When terminated employees are offered a severance package, the severance agreement frequently contains an agreement for the employee to waive any potential legal claims and not sue the employer in return for receiving severance money. Many companies have written policies that stipulate the conditions and the amount of severance the company offers to employees. The company must abide by these policies and a typical amount of severance pay is one week for every year employed.
When Severance is Offered Not out of Generosity but Concerns about Illegal Acts.
Sometimes employers have concerns that an employee whom they are terminating is going to file a lawsuit against them, and they offer severance pay in return for the employee agreeing not to sue them under discrimination, whistleblower, wage and pay or other laws. When this happens, the employer is counting on the employee’s being concerned about the unavailability of future employment opportunities and lack of financial resources, which will prompt the employee to accept the money and forget about seeking redress under State and Federal employment laws, including in New Jersey, the Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act.
If you are terminated and you are in a protected class such as race or sex, and asked to sign an agreement to waive any potential legal claims you may have against the employer, it is not proof of the employer’s illegal actions or intent. However, if you are the only one terminated and you think your sex, race, age, disability, etc., was a factor in the termination decision, and your employer is asking you to sign an agreement to not sue, you may contact this office immediately for a free consultation. Likewise, if only workers who are in the same protected class as you, e.g., female or racial minority, etc., you may contact this office immediately for a free consultation.
If you think you are being offered money to keep you from asserting your legal rights under discrimination, whistleblower, wage and pay or other laws, you should seek legal counsel before you sign any documents. I have successfully handled many negotiations involving employee severance agreements and was successful in obtaining more money for my clients.
Treble Damages Awarded for Violations of Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act
The Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act law amended the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. It gives safeguards to legally protected classes, such as women, racial minorities etc., from incurring pay disparity when an employee’s job title differs from non-protected classes who do substantially similar work. The Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act is the most aggressive equal pay law in the country. It protects women and minorities from pay disparity when their job title differs from non-protected classes who do substantially similar work.
Unscrupulous employers may devise a plan to evade discrimination charges, or have a successful legal defense, if they assign a different job title to female workers whom the employer pays less, than it pays to male workers for doing substantially similar even if not strictly identical work. Other unprincipled employers will pay racial minorities less than non-racial minorities for doing substantially the same job. Employees who bring lawsuits under this law do not have to prove an employer’s intention to discriminate in pay based on race or other protected class. If you bring a claim under Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act, you only has to prove that the employer is paying you less for doing substantially the same kind of work as other employees, the pay disparity is based upon your being a member of a protected class, and the employer does not have a sufficient legal defense.
Employers do not want to be sued under Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act because it could leave them liable to treble damages. If you are a NJ worker whose employer is paying you less for doing substantially the same kind of work as other employees, and the pay disparity is based upon your race, age, gender, etc., you could be entitled to treble damages under the Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act if the employer has no legal defenses.
What You Can Do
I am an aggressive and compassionate employment law attorney who is experienced in successfully representing persons who were discriminated against at work. I am successful in bringing employee lawsuits against governmental entities and private employers and recovering money for victims of race, sex, age, disability, LGBTQ, and other discrimination.
If You Quit Your Job, You May Lose Right to Prevail in a Lawsuit
In many instances of discrimination, if you quit your job, you may lose right to prevail in a lawsuit unless you first take certain legally required measures to preserve your job while you are still employed. If you are thinking of quitting, or think you will be fired, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation to discuss your options in the safest way for you.
Let me fight for you. If you think you may have been discriminated against, contact Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law today for a free consultation. I accept discrimination and whistleblower cases from all over New Jersey.
Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law represents workers throughout the state, including Hackensack, Jersey City, Newark, Irvington, Orange, East Orange, Trenton, Paterson, Montclair, Elizabeth, North Brunswick, Union, Plainfield, Lakewood, Edison and the counties of Bergen, Middlesex, Essex, Hudson, Monmouth, Ocean, Union, Camden, Passaic, and Morris.
Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law has convenient locations in Southern, Central, Western and Northern NJ to meet with clients.