The question of whether you are an employee or an independent contractor can be very important. It can determine many issues, including how you will be taxed, whether you are entitled to health insurance and other employee benefits, and whether you are protected by various employment laws. However, the issue…
Beginning this month, East Orange, Irvington, Passaic and Paterson will join Newark and Jersey City in requiring employers to provide their workforce with paid sick leave. Montclair and Trenton will begin requiring covered employers to provide paid sick leave in March. The ordinances governing sick pay in these municipalities largely…
Last week, I discussed a case dealing with the defense to Family & Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) claims based on the employee’s inability to perform the essential functions of her job. The same case also addresses the employee’s claim that her employer retaliated against her for taking an FMLA leave.…
Earlier this year, the Third Circuit ruled that Reading Hospital and Medical Center may have violated the Family & Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) by failing to reinstate one of its employees after her physician cleared her to return to work. Vanessa Budhun broke a bone in her right hand on…
The United States Supreme Court recently ruled that an employer is not required to pay its employees for the time they have to wait to go through security screening even though the employer requires the screening. The employer, Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc., provides warehouse employees to Amazon.com throughout the country. …
A recent age discrimination case from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey is a helpful reminder that just because your employer has a good excuse for its decision to fire you, it does not necessarily mean the company did not violate the law. Carol Natale…
A recent unpublished decision from the New Jersey Appellate Division demonstrates that employees can prove their employers retaliated against them for objecting to discrimination without proving the discrimination actually was unlawful. Debra Lemeshow worked for PSEG Services Corporation. In 2000, the company made her its Manager, Business Management Support, with…
A recent disability discrimination opinion from the District of New Jersey reflects the relatively low burden an employee has to meet to have his case decided by a jury. Damian Melton, a Type I diabetic, worked as a doorperson for Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City for approximately six years. …
In recent years, employers have been increasingly requiring their employees to sign arbitration agreements. An arbitration agreement is when you agree to have a private arbitrator, rather than a judge or jury, decide your legal disputes. Arbitration generally is considered less fair to individual employees and more favorable to big…
In a recent case, a federal judge in the District of New Jersey denied an employer’s motion for summary judgment because the employer failed to meet its very limited burden to provide a legitimate non-discriminatory reason why it failed to promote her. The employee, Virginia Forchion, claims Sears Outlet Stores,…