Zatuchni & Associates, Lawyers

If an employee qualifies for unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and/or the New Jersey Family Leave Act, employers are required to give them up to 12 weeks of leave each year (NJFLA). The FMLA also permits qualified workers to take up to 12 weeks off work to care for a close relative. It should be noted that this is the bare minimum of protection provided by federal law. For employees who require medical leave, many employers provide paid time off and short-term disability.

A successful New Jersey discrimination lawyer can obtain money damages depending on the facts of the case. A person may be reinstated, promoted, or assigned to a new position.

Anything reported that the disclosing individual reasonably believes demonstrates a violation of any law, regulation, or rule, as well as gross mismanagement or waste of funds, abuse of authority, or a substantial and specific threat to public health or safety, is considered a protected disclosure. As described in Question 4 below, protected disclosures can be made to a variety of people, including a supervisor, someone higher up in management, or a member of Congress.

When an employer takes a negative action against an employee in the terms and conditions of employment because that employee engaged in "protected activity," this is known as retaliation. The practice of "blowing the whistle" is one example of "protected activity." Protected activity, also known as "whistleblowing," occurs when an employee complains about, objects to, or refuses to participate in discrimination or other conduct that the employee reasonably believes is a violation of the law (including fraud and safety violations) or runs counter to public policy. The same is true if the employee informs or threatens to inform a supervisor or a public body about the activity, or if the employee provides information or testimony to a public body about the activity.

Yes. Retaliation is prohibited under the Whistleblower Protection Act. This means that agencies are prohibited from taking or threatening to take personnel action against an employee who has disclosed wrongdoing. Poor performance reviews, demotion, suspension, termination, or the revocation or downgrade of a security clearance are all examples of personnel actions. Furthermore, the law forbids retaliation for: filing an appeal, complaint, or grievance; assisting someone else in filing or testifying on their behalf; cooperating with OSC or an Inspector General; or refusing to obey an unlawful order. Employees who disclose information that is prohibited from being disclosed by law or Executive Order are only protected from retaliation if they do so to an OIG or OSC. To learn more, contact us now to speak with an experienced attorney.

It is debatable. Wage and Hour Compliance staff will make every effort not to reveal the complainant's identity to the employer; however, this may not always be possible. Furthermore, once an investigation is completed, the employer has the right under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA) to request all of the information related to the complaint; however, we will do everything possible to protect the identity of a complainant or witness to the extent permitted by law.

The Whistleblower Protection Act protects federal employees who "reasonably believe" that their disclosure "evidences an activity constituting a violation of law, rules, or regulations, or mismanagement, gross waste of funds, abuse of authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health and safety." It prohibits retaliation against whistleblowers, such as demotions, pay cuts, or dismissals, and provides legal recourse to those who are subjected to such retaliation. It also allows whistleblowers to make confidential disclosures.

If you're an at-will employee, you can be fired for good reason, bad reason, or no reason at all, with or without cause, with or without notice, subject to certain legal exceptions. Discrimination and retaliation, for example, are two exceptions in New Jersey. Even if you are an at-will employee, if your employment is terminated due to discrimination or retaliation, you likely have legal rights and remedies that you should discuss with a NJ employment lawyer. If you are not an at-will employee and your employment term is defined in a written or oral employment contract or agreement, a termination of your employment for no reason (or for an illegitimate reason) may constitute a breach of contract or other cause of action. In that case, you should have your contract (or the terms of your oral agreement) reviewed by an employment lawyer to determine your legal rights.

Yes, certain disclosures are legally protected. The law that applies is determined by the type of information revealed. The False Claims Act was enacted to incentivize whistleblowers to report federal program fraud. Whistleblowers may be compensated with recouped funds. The Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 provides protection to any government employee who properly exposes information that reveals public fraud. Whistleblowers who expose information that leads to SEC enforcement action are protected (and rewarded) under Section 922 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

"At-will" employment means that either the employer or the employee can end the relationship at any time, for any reason. An employer, on the other hand, may not terminate a worker's employment for illegal reasons, such as violating NJLAD, or in retaliation for reporting workplace harassment or discrimination, or for whistleblowing. If you believe you were fired for an illegal reason, you may be able to file a wrongful termination claim.

Employees who complain about unsafe working conditions or illegal business practices cannot be fired as a result of their complaints. Whistleblowers are protected from wrongful termination under the New Jersey Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA). Employees who speak out about their employer's misconduct are protected under the CEPA from retaliation, such as demotion or termination.

