Employee Rights Law encompasses the various rights that have arisen over time which employees are legally entitled to in the workplace, such as: limits on drug testing; freedom from discrimination when an employee is part of a protected class; rights related to wage and hour law; the rights of workers to return to their former jobs after serving in the military; taking unpaid leave for births or adoptions, or serious health conditions the employee or his/her immediate family member is dealing with; the right to unionize; freedom from disciplinary action or termination for serving on a jury; right of advance notice of plant closings or mass layoffs; health and safety rights in the workplace; rights of disabled workers; privacy in the workplace; workers' compensation; unemployment benefits; and much more. This very broad legal area falls primarily under the large practice area of employment law.

These employee rights have been addressed on the federal and state levels and by various regulatory bodies, as well as via employee handbooks/manuals and collective bargaining agreements. Not all employees have the same rights. For example, private employees don't have all the same constitutional rights that public employees, who work for the government, do. There are many regulatory bodies that administer and oversee employee rights laws.

Human resources law deals with many employee rights which are inherent in the hiring, firing, disciplining and training process for company personnel.

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