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The Employer Handbook BlogHow did a plaintiff with no lawyer convince a federal appellate court that he had a viable FMLA claim?
The surprise will quickly disappear once I share the facts from this recent Third Circuit decision. Continue reading
Articles Posted in New Jersey
New Jersey finally offers clear guidance on cannabis testing to local employers. And by “clear,” I mean “hazy.”
Like saying, “It depends,” you can count on a lawyer blogging about cannabis and employment law to drop a marijuana pun in the title of the post. Continue reading
If hiring managers say they are looking for “new blood,” are they guilty of age discrimination?
An HR employee claimed that her age motivated her employer’s decision not to select her for a Human Resources Talent Consultant (HRTC) position after the company restructured the HR Department.
Why? Because decision-makers allegedly said on a conference call that they were looking for “fresh new blood” to fill the HRTC role.
Is that code for age discrimination?
New Jersey poster lamination companies are now cursing under their breath
New Jersey made it easier for employers to comply with displaying official posters from the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR). Continue reading
Hostile work environment claims are often like trees falling in the forest
If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Continue reading
This HR service provider “walked the walk” and defeated claims of age discrimination
Some of the tenets of good HR compliance include documenting and communicating performance issues and taking additional formal steps to alleviate them. If those steps fail, the employer can proceed with termination, being sure to document the reasons supporting the final decision. Continue reading
Yes, it’s still ok in NJ to have a non-disparagement provision when settling discrimination claims.
Back in March 2019, the State of New Jersey passed a law that makes any non-disclosure provisions in an employment contract or settlement agreement that have the purpose or effect of concealing the details relating to a claim of discrimination, retaliation, or harassment unenforceable against a current or former employee who is a party to the contract or settlement. I wrote about it here. Continue reading
The place where male and female employees “routinely called each other by names describing a person with a large posterior.”
This case involves a plaintiff who worked as a part-time bartender who worked for a bar in New Jersey. She claimed that her supervisor created a hostile work environment by calling the plaintiff names “used to describe a person with an oversized posterior.” (The court deemed it unnecessary to identify the supervisor’s “alternate names” for the plaintiff.) Continue reading
New Jersey is back doing New Jersey things, like trying to kill restrictive covenants
For one of the most employee-friendly states in the country, the current state of play in New Jersey for restrictive covenant agreements like non-competes and non-solicits is employer-friendly. Although your mileage may vary by judge, most will enforce reasonable contracts of up to two years with a geographical footprint that coincides with where the company does business. Continued employment is sufficient consideration, and if the agreement is too broad, the judge can reform it.
Those days may be ending soon. Continue reading
195,000 reasons to remember that state family leave laws don’t always track the FMLA
If you operate a business in a state that has a family and medical leave law, be careful when that state law does not overlap precisely with the Family and Medical Leave Act. Continue reading