By: Kathleen Connelly, Esq. Last December Attorney General Eric Holder issued a memorandum directing the Department of Justice to consider prosecuting claims on behalf of individuals who believe they have been discriminated against based on their gender identity or transgender status. While such claims were previously not recognized under Title…
By: Eric Levine, Esq. In , the Superior Court denied Mega Brand’s application for injunctive relief against two former employees who purportedly violated the non-competition and confidentiality provisions of their employment agreements. The decision illustrates the burden faced by employers seeking to enforce post-employment restrictions against former employees, as well…
To avoid the costs inherent in the employer-employee relationship, including employee benefits, workers compensation insurance, employment taxes and other liabilities, many employers secure the services of an independent contractor to avoid these liabilities. There are significant risks with this approach, however. An employer who misclassifies a worker as an “independent…
Under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (the “LAD”), an employer who acts negligently in eradicating discriminatory conduct from the workplace may be held vicariously liable for the discriminatory actions of its employees. In a victory for employers statewide, the Appellate Division refused to find an oil delivery company liable for one…
By: Kathleen Connelly, Esq. A recent holding by a New Jersey federal court in serves to remind employers that when employees fail to give timely notice of the need for medical leave they may be forfeiting the protections of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The Facts: On May…
By: Kathleen Connelly, Esq. In its rare unanimous, pro-employer ruling in the United States Supreme Court held that under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), employers are not obligated to compensate employees for time spent undergoing employer-mandated security checkpoints after normal working hours. The ruling resolved a split between rulings…
By: Kathleen Connelly, Esq. The Los Angeles Times and other news outlets have reported that following eight years of protracted litigation, a San Diego jury awarded nearly $186 million dollars to a former AutoZone manager who claimed she was demoted by AutoZone after she announced her pregnancy and was terminated…
By: Sergio Simoes, Esq. In July 2014, the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) shook the foundations of the franchisor-franchisee relationship when he determined that McDonald’s Corporation could be prosecuted as a “joint employer” with its franchisees in forty-three cases, charging unfair labor practices at its franchised…
The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”) has long prohibited discrimination against individuals on the basis of their “marital status,” barring employers from considering an individual’s status as married or unmarried in making any employment decisions. In the recent case of a New Jersey appeals court recently examined the scope…
In January 2014, Governor Christie signed the Pregnant Worker’s Fairness Act (PWFA), amending the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) to expressly prohibit workplace discrimination on the basis of pregnancy. On the federal side, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued an Enforcement Guidance on Pregnancy Discrimination and…