What Senior Care Communities Should Know About Employment Law Compliance

Navigating employment law compliance is a persistent challenge in the senior care industry due to the sector’s complex regulatory landscape. Given the strict state and federal requirements, facilities must maintain vigilant adherence to legal standards. The consequences of non-compliance can be severe—ranging from financial penalties to reputational damage—making it essential to proactively manage risk. Partnering with an experienced employment attorney and implementing clear, comprehensive employment policies with ongoing oversight can significantly strengthen a community’s legal safeguards.

Common Risks and Pitfalls in Senior Care Employment Compliance

Edward Hones, an employment lawyer and Founder at Hones Law PLLC

Labor law compliance can be a high-stakes, complex issue, says Edward Hones, an employment lawyer and founder at Hones Law PLLC. “Senior care communities often operate in a high-pressure environment with thin margins and 24/7 staffing needs, which can lead to shortcuts or oversights in wage and hour compliance, overtime classification, and rest break policies,” he explains.

According to Hones, one of the most significant risks in senior care employment law compliance is misclassifying workers or failing to properly compensate workers for all hours worked. That includes time spent on training, overnight shifts, or brief shift extensions. “Many senior care providers struggle with managing protected leave requests under FMLA or state equivalents, and this can lead to costly retaliation or interference claims,” he says.

Robbin Schuchmann, a Global Hiring Specialist and Co-Founder of EOR Overview

Robbin Schuchmann, a global hiring specialist and co-founder of EOR Overview, has worked closely with businesses that need to stay on top of labor laws in multiple regions. He explains that poor handling of employee classifications, wage standards, and overtime is a major compliance risk factor in the senior care industry. Classification is made more complicated by the fact that communities often rely on a mix of full-time, part-time, and contract staff. “When roles blur, it’s easy to misclassify someone, and that can open the door to wage claims, tax issues, and audits,” he says. “Add to that the emotional and physical demands of the job, and you’ve got a workforce that tends to burn out fast. When HR processes aren’t clearly defined or regularly reviewed, it becomes even easier for things to slip through the cracks.”

When it comes to minimum wage laws, communities need to be detail-oriented and must keep up with potentially frequently changing requirements. In addition to adhering to federal law, communities should also monitor state and even city-level minimum wage requirements. “In some places, minimum wage is tied to cost-of-living adjustments, which means it can change yearly or even more often,” says Schuchmann. Minimum wage requirements extend beyond base pay, too. If staff work overtime or split shifts, those hours can affect what they should be getting paid, and outdated policies can quickly result in non-compliance issues.

Consequences of Employment Non-Compliance

Christopher Migliaccio, a lawyer and Founder at Warren Migliaccio L.L.P.

Non-compliance is about more than fines. Communities can potentially face lawsuits, reputational damage, and in extreme cases, communities could even lose their license. “We’ve seen providers face costly audits, class action suits, and even whistleblower claims, often because they didn’t realize they were noncompliant,” says Christopher Migliaccio, a lawyer and founder at Warren Migliaccio L.L.P. “Wage and hour claims in particular—often stemming from missed breaks, misclassified roles, or underreported time—can quickly balloon into six-figure liabilities.”

According to Hones, communities may face Department of Labor audits, state investigations, or private lawsuits for non-compliance. He adds that senior care communities often lack rigorous time tracking and recordkeeping, which can lead to disputes over hours worked or benefits eligibility. “Benefits-related compliance, such as COBRA notices or ACA obligations, is another area where smaller operators frequently fall short,” he says.

How Senior Care Communities Can Ensure Employment Law Compliance

It’s difficult to underestimate the importance of training when it comes to employment law compliance. “Training is your first line of defense,” says Migliaccio. He recommends that all supervisors have at least basic employment law awareness, especially of retaliation, harassment, and accommodation issues. “Annual refreshers and onboarding modules are smart investments that reduce long-term liability,” he says.

Hones adds that a strong compliance program should include training not only for managers, but for all staff. He recommends that staff should be trained on patient care policies as well as on employment rights, respectful workplace standards, and wage rules.

Additionally, Hones recommends that communities implement digital timekeeping systems that integrate with payroll systems. The timekeeping systems should flat anomalies in real time, which helps communities prevent potential issues before they escalate.

In addition to using digital timekeeping systems, it’s equally important that communities have employees who know how to read the data. “Someone on the team should be regularly reviewing those records, not just storing them for compliance purposes,” says Schuchmann.

When it comes to federal and state level compliance, Schuchmann encourages communities to treat their human resources like a living system that needs regular maintenance. “I always tell companies to schedule quarterly reviews of their employment practices, even if nothing seems wrong,” he says. He explains that it’s better that communities catch issues internally than to have an internal audit reveal issues. “In senior care especially, where regulations tend to change and staffing is tight, it pays to stay a step ahead,” he says.

Since state and municipal laws can vary from federal requirements, it’s also essential that senior care communities work with a qualified employment law partner who understands the state’s rules and the senior care industry. “Don’t rely on national templates or HR policies that weren’t designed for long-term care. Those can actually create compliance gaps instead of solving them,” says Migliaccio.

Most importantly, Migliaccio encourages senior care communities to adopt a proactive, rather than a reactive approach to HR. “Employment law compliance in senior care isn’t just a legal issue—it’s part of quality care and workforce stability,” he explains. Getting proactive legal reviews and investing in HR infrastructure can save your community from major disruptions down the road.”

Paige Cerulli

Paige Cerulli is a contributing writer to i Advance Senior Care.