Companion Guide to Video August 2012

www.fhwa.dot.gov/federal-aidessentials

Project Construction and Contract Administration

Contract Administration

Job Site Posters

In the United States, many Federal laws interact 

to ensure a fair and safe workplace for all 

employees. 

These laws provide for protections for all 

workers. As employees, we expect workplace 

rules, practices, policies, and behaviors to be 

fair and to create an inclusive environment 

where all workers are valued and respected. As 

the local public agency (LPA), your job is to 

ensure your contractors create and maintain a 

safe work environment where everyone is 

treated with fairness, dignity, and respect while 

implementing requirements of specific laws 

requiring postings.

Why Posters are Displayed

To make sure that all workers are aware of the 

legal protections available to them, all employers 

are required to display many Federal and State 

posters on the job site for their employees. 

More specifically, Federal-aid construction 

contracts also make this a requirement for your 

contractors.

Postings are to be visibly displayed, easily seen, 

and readily accessible to all of your contractor’s 

employees at the worksite. Since the job site for 

most highway construction projects are 

outdoors, this means the contractor may need to 

erect a poster board, such as the one seen here. 

If located outdoors, the poster board should be 

covered to protect the postings from 

deterioration due to weather exposure. The 

poster board needs to be located in an area 

where the employees are most likely to gather, 

such as near the contractors field office or a 

carpool location. The contractor’s employees 

must be able to freely look at the information 

without question, suspicion, or influence. 

What Posters Must Be Displayed

To be in compliance with Federal-aid contract 

requirements, the job-site posters that must be 

displayed on the poster board are highlighted 

here. Note that there are additional employer 

posting requirements that go beyond these eight 

posters shown.

Federal law requires employers to physically display a variety of 

posters on job sites
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law 

poster is a summary of all employment laws that 

provide equal employment opportunity 

protections. The U.S. Equal Employment 

Opportunity Commission is the oversight agency 

for these protections. 

In addition to this poster, contractors should also 

post a copy of their equal opportunity policy and 

identify their EEO officer on the board. 

The Notice: Federal-aid Project poster is a false 

statements poster required on federally funded 

projects. 

The Employee Rights under the Davis-Bacon 

Act poster describes what the Davis-Bacon Act 

is, how it affects the project, and who is covered. 

The contractor will also need to post a list of 

actual wages to be paid on the project to enable 

workers to confirm they are being paid correctly.

The U.S. Department of Labor requires that the 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s 

(OSHA) “Job Safety and Health It's the Law!”

poster is displayed at worksites. 

This poster lists both employee and employer 

rights regarding workplace safety. This poster 

basically states that a worker has a right to a 

hazard free workplace. It lists the OSHA phone 

number to call for information or to register a 

complaint. 

The Employee Rights poster describes the rights 

given to employees under The Fair Labor 

Standards Act. The Fair Labor Standards Act, or 

FLSA, establishes minimum wage rate, overtime 

pay, record-keeping, and youth employment 

standards affecting employees in the private 

sector and in Federal, State, and local 

governments. FLSA enforcement is by U.S. 

Department of Labor. 

This Employee Rights and Responsibilities 

poster describes the rights and responsibilities 

given to employees under the Family and 

Medical Leave Act. The Family and Medical 

Leave Act, more commonly called FMLA,

requires employers to provide up to 12 weeks of 

unpaid, job protected leave to eligible 

employees for the specific reasons listed on the 

poster. 

This poster must be displayed even if there are 

no eligible employees. The poster also tells the 

employees how to file a complaint. 

The Notice: Employee Polygraph Protection Act 

poster advises employees of their right to refuse 

to take a lie detector test. 
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

Employers are prohibited from discharge, 

discipline, or discriminating against any 

employee for exercising their right of refusal. 

The U.S. Department of Labor enforces this 

protection. 

The Whistleblowers Know Your Rights poster is 

required for projects that use American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act or ARRA funds. 

This act provides protections for certain 

individuals who make specified disclosures 

relating to Recovery Act funds.

Where to find Posters

All posters that are required on Federal-aid 

construction project job sites can be accessed 

through the link provided in this module. Most 

State departments of transportation can also 

provide these posters along with any additional 

required information and posters required by 

State or local laws.

However, once the contractor downloads the 

posters, the posters are not complete until the 

additional information required on some of the 

posters, such as 

contact names or 

telephone numbers, 

is added. To be in 

compliance with 

Federal-aid poster 

requirements, all 

posters must be 

legible, contain all 

required information, 

and the information 

is current.

Summary

Creating a safe, inclusive environment where all 

workers are valued and respected requires an 

understanding by both employers and 

employees of their workplace rights. Maintaining 

a poster board that is visible, accurate, and 

readily accessible means that employees have 

the information they need, when they need it.
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

The content of this 

document is not a 

substitute for 

information obtained 

from State departments 

of transportation, 

appropriate FHWA 

Division Offices, and 

applicable laws. 

Scenarios have been 

simplified for emphasis 

and do not necessarily 

reflect the actual range of 

requirements applicable 

to the scenario or this 

topic. This document

was created under 

contract number

DTFH63-11-D-00066 by 

the Federal Highway 

Administration, U.S. 

Department of 

Transportation, and is 

offered to the public to 

heighten and focus 

awareness of Federal-aid 

requirements within the 

local public agencies 

community and 

reinforces the 

importance of these 

necessary policies, 

procedures, and 

practices.

This companion resource 

is the script content for 

the video production of 

the same name. 

Additional Resources

• FHWA list of required job-site posters

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/poster.cfm

• Regulations covering form FHWA-1273 dealing with Federal-aid contracts

http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/textidx?c=ecfr&SID=2f2ef2bacf77078a9240f766d42ea55e&rgn=div5&view=tex

t&node=23:1.0.1.7.22&idno=23

• Information on workplace poster requirements for small businesses

http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/osdbu/sbrefa/poster/matrix.htm

• Information on Federal workplace posting requirements

http://www.shrm.org/LegalIssues/StateandLocalResources/StateandLocalS

tatutesandRegulations/Documents/stateposting.pdf