Reference Source

24 records

At how many employees does this federal employment law start to apply?

24 records, one fact each. Every value is transcribed from the source that states it and carries the sentence it was taken from: 52 sources across 5 sites, last checked 2026-11-01, due for re-check by 2027-09-29. Every record is listed below, each linking the page its value came from.

Records24
Sources52
Verified
Review by
LicenceFacts extracted from the United States Code (uscode.house.gov), the Federal Register (federalregister.gov) and the EEOC's and Wage and Hour Division's own coverage pages, all US Government works in the public domain; the thresholds are statutory and not copyrightable

Cite as: US federal employment law thresholds by employee count, referencesource.org/regulatory-threshold-triggers/, checked 2026-11-01.

About this data

Employee-count thresholds that trigger US federal employment laws, with the number quoted from the statute itself or from the enforcing agency's own coverage page -- never from a vendor summary. Two kinds of record: a law that states a count (Title VII, ADA, ADEA, GINA, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, FMLA, COBRA, the ACA employer mandate, WARN, EEO-1 reporting, IRCA) carries that number; a law whose coverage clause names who it covers without stating any employee count (FLSA, ERISA, the OSH Act, USERRA, FCRA, EPPA, the Equal Pay Act, the Consumer Credit Protection Act's garnishment rule, jury-duty protection) carries no threshold at all, is marked 'no employee-count threshold', and quotes the test its coverage does turn on. Note what the second kind does NOT say: that the law covers every employer. It says the statute sets no headcount -- several set some other test, and that test is quoted where the clause states one. A few laws state two counts, because a named class of employer is covered at a lower one -- EEO-1 reporting binds private employers at 100 but federal contractors at 50. Those records carry both numbers, so that reading only the headline figure cannot give the wrong answer to a contractor. Two further shapes exist because reference pages elsewhere get them wrong in the same direction, by printing a number as a threshold when it is not one. A law can cover every employer and separately excuse a small one -- the PUMP Act binds every FLSA employer and lets an employer under 50 out only if compliance would impose an undue hardship -- so that 50 is quoted as an exemption, with its condition attached, and the record carries no threshold. And a threshold can stop existing: the 50-employee affirmative-action programme requirement rested on Executive Order 11246, which was revoked in January 2025, so that record is marked 'threshold revoked' and quotes the order that revoked it rather than the number vendor summaries still publish.

