Labor & Employment Insights — Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C. Firm News & Events

New Jersey Adopts Additional Job Protections for Employees Suffering From the Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Published on: March 20, 2020 | by John H. Schmidt, Jr.

On March 19, 2020, Governor Murphy signed a new law that grants immediate protection to employees who have or are likely to have an “infectious disease” caused by “a living organism or other pathogen, including a fungus, bacteria, parasite, protozoan, virus or poison, which may or may not be transmissible from person to person, animal to person, or insect to person.” The coronavirus is an infectious disease within the meaning of the law.

Employer Mandates: The law mandates that an employer may NOT terminate the employment of any employee who requests or who takes time off from work based on a written or electronically transmitted recommendation from a New Jersey medical professional that the employee should take time off for a specified period because the employee has or is likely to have an infectious disease. Additionally, the employer may NOT refuse to reinstate the employee to work after the expiration of the leave specified by the medical professional. Reinstatement must be to the same position held when the leave commenced without any additional penalties.

Violations: Any employer violating this new law will be compelled to reinstate the employee to his/her prior position and is subject to a fine of $2,500 for each violation.

The Employer’s Guide to Federal and State Employee Leave Rights and Income Protection for Coronavirus-related Absences

Published on: March 19, 2020 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

Updated as of April 1, 2020

In recent days employers have been faced with very difficult and unanticipated situations in the workplace. Employee absences from the workplace, whether related to personal or family illness due to the virus, voluntary or involuntary quarantines, fear of contracting the virus, reductions in hours, workplace furloughs or closures, may implicate leave rights under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA), as well as paid sick leave rights under the New Jersey Paid Sick Leave law. In addition, employees may be eligible for additional income protection from state unemployment, temporary disability and workers compensation funds.

Signed into law on March 18, 2019 the Families First Coronavirus Response Act has several components, including paid sick leave and paid FMLA leave obligations aimed at easing the financial impact of the virus upon employees. This guide synthesizes the various federal and state programs and answers questions about the leave and income protections are available to employees who find themselves unable to work due to the coronavirus epidemic.

Congress Passes Families First Coronavirus Response Act – Mandates Paid Sick Leave

Published on: March 18, 2020 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

As the country reels from the coronavirus pandemic, the economic impact on businesses and employees has become painfully evident. Whether due to personal or family illness with the virus, self-isolation, school or business closures, or a downturn in business, employees are expected to be facing extended absences from the workplace. Many employees, especially hourly workers, may not have available paid time off or the economic cushion to weather the loss of income during the absence. Employers may not have the financial wherewithal to pay employees during these absences. In anticipation of these and other dire economic consequences brought on by the virus, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Emergency Paid Leave Act with the support of the President. On March 16, 2020 the House substantially revised the bill to significantly narrow the relief available to employees under the original version. The Senate passed the bill two days later and it is now headed to the President for his signature. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act will provide economic relief to employees affected by coronavirus-related absences.

The Act will apply to employers with 500 or less employees. Larger employers are not covered. Administration and Senate leaders have commented that these larger employers typically provide sick leave benefits to their employees, but many may not provide for two weeks of leave. If not, these employees may be unprotected. Employers with less than 50 employees can apply for an exemption through the Department of Labor if it would “jeopardize the viability of the business”, a vague standard that has yet to be defined.

We have outlined below key provisions of the Act that we hope will assist employers in making difficult staffing decisions going forward.

NJ Leads the Way in Mandating Severance Payments for Laid-off Employees

Published on: March 10, 2020 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

For nearly two decades New Jersey employers had to comply with the notice requirements of the Federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN), 21 U.S.C. 2100 et seq., as well as New Jersey’s similar counterpart, Millville Dallas Airmotive Plant Job Loss Notification Act (NJ WARN Act), N.J.S.A. 34:21-2. While not identical, both statutes require New Jersey employers with 100 or more employees to provide 60 days’ written advance notice to those employees affected by a “mass layoff” or “plant closing” or a “termination of operations” or “transfer of operations” as those are defined under the respective statutes. Both laws require similar notifications to designated state and local officials. A failure to provide the required 60 days’ advance notice could result in liability for wages and benefits for the period for which the notice was not provided to the affected employee.

