Sources3
Verified2026-08-04
Review by2027-08-04
LicenceFacts extracted from vendor blog posts; thresholds are statutory and not copyrightable
2 records where two or more sources state different values. Both sides are reproduced on the record page, each with its own source and quote.
The data
| Law | Full name | Employee threshold | Requirement | Counting note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACAsources differ | Affordable Care Act | 50 | you must offer affordable, minimum value health coverage to full-time employees (and dependent children) or face potential penalties | at least 50 full-time equivalent employees (not just a head count) during the lookback period |
| ADA | Americans with Disabilities Act | 15 | protects those with disabilities from being discriminated against for employment-related opportunities | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| ADEA | Age Discrimination in Employment Act | 20 | you cannot discriminate against (or harass) employees or applicants age 40 or older simply due to their age | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| Affirmative Action | Affirmative Action Plans (AAPs) | 50 | Organizations with 50 or more employees and $50,000 in government contracts must have an AAP | |
| Age Discrimination in Employment Act | Age Discrimination in Employment Act | 20 | Age discrimination protection for workers 40 and older | |
| Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) | Age Discrimination in Employment Act | 20 | you cannot discriminate | Unless otherwise specified, part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| ALE | applicable large employer | 50 | your company becomes what’s called an 'applicable large employer' (ALE). In addition to offering health insurance, you’ll need to demonstrate your HR compliance to the IRS every year by filing Forms 1095-C and 1094-C. | Seasonal staff working less than 120 days a year do not count toward your headcount for ACA compliance purposes. |
| Break Time for Nursing Mothers | Break Time for Nursing Mothers | 1 | you to provide rest breaks and accommodations (in a location other than a bathroom) for nursing mothers to express breast milk for up to 1 year after the child’s birth | Employers with fewer than 50 employees may be exempt if they can demonstrate an undue hardship |
| CCPA | Consumer Credit Protection Act | 1 | you cannot discharge an employee simply because their wages have been garnished for a debt | |
| COBRA | Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act | 20 | requires employers to offer continuation coverage of employer-sponsored group health insurance to eligible employees and their dependents when coverage would otherwise be lost due to certain events such as termination | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| EEO-1 | EEO-1 | 100+ | Develop formal procedures for workforce changes and annual EEO reporting | |
| EEO-1 Report | EEO-1 Report | 100 | requires you to annually submit employment data categorized by race/ethnicity, gender, and job category to the EEOC | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| EEOC | Equal Employment Opportunity Commission | 100 | businesses over a certain size submit a headcount report including race, gender, and role information on an annual basis. | the law does not distinguish between full-time or part-time workers. |
| EPA | Equal Pay Act | 1 | you must provide equal compensation to anyone who performs equal work within the same workplace, regardless of gender | |
| EPPA | Employee Polygraph Protection Act | 1 | if you are a private employer, you cannot use a lie detector test for pre-employment screening or during the course of employment unless you meet certain exceptions | |
| ERISA | Employee Retirement Income Security Act | 1 | your benefit plans must meet minimum standards outlined in the act, which include regulations for participation, vesting, benefit accrual and funding, fiduciary responsibilities, grievance process | |
| FCRA | Fair Credit Reporting Act | 1 | you must take certain steps prior to using consumer reports (including standard background checks) to make employment decisions | |
| Federal labor laws for businesses with 15 or more employees | Federal labor laws for businesses with 15 or more employees | 15 | When you reach 15 employees, you'll need to comply with additional federal laws designed to prevent discrimination in the workplace. | |
| Federal labor laws for businesses with 20 or more employees | Federal labor laws for businesses with 20 or more employees | 20 | When your team grows to 20 employees, two additional federal laws come into play that provide important protections for your workers. | |
| FLSA | Fair Labor Standards Act | 1 | requires nonexempt employees to be paid at least a minimum wage and overtime wages | |
| FMLAsources differ | Family and Medical Leave Act | 50 | requires you to provide eligible employees with unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| Form 5500 | Employee Benefit Plans (Form 5500) | 50 | required for any employer who sponsors a pension or welfare benefit plan covered by ERISA | |
| Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) | Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act | 15 | you cannot discriminate against employees or applicants based on their genetic information or family medical history | Unless otherwise specified, part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| GINA | Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act | 15 | you cannot discriminate against employees or applicants based on their genetic information or family medical history | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| IRCA | Immigration Reform and Control Act | 1 | requires you to only hire and retain employees who are legally authorized to work in the United States | |
| Jury System Improvements Act | Jury System Improvements Act | 1 | you cannot discharge, intimidate, or threaten to discharge an employee summoned to serve as a juror in federal court | |
| OSH Act | Occupational Safety and Health Act | 1 | requires you to provide a safe workplace, maintain records of work-related injuries, post required information, and train employees regarding safety hazards | |
| PDA | Pregnancy Discrimination Act | 15 | requires you to treat employees who are pregnant or recently went through childbirth the same as any other applicant or employee regarding their ability or inability to work | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) | Pregnancy Discrimination Act | 15 | The <https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/publications/fs-preg.cfm> Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) requires you to treat employees who are pregnant or recently went through childbirth the same as any other applicant or employee regarding their ability or inability to work. Unequal treatment is considered unlawful sex discrimination | Unless otherwise specified, part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| Title VII of the Civil Rights Act | Title VII of the Civil Rights Act | 15 | you are prohibited from discriminating against employees based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
| USERRA | Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act | 1 | when an employee returns from military service or training, you are required to provide them with either their former job or a comparable job | |
| WARN | Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act | 100 | you are required to provide a 60-day advance written notice to affected employees | part-time and temporary employees are included in the head-count calculation |
Where this came from
Every record above links the page it was taken from and quotes the sentence that states it. These are the 3 sources this dataset was assembled from.
- stratus.hrhttps://stratus.hr/resources/federal-law-breakdown-how-many-employees
- joinhomebase.comhttps://www.joinhomebase.com/blog/labor-laws-employee-count
- namely.comhttps://namely.com/blog/hr-compliance-50-employees/
Machine-readable
- data.jsonThe whole dataset — every record with its source URL and source quote.
- Open Knowledge Format bundleOne file per record, frontmatter plus the quoted span, exactly as it is held here.
- How this is made and checkedWhat "verified against source" does and does not mean.