Changes may be coming to the Family Leave Act in New Jersey, which proposed amendments would give an increased opportunity for benefits to many employees seeking to take time off of work to care for family members. The Family Leave Bill, Senate 2950/Assembly 3451 would increase the number of businesses who would be required to give paid family leave. It also would increase the number of employees who will be covered under the Family Leave Act.
The New Jersey Family Leave Act allow employees to take unpaid time off from work to take care of a care of a sick or disabled relative, including to care for seriously ill aging parents, (even if the illness is temporary) or a spouse, or other relative. The New Jersey Family Leave Act also allow employees to take unpaid time off from work when there is a birth or adoption of a child. See New Jersey Pregnancy Discrimination Lawyer. I accept cases from all over the state and have locations in northern, central and southern NJ to meet with clients. Call today for a free consultation.
Currently, under the statutory description of a “covered employer”, a New Jersey employer must have a threshold of 30 employees to be a covered employer. A New Jersey Senate panel advanced a bill that would expand New Jersey’s family leave law to businesses with a threshold of at least 15 workers, reducing by half the required number for the employee threshold, for an employer to be a covered employer.
Additionally, New Jersey workers under the current law have job-protected family leave only if they work at a company for 1,000 hours and for 12 months. The Bill’s proposal that cleared both the State Assembly and the Senate, would have workers who worked for their employer for six months and who worked 500 hours, be eligible for family leave benefits.
Enactment Date
This proposed bill, the Family Leave Bill, S2950/A3451 received final Legislative passage on December 23, 2025 and is on the Governor’s desk. Under law, after it passed both the Assembly and the Senate, because of the timing of the required passage by both houses and the subsequent signing by the Governor (less than 45 days but more than 10 days before the end of the session), the Governor must either sign or veto the Bill. If the Governor takes neither action, then this Bill automatically becomes enacted at the end of the session.
Effective Date
The provisions of the bill concerning employee job protection expansion are scheduled to take effect six months after the date of enactment.
The Right to Be Reinstated to Employment
Thus, this bill if passed into law, upon the effective date, it extends to employees who worked at least six months and 500 hours, of employers with 15 or more employees the right to be reinstated to employment after taking family temporary disability leave benefits or unpaid family leave.
Workers Who Pay Into FLI
If passed into law, this bill ensures that more employees who pay into family temporary disability leave insurance (FLI) will be able to able to return to work after taking FLI benefits.
Applies to Employees Who Receive Unpaid Leave
Under the bill, employees of employers with 15 or more employees will be entitled to 12 weeks of job protected leave, whether that leave is paid or unpaid.
Option of Benefits When Employee Has Two Eligibilities
The bill provides that an employee who is eligible for both earned sick leave and either temporary disability benefits or family temporary disability leave benefits, will have the option of using either the earned sick leave or whichever is applicable of temporary disability benefits or family temporary disability leave benefits.
Employee May Select Order of Options
The bill provides an employee may select the order in which the different kinds of leave are taken.
Employee Not to Receive More than One Kind of Paid Leave Simultaneously
Although the bill provides an employee may select the order in which the different kinds of leave are taken, the employee may not receive more than one kind of paid leave simultaneously during any period of time.
Employees should not have to worry about their job security when they need to take time off work to care for a sick family member. Many persons need to take time off from work to take care of seriously ill aging parents, (even if the illness is temporary) or a spouse, or other relative. The New Jersey Family Leave Act allow employees to take unpaid time off from work to take care of a seriously ill relative, and also allow employees to take unpaid time off from work for the birth or adoption of a child. Employers cannot thereafter discredit the employee’s job performance by giving them undervalued Employee Performance Evaluations.
DON’T SIT ON YOUR RIGHTS
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 handing in a resignation letter, or think you will be fired (or have already been terminated), you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation to discuss your options.
Call today for a free consultation. If you think your employer is discriminating against you, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation. I have represented public and private employees who were illegally discriminated against and was successful in recovering financial compensation for their emotional pain and suffering and moneys for lost wages, both for past lost wages and projected future lost wages. If you think your employer is illegally discriminating against you, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation. I accept discrimination cases from all over New Jersey and have locations in Southern, Central and Northern NJ to meet with clients.
Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law represents workers throughout the entire state, including Hackensack, Jersey City, Newark, Irvington, Orange, East Orange, Trenton, Paterson, Montclair, Elizabeth, North Brunswick, Cherry Hill, Vineland, Union, Plainfield, Hamilton Township, Lakewood, Edison, Parsippany-Troy Hills, Franklin, Lakewood, and every NJ County, including Bergen, Hudson, Middlesex, Essex, Monmouth, Somerset, Ocean, Union, Camden, Passaic, Morris, Gloucester, Atlantic, Burlington, Camden Counties.