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 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. New Jersey Employment Unlawful Retaliation Attorney.
Don’t Sit on Your Rights.
If you are an employee whose employer who retaliated against you or terminated you while you were on family leave, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation. I have represented employees who were illegally terminated and discriminated against by their employer 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. This law office accepts cases from all over New Jersey and has locations in Southern, Central and Northern NJ to meet with clients. Call today for a free consultation.
In a study by the Harvard Law and Policy Review, it found that employment discrimination Plaintiffs in Federal Court fared poorly when compared to other types of lawsuits. New Jersey Race Discrimination Lawyer. The employment discrimination plaintiffs won at only 15% of employment discrimination cases during a three decade period in Federal Court. This is in stark contrast to the plaintiffs prevailing and receiving a judgment in their favor in 51% in all other civil cases. Statistics show that employment discrimination employees plaintiffs fare better in state courts than Federal Courts. See Statistics Show NJ Employees Who Suffer Racial Discrimination at Work Fare Better in State Court than Federal Court.
If a federal Family Medical Leave Act claim is filed in NJ State Court under the FMLA, the Defendant employer does have an automatic right to get the case removed to a Federal District Court who will then take over the case because the claim is brought under a federal statute. However, if a New Jersey Family Leave Act claim is filed in NJ State court, the employer Defendant does not have an automatic right to get the case removed to a federal court because it is filed under New Jersey state law.
The statutes also differ in what remedies are available within the scope of award of damages to a prevailing Plaintiff in their employment lawsuit. The New Jersey Family Leave Act allows a plaintiff to recover a more expansive array of damages including all equitable remedies and compensatory damages which are available under New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination, such as emotional distress damages and punitive damages, which are not allowed under the federal Family Medical Leave Act.
Many NJ employees have the choice of filing a claim either under the NJ Family Leave Act or the federal Family Medical Leave Act. The damages that may be awarded to a successful Plaintiff under the federal statute (FMLA) provide for “liquidated” damages which come to essentially twice the amount of economic damages. However, as stated, under the New Jersey Family Leave Act, a successful Plaintiff may recover a more expansive array of damages than is allowed under the FMLA, including all equitable remedies and compensatory damages that are available under another state discrimination statute, New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination, such as emotional distress damages and punitive damages which are not available under the FMLA. Both statutes allow for an award of reasonable attorney’s fees and costs, and back pay and front pay.
Back pay
Awards in either statute include back pay. Back pay compensation for lost wages, bonuses, overtime, and benefits calculated from the date of wrongful termination or demotion up to the time of the trial/judgment. You must make reasonable efforts to find a new employment. Any wages you earned from a new employer are subtracted from your total back pay award
Front pay: Front pay is compensation for projected future lost earnings and benefits until you are able to secure comparable alternative employment. In a front pay award under the New Jersey Family Leave Act, the jury determines the amount of a front pay award. A judge decides whether front pay is an appropriate alternative to job reinstatement, and once it is allowed, the jury sets the specific amount of future lost wages. Although a jury determines whether an employer is liable for violating the New Jersey Family Leave Act, the specific award of reinstatement is classified as an equitable remedy. Equitable remedies in employment cases are exclusively decided by the judge.
Under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), a judge determines the award of front pay, not the jury. The judge decides both whether to award for future lost wages and the specific amount. Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, a judge determines if reinstatement is appropriate, similar to the NJFLA. While a jury decides if the employer unlawfully violated the FMLA, the remedy of reinstatement is classified as equitable relief which is solely under the judge's discretion, as it is under the NJ FLA. Although a jury determines whether your FMLA rights were violated and calculates other damages like back pay, the judge alone handles the front pay calculation to compensate for projected future lost earnings.
A Plaintiff’s Duty to Mitigate Damages
When a Plaintiff is illegally terminated and files a lawsuit, the Plaintiff has a duty after the termination, both before and during the lawsuit, and after the trial, to put forth a good faith effort to locate a new employment position. This is called “Mitigation of Damages”. If the plaintiff cannot produce evidence that he or she put forth such a good faith effort, sought and applied for new employment, the award of back pay and front pay will be diminished.
Whether a plaintiff files a lawsuit for illegal termination retaliation for whistleblowing, New Jersey Whistleblower Laws Attorney, or for illegal sex discrimination, or for any illegal termination under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, Employment/Civil Rights Law, if the plaintiff cannot produce evidence that he or she put forth such a good faith effort to secure new employment, the award of back pay and front pay will be diminished.
Note: This article is not legal advice and is not to be construed as giving legal advice in any situation or case. There are numerous changes and amendments in discrimination law and employment law that are mandated every year. If you have a legal question, you should consult with an employment attorney to discuss the specifics of your situation.
Don’t Sit on Your Rights
I have represented employees who were illegally discriminated against by their employers, 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 you are being discriminated against, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation. I accept discrimination and whistleblower cases from all over New Jersey and have locations in Southern, Central and Northern NJ to meet with clients.
Contact Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law today for a free consultation.
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.