As a result of the Toys ‘R’ Us bankruptcy filing in 2017, more than 30,000 workers were laid off nationally, and approximately 2,000 in New Jersey. Initially, these employees were not provided with any severance benefits but an ensuing battle ultimately resulted in the establishment of an assistance fund to provide some monetary relief to affected employees. Critics claimed that these benefits fell far short of what these workers should have been paid.

The Toys ‘R’ Us closures’ effect upon the citizens of New Jersey did not go unnoticed by the state legislature. On Jan. 21, 2020, New Jersey amended the NJ WARN Act to become the first state to mandate employee severance payments in the event of a closure of operations or mass layoff of employees. The amendments also extend significant additional protections to New Jersey employees, making it the most progressive law of its kind in the country. The law goes into effect July 19, 2020.

New Jersey Employers Beware – Classify Employees as Independent Contractors At Your Own Peril

Published on: February 11, 2020 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

NEW JERSEY AND YOU, PERFECT TOGETHER? NOT SO MUCH.

Slew of Bills Out of Trenton Impose Increasing Burdens on Those Doing Business in the State

PART 1

New Jersey Employers Dealing With New Legislation on Severance, Leave Rights, and Fair Workweek Scheduling

Published on: February 11, 2020 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

NEW JERSEY AND YOU, PERFECT TOGETHER? NOT SO MUCH.

Slew of Bills Out of Trenton Impose Increasing Burdens on Those Doing Business in the State

PART 2

Restrictive Covenants In The Employment Setting In New Jersey Where We Now Are? Where May We Be Going?

Published on: February 7, 2020 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

I. Where We Are

A. What Are Restrictive Covenants in the Employment Setting in New Jersey?

Generally speaking, restrictive covenants in an employment setting take one of three forms: a covenant not to compete, a non-solicitation covenant, and/or a non-disclosure covenant.

Amendments to New Jersey’s WARN Act Expands Coverage To Include More Employers

Published on: January 21, 2020 | by John H. Schmidt, Jr.

Employers doing business in New Jersey have been subject to both the federal and state Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (“WARN”) for more than ten years. Under the prior laws, if an employer were to close a facility employing more than 50 fulltime employees, it was required to provide those employees with at least 60 days’ advanced notice of the closure or face a penalty that required the employer to pay severance compensation to each of the terminated employees. Amendments to the New Jersey legislation signed into law by Governor Murphy in January 2020 not only require employers to provide more notice to employees, but will also impose new economic burdens upon the employers.

These amendments to New Jersey’s WARN Act require employers who plan to close one or more establishment(s) within the state that will result in the layoff or termination of 50 or more employees (fulltime and/or part-time employees) from that establishment(s), are required to provide the affected employees with at least 90 days advanced notice of the layoff or termination of employment. Additionally, employers will be obligated to pay severance compensation to each of the affected employees in an amount equal to one week of severance compensation for each year of service. The severance compensation must be paid on or before the last day of employment. If an employer fails to pay the appropriate severance compensation, the employer will fact a penalty obligating it to pay an additional four weeks of compensation to each employee not correctly paid.

Amendments to the Act also define severance compensation as compensation due for back pay associated with the termination in an apparent attempt to characterize the severance compensation as wages for the purposes of bankruptcy.

“Crown Act” Amends New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination

Published on: December 31, 2019 | by John H. Schmidt, Jr.

New Jersey has one of the most progressive laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, as well as in places of public accommodation. That law’s protections against race discrimination have been further expanded under recent legislation signed into law by Governor Murphy. The new act is commonly known as the “Crown Act.”

Under the new law, it is now illegal to discriminate against anyone because of their race, inclusive of traits historically associated with race “including but not limited to, hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles.” The new law further defines protective hairstyles to include “such hairstyles as braids, locks and twists.” In short, you cannot refuse to continue to employ any current employees or refuse to employ prospective employees if they are sporting hairstyles that are characteristically associated with a particular race of people.

“Have We Become Too Sensitive at Work?” One Woman Today Podcast

Published on: December 16, 2019 | by Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C.

Lindabury’s Employment Law Group partner, Kathleen Connelly joins Jeanie Coomber for her podcast series One Woman Today discussing “Workplace Sensitivity Training, Harassment and Bullying”. In their conversation, Kathleen shares her wisdom on what constitutes “bad behavior” and how education of employees and thorough and fair investigations is paramount for employers.

You may listen to the archived podcast here.