State and federal laws protect workers from termination based on a protected category like race or sex, known as discriminatory termination; or because of participation in protected activities like reporting legal violations, known as retaliatory discharge. A claimant must make a prima facie case of a discriminatory or retaliatory purpose…
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires covered employers to provide qualifying employees with a minimum amount of unpaid leave for certain reasons. It also prohibits employers from interfering with employees’ use of authorized leave, discriminating based on the use of leave time, or retaliating against an employee for…
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq., guarantees that qualifying employees of covered employers have access to unpaid leave, with protection against interference or retaliation by employers. A federal appellate court recently ruled that an FMLA retaliation claim may proceed. Jones v. Gulf Coast…
Employment statutes often use broad language that leaves much open to interpretation. The federal and state agencies charged with administering and enforcing these statutes develop their own interpretations of the statutes, which may or may not match the interpretations of the court system. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that…
For most workers in the U.S., paid sick leave is a benefit conferred by their employer, solely based on the employer’s determination that it is a worthwhile investment. If an employer were to stop offering paid sick leave to its employees, they would have no recourse other than finding another…
A federal judge in New Jersey recently awarded $274,000 in attorney’s fees and costs to the plaintiff in a lawsuit related to an employee’s request for medical leave. Boles v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., No. 2:12-cv-01762, opinion (D.N.J., Aug. 6, 2015). A jury found for the plaintiff in March 2015 on…
A federal lawsuit filed by a former cosmetics company employee, which has since been settled and dismissed, raised claims of race, ethnicity, and national origin discrimination, retaliation, and other claims. Meyers v. Revlon, Inc., et al, No. 1:14-cv-10213, complaint (S.D.N.Y., Dec. 30, 2014). The plaintiff accused the chief executive officer…
In September 2014, the story of an employer who laid off a woman shortly after learning of her cancer diagnosis went “viral,” moving quickly from local to global news coverage. The story highlights an important question for employees and their advocates about how state and federal employment laws protect people…
About half of all U.S. states, including New Jersey, and the District of Columbia have enacted legislation prohibiting employers from discriminating based on sexual orientation. In many states, these laws also protect gender identity and expression. Federal law still does not provide explicit protection in these areas. City and county…
A New Jersey law that is scheduled to take effect on October 1 will require public and private employers with 25 or more employees to grant job-protected leave to the victims and certain family members of sexually violent and domestic violence offenses. The New Jersey Security and Financial Empowerment Act…