1. What specific laws define amount of hours worked and how they factor into amount of length of breaks. i.e., work 6 hours .. get 1 10 min. and one 30. clock out break?

2. Saftey laws - Are companies, such as retail stores, not obliged to provide safety equipment, like back support braces, while unloading merchandise from trucks, even when most or all of the merchandise is over 30 lbs?

3. Just because there is an employee handbook, does that mean companies do not have to abide by the State regulated labor laws?

4. Because my babysitter is 16 years old and by reading the child-labor laws, she is not allowed to work past 10pm, and after explaining this to the company, can they make me work thereby me needing her past 10pm?

1.) There are only two states that have any laws regarding the number of hours that can be worked (outside of a few industry specific exceptions) and Alabama is neither of them. Neither Alabama nor Federal law requires any breaks at all.

2.) I don't know the answer to this one; someone else may.

3.) Companies are required to follow Federal and state laws regardless of what their employee handbook says. They are not, however, bound to follow their own policies in most cases.

4.) They can still make you work past 10 pm regardless of your child care issues. While I don't mean this as harshly as I'm sure it will sound, your babysitter's restrictions are your problem, not your employer's.

[QUOTE=MissMel219;852559]2. Saftey laws - Are companies, such as retail stores, not obliged to provide safety equipment, like back support braces, while unloading merchandise from trucks, even when most or all of the merchandise is over 30 lbs?/QUOTE]

First off, there is no OSHA standard for lifting, so the quick answer is "No."

Second, back support belts are a seriously bad idea that no company should give to its employees. They do not protect the back, but merely serve to alert an employee who is trying to lift improperly that they are doing so. The bad news is that far too many employees fail to understand, even after being told several times, that the belts do not turn them into Superman and they attempt to lift far too much, resulting in overexertion and a reportable injury.