Current Events

A New Jersey bill has been introduced in the State Assembly and State Senate to protect workers and job applicants from the negative consequences of employers using Artificial Intelligence in making illegal employment decisions as to hiring, promotions, and terminations. Some of the concerns this bill addresses are when a job applicant may be unfairly screened out by an AI system or a worker is fired by an AI system.

Employees in protected classes, such as older employees, disabled employees and persons of color, New Jersey Race Discrimination Lawyer, have long suspected that there at times seems to be no logical reason for their not being promoted, or given raises, or offered training on par with their co-workers. Older workers, New Jersey Age Discrimination Lawyer, disabled workers, and racial minorities feel singled out when they are put on a P.I.

A lout is an awkward, ill-mannered, or uncouth person. It typically refers to a boorish man who displays a distinct lack of respect for social norms or a basic comprehension of acceptable social norms. It can also imply foolishness or general stupidity. A lout can create a racially hostile work environment without any conscious and deliberate intent to cause harm.

“Intent” Is Simply Not Part of the Claim.

If you are a New Jersey employee who was illegally fired while you were out on family leave, you may be able to file a lawsuit under the New Jersey Family Leave Act or the federal Family Medical Leave Act. While the New Jersey Family Leave Act and the federal Family Medical Leave Act have many similarities, they have differences as to who is eligible to file a claim. Under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), in addition to a qualifying employee being allowed time off to time off to care for a family member, an employee may qualify under the FMLA for family leave in order to take care of his or her own serious health condition. See July 27 blog on new amendments. Under New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA), an employee is only allowed time off to care for a family member, but does not qualify for family leave in order to take care of his or her own serious health condition.

The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 et seq.

Under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, N.J.S.A. 10:5-4, all persons shall have the opportunity to obtain employment without discrimination because of marital status.

Harassment discrimination claims in New Jersey brought under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination do not require an element of intent, similar to Federal harassment discrimination under Title VII. The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination follows many of the standards of the federal Title VII cases in determining the standards for a valid discrimination harassment claim brought under the NJ statute. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C.

After many had negotiations with legislators and employee rights groups, New Jersey’s Family Leave Act’s changes and new qualifications finally became effective in New Jersey on July 17, 2026. These changes expand job-protected leave for many workers across the state. More workers are now covered to take protected leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition or bond with a newborn child or newly adopted child within one year of the child’s birth or placement, and be restored to the same or equivalent position upon end of the leave.

IN A NUTSHELL, AMONG THE MOST SIGNIFICANT FAMILY LEAVE ACT CHANGES EFFECTIVE JULY 17, 2026 ARE:

 Lowering the employment requirement from 12 months to 3 months.

Reducing the hours-worked requirement from 1,000 hours to 250 hours during the previous 12 months.

Many workers in New Jersey are covered by the New Jersey Prevailing Wage Act (N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.

When women and minority supervisors, and other protected classes are maligned by their subordinate employees to those higher in authority over the supervisor, it could affect the supervisor’s employment status.  Supervisors are not insulated from the effects of illegal prejudice and bias of employees who are subordinate to them in authority.

When Biased Animosity of a Subordinate Employee Leads to Their Supervisor’s Demotion or Termination, this Bias May Be Imputed to the Employer Who May Be Held Liable for an Illegal Termination in Some Instances, Even if the Employer, himself, Has No Illegal Prejudice.

Don’t Sit on Your Rights.

If you are an employee who believes you are being discriminated against for illegal reasons, you should contact this office today for a free consultation.

Companies who hire workers are more frequently outsourcing certain traditional responsibilities to another company. Under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, courts often treat two differently-named businesses, (or a parent company and its subsidiary) as "joint employers" if one company, or the parent company, exercises substantial control over some of the other’s operations, or employment decisions, HR policies, or conditions of work. Naming all connected entities ensures that the one company cannot use a technicality to avoid liability.

Sometimes an employee is hired by a company and his paychecks are paid by a different company. Or the hiring company tells the employees if they think there is discrimination, they should report it to HR, but the HR department is within another named company.

When an employee files a discrimination or retaliation claim, it is important to identify the correct employer. Sometimes an employee works for a business which has a parent corporation. A dominating parent corporation may use a subsidiary corporation to hide engaging in illegal, fraudulent or wrongful conduct in an attempt to avoid liability. In other situations, even when the parent company is not willfully and knowingly engaging in wrongful conduct, the parent company may be held liable for the actions of the smaller company under one of two legal doctrines: the “Integrated Employer Doctrine” or the “Joint Employer Doctrine.”  The “Integrated Employer Doctrine” is when both the parent and smaller company are upon examination of certain facts, one single employer.