Researching Employment Wage & Hour Law in Maryland

Introduction

Employment wage and hour law is governed by both state and federal laws. Depending on the specific problem you are trying to research, you may need to research Maryland state law, federal law, or both.

Maryland Statutes

In Maryland, the official source of the state statutes is the Annotated Code of Maryland. All Maryland law libraries (list) and many Maryland public libraries (see SAILOR, Maryland's Online Public Information Network sponsored by Maryland public libraries) carry the Annotated Code of Maryland in print. For your convenience, this guide provides links to Maryland's statutes in a free web database maintained by Lexis-Nexis. Keep in mind, however, that the print version may be more useful in your research because it provides summaries of and citations to cases that have interpreted each statute. The free web version does not give summaries of case law.

Citations to selected Maryland employment law statutes (available online from Lexis-Nexis; click the "+" next to Maryland Code to see a list of titles):

• Md. Code Labor & Employment Article, Title 1: Definitions; General Provisions
• Md. Code Labor & Employment Article, Title 3: Employment Standards and Conditions [Includes restrictions on working hours, minimum wage, etc.]

For more information on researching Maryland statutes, see Finding Statutes and Searching for Maryland Statutes When You Don't Have a Citation.

Federal Statutes

The official source of the federal statutes is the United States Code. ABll Maryland law libraries (list) and many Maryland public libraries (see SAILOR, Maryland's Online Public Information Network sponsored by Maryland public libraries) carry the United States Code in print. Many of the same libraries also carry one of the unofficial versions, the United States Code Annotated and the United States Code Service. It is a good idea to do your federal statute research in one of these unofficial print versions of the Code, because they are both more up-to-date than the official Code, and because they include summaries of cases that interpret each statute. However, below are quick links to some important federal employment-related statutes:

• The Employee Polygraph Protection Act, 29 U.S.C. Sections 2001-2009
• The Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 U.S.C. Sections 1001-1461
• The Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. Sections 201-219
• The Family and Medical Leave Act, 29 U.S.C. Sections 2601-2654

Maryland Regulations

The Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation's Division of Labor and Industry regulates wages and working hours in Maryland. The Department's regulations are published officially in Title 9, Subtitle 12 of COMAR (the Code of Maryland Administrative Regulations), the print version of which is available in all Maryland law libraries (list) and many Maryland public libraries (SAILOR). The Department's regulations are also available electronically on the Division of State Documents home page.

Federal Regulations

The U.S. Department of Labor's Employment Standards Administration ("ESA") regulates minimum wages, maximum hours, and other related conditions of employment. The ESA's regulations are published officially in Titles 20 and 29 of the CFR (the Code of Federal Regulations), the print version of which is available in all Maryland law libraries (list) and many Maryland public libraries (SAILOR). The ESA's regulations are also available electronically on its web site.

Resources for Additional Help

• Fundamentals of Employment Law / Karen E. Ford, Kerry E. Notestine, Richard N. Hill, editors. 2nd ed. Chicago, Ill.: ABA Tort and Insurance Practice, 2000.
• Maryland Employment Law / Stanley Mazaroff. 2nd ed. Charlottesville, Va.: LEXIS Publishing, c2001-.
• Your Rights in the Workplace / Barbara Kate Repa. 6th ed. Berkeley, Calif.: Nolo, 2002.
• The Employer's Legal Handbook / Fred S. Steingold. 5th ed. Berkeley, Calif.: Nolo, 2003.

Cases

There are several ways to begin research into wage and hour case law. One way is to find the statutes that apply to your situation in the Annotated Code of Maryland, the United States Code Annotated, or the United States Code Service then look at the case summaries that follow them. You can find additional cases by reading books that explain the law and noting the cases they cite. Another method of finding cases is to search the Maryland Digest, which is a subject index to Maryland case law, or the Federal Practice Digest, which is a subject index to federal case law. The Digests arrange summaries of published cases by legal issue using something called the "topic and key number" system. Once you know the topic and key number combination that represents your issue, look up that topic and key number in the Digest and you should find a list of summaries of cases that discuss your issue. Each summary includes a citation to the full text of a case.

Source: This section developed by Sara Kelley, Librarian, Georgetown University Law Library,

in partnership with the Maryland Legal Assistance Network                                                    Last Review Date 10/04 (MLAN/SK)