The data

LawFull nameEmployee thresholdRequirementCounting noteSize ruleLower threshold for some employersWho the lower threshold applies toRevocationWhat triggers coverage insteadExemption for small employers
ACAPatient Protection and Affordable Care Act50offer to its full-time employees (and their dependents) the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential coverage under an eligible employer-sponsored planan employer who employed an average of at least 50 full-time employees on business days during the preceding calendar year
ADAAmericans with Disabilities Act of 199015No covered entity shall discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, advancement, or discharge of employees, employee compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.any worker who qualifies as an employee is counted, including part-time employees, seasonal employees, and temporary employees
ADEAAge Discrimination in Employment Act of 196720to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's ageany worker who qualifies as an employee is counted, including part-time employees, seasonal employees, and temporary employees
COBRA20The plan sponsor of each group health plan shall provide, in accordance with this part, that each qualified beneficiary who would lose coverage under the plan as a result of a qualifying event is entitled, under the plan, to elect, within the election period, continuation coverage under the plan.normally employed fewer than 20 employees on a typical business day during the preceding calendar year
Consumer Credit Protection ActConsumer Credit Protection ActNo employer may discharge any employee by reason of the fact that his earnings have been subjected to garnishment for any one indebtednessthe maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for any workweek which is subjected to garnishment may not exceed (1) 25 per centum of his disposable earnings for that weekno employee-count threshold
EEO-1EEO-1 Component 1 report100submit workforce demographic data, including data by job category and sex and race or ethnicity, to the EEOC50federal contractors with 50 or more employees meeting certain criteria
EO 11246 affirmative action program (revoked)Executive Order 11246 of September 24, 1965 (Equal Employment Opportunity)threshold revokedExecutive Order 11246 of September 24, 1965 (Equal Employment Opportunity), is hereby revoked. For 90 days from the date of this order, Federal contractors may continue to comply with the regulatory scheme in effect on January 20, 2025.
EPPAEmployee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988it shall be unlawful for any employer engaged in or affecting commerce or in the production of goods for commerce- (1) directly or indirectly, to require, request, suggest, or cause any employee or prospective employee to take or submit to any lie detector testno employee-count thresholdany employer engaged in or affecting commerce or in the production of goods for commerce
Equal Pay ActEqual Pay Act of 1963No employer having employees subject to any provisions of this section shall discriminate, within any establishment in which such employees are employed, between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which he pays wages to employees of the opposite sex in such establishment for equal workno employee-count threshold
ERISAEmployee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974The administrator of each employee benefit plan shall cause to be furnished in accordance with section 1024(b) of this title to each participant covered under the plan and to each beneficiary who is receiving benefits under the plan- (1) a summary plan description described in section 1022(a)(1)no employee-count thresholdany employer engaged in commerce or in any industry or activity affecting commerce
FCRAFair Credit Reporting Acta clear and conspicuous disclosure has been made in writing to the consumer at any time before the report is procured or caused to be procured, in a document that consists solely of the disclosure, that a consumer report may be obtained for employment purposesno employee-count threshold
FLSAFair Labor Standards Act of 1938no employer shall employ any of his employees who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, for a workweek longer than forty hours unless such employee receives compensation for his employment in excess of the hours above specified at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at which he is employedAny establishment that has as its only regular employees the owner thereof or the parent, spouse, child, or other member of the immediate family of such owner shall not be considered to be an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerceno employee-count thresholdengaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce
FMLAFamily and Medical Leave Act of 199350an eligible employee shall be entitled to a total of 12 workweeks of leave during any 12-month periodany employee of an employer who is employed at a worksite at which such employer employs less than 50 employees if the total number of employees employed by that employer within 75 miles of that worksite is less than 50
GINAGenetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 200815to fail or refuse to hire, or to discharge, any employee, or otherwise to discriminate against any employee with respect to the compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment of the employee, because of genetic information with respect to the employeeany worker who qualifies as an employee is counted, including part-time employees, seasonal employees, and temporary employees
IRCAImmigration Reform and Control Act of 19864prohibited from discriminating on the basis of citizenship status; discriminating in the employment eligibility verification process; and retaliating under IRCA
Jury System Improvements ActJury System Improvements Act of 1978No employer shall discharge, threaten to discharge, intimidate, or coerce any permanent employee by reason of such employee's jury service, or the attendance or scheduled attendance in connection with such service, in any court of the United StatesAny individual who is reinstated to a position of employment in accordance with the provisions of this section shall be considered as having been on furlough or leave of absence during his period of jury service, shall be reinstated to his position of employment without loss of seniorityno employee-count threshold
OSH ActOccupational Safety and Health Act of 1970shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employeesno employee-count thresholda person engaged in a business affecting commerce who has employees
PDAPregnancy Discrimination Act15women affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions shall be treated the same for all employment-related purposes, including receipt of benefits under fringe benefit programs, as other persons not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to workany worker who qualifies as an employee is counted, including part-time employees, seasonal employees, and temporary employees
PUMP ActPUMP for Nursing Mothers ActAn employer shall provide- (1) a reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for such employee's nursing child for 1 year after the child's birth each time such employee has need to express the milk; and (2) a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.no employee-count thresholdAn employer that employs less than 50 employees shall not be subject to the requirements of this section, if such requirements would impose an undue hardship by causing the employer significant difficulty or expense when considered in relation to the size, financial resources, nature, or structure of the employer's business.
Section 503 affirmative action program (federal contractors)Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended50Contractors described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section shall, within 120 days of the commencement of a contract, prepare and maintain an affirmative action program at each establishment.
Title VII of the Civil Rights ActTitle VII of the Civil Rights Act of 196415to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national originany worker who qualifies as an employee is counted, including part-time employees, seasonal employees, and temporary employees
USERRAUniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994shall not be denied initial employment, reemployment, retention in employment, promotion, or any benefit of employment by an employer on the basis of that membership, application for membership, performance of service, application for service, or obligationno employee-count thresholdany person, institution, organization, or other entity that pays salary or wages for work performed or that has control over employment opportunities
VEVRAA affirmative action program (federal contractors)Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended50Contractors described in paragraph (a) of this section shall, within 120 days of the commencement of a contract, prepare and maintain an affirmative action program at each establishment.
WARNWorker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act100An employer shall not order a plant closing or mass layoff until the end of a 60-day period after the employer serves written notice of such an order100 or more employees, excluding part-time employees

Where this came from

Every record above links the page it was taken from and quotes the sentence that states it. These are the 52 sources this dataset was assembled from.

Machine-readable

From your own code

Same records, same quotes, without scraping the page: refsource is on PyPI and npm. Each value comes back carrying the URL it was read from and the sentence on that page that states it — .source and .quote sit on the value itself rather than in a side channel, so the checking step is available instead of skipped.

pip install refsource
refsource lookup regulatory-threshold-triggers law=ACA

npx -y refsource lookup regulatory-threshold-triggers law=ACA

Set your AI assistant up to use this

Two files and no account. Put this in .mcp.json at the root of your project — Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code and Codex all read that file — and your assistant can look this dataset up instead of recalling it. The server is remote, keyless and read-only.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "referencesource": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://referencesource.org/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Add to Cursor · or, on the command line: claude mcp add --transport http referencesource https://referencesource.org/mcp --scope project

Then one line in the project's CLAUDE.md or AGENTS.md, so the assistant knows when to reach for it:

When a question needs "US federal employment law thresholds by employee count", call the referencesource MCP server at https://referencesource.org/mcp (tool `search_records`, dataset_slug `regulatory-threshold-triggers`) instead of answering from memory — every record it returns carries its source URL and a verbatim quote from that page.

What each tool does, and the servers built over single registers: Connect your AI assistant.

24 records. last verified against source . due for re-check by .

Licence. Facts extracted from the United States Code (uscode.house.gov), the Federal Register (federalregister.gov) and the EEOC's and Wage and Hour Division's own coverage pages, all US Government works in the public domain; the thresholds are statutory and not copyrightable