Following a unanimous vote in the Senate, on November 16, 2022, the House of Representatives passed the Speak Out Act (the \u201cAct\u201d) which now heads to President Biden\u2019s desk for signature. \u00a0The Act is just the latest effort by legislators at the federal and state levels to shine the light on instances of sexual assault and harassment in the workplace. This new legislation renders unenforceable certain non-disclosure and non-disparagement provisions that prevent individuals from disclosing the details of sexual harassment or assault claims that may occur in the future.<\/p>\n
In practice, this Act will have a limited impact because its prohibitions only apply to employment or other agreements signed prior<\/em> to a claim of harassment arising. Thus, the Act will not bar the inclusion of non-disparagement\/nondisclosure provisions in separation agreements or settlements of sexual harassment or assault claims. In addition, the Act does not prohibit non-disclosure agreements that bar disclosure of other forms of discrimination (e.g., age, race religion) or workplace misconduct. Finally, the Act explicitly states that nothing in the new law limits employers\u2019 prevalent use of non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements designed to protect trade secrets or critical propriety information.<\/p>\n Impact On New Jersey Employers<\/u><\/strong>:<\/p>\n