An employee who qualifies for FMLA leave can take up to 12 weeks off per year for his or her own pregnancy, adoption, or serious health condition, as well as for family leaves to care for a child, parent, or spouse who has a serious health condition. Furthermore, under the NJFLA, some New Jersey employees are eligible to take up to 12 weeks of leave over a 24-month period for their own pregnancy, adoption, or to care for a child, parent, or spouse with a serious health condition.

It's not always as simple as punching in and out to figure out how much time you've worked. For instance, any of the following could be considered "on-the-clock" time: Putting on the safety equipment you'll need to do your job could count as time worked. During your workday, staying "on call" away from home between jobs. commuting from one location to another during the workday or overnight to perform your regular job duties The wage and hour attorneys at Zatuchni & Associates can review your work situation and help protect your rights to the money you're owed if you're not getting paid for all of the time you give to your employer.

People are afraid of retaliation from their employers, which is one of the main reasons they don't report discriminatory behavior. Fortunately, virtually every federal, state, and local law prohibiting workplace discrimination also includes a provision making it illegal for employers to retaliate against employees who file complaints, voice concerns, or cooperate with investigations conducted under those laws. Of course, filing a complaint or cooperating in an investigation does not guarantee that you will not face retaliation from your employer. Employers are not liable for taking such action for non-discriminatory reasons unless they can show that they would have done so even if you had never complained and for a non-discriminatory reason.

Possibly not. You are exempt from overtime pay based on your job duties and responsibilities, not what your boss refers to you as. It makes no difference whether your boss refers to you as "exempt" or assigns you a job title like "manager" or "supervisor." When employees are not exempt and should be paid overtime, employers commonly give them the title of "assistant manager."

While any employee (including younger employees) can be harmed by age discrimination, only employees over the age of 40 are legally protected from such discrimination. This applies to all federal, state, and local government employers, as well as private employers with twenty or more employees – but not to those with fewer than twenty total employees.

The amount of compensation awarded in discrimination cases varies. A judge or jury in Superior Court may award you reinstatement, back pay, a promotion, and/or pain and humiliation as compensatory damages. Punitive damages may also be awarded.

There are numerous instances where a person is denied employment because he or she is over 50 years old or has a disability that the employer refuses to accommodate. There are, however, subtler forms of discrimination, such as posting job listings in places where a specific race is more likely to be found or using pre-employment tests that favor one gender over the other. All applicants must have equal access to all job opportunities.

New Jersey recognizes a tort known as "intentional infliction of emotional distress," or IIED, for situations in which someone intentionally sets out to emotionally devastate you. Psychological and emotional injuries, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, are just as harmful and debilitating as physical injuries. If you've experienced severe emotional distress as a result of someone else's negligence or intentional act, speak with a knowledgeable New Jersey attorney who can explain and explore your legal options.

Discrimination in the hiring process based on race, national origin, gender, pregnancy, age, disability, or religion is illegal. Other state laws, such as those prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, may also apply. Employers must follow anti-discrimination laws throughout the hiring process, from posting an ad to interviewing and selecting a candidate.

Yes, you can sue your current or former employer for unpaid overtime. Federal law, on the other hand, prohibits employees from pursuing unpaid wages for more than three years. Waiting to speak with an experienced employment attorney can jeopardize your ability to file an overtime claim.

Many people confuse the terms "employment lawyer" and "labor lawyer" when referring to lawyers who deal with workplace issues. In fact, “labor and employment lawyers” is a single category on many websites and directories. Lawyers, on the other hand, usually refer to labor lawyers as those who handle disputes arising under collective bargaining agreements, and employment lawyers as those who handle claims of discrimination, hostile work environment, retaliation, wrongful discharge, breach of employment contract, and other similar claims.

The line between workplace teasing and conduct that creates a hostile work environment can be blurry. When harassment is so frequent or severe that it creates a work environment that is objectively intimidating and offensive to reasonable people, as well as subjectively intimidating and offensive to those who are impacted by it, a hostile work environment may exist. When an environment becomes hostile to members of a protected class, it is referred to as a "hostile work environment." If a boss is equally mean to all types of people, she has done nothing illegal.

Employers are prohibited from discriminating against individuals based on their religion in hiring, firing, and other terms and conditions of employment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Employers must also make reasonable accommodations for an employee's or prospective employee's religious practices unless doing so would cause the employer undue hardship.

The FMLA covers everyone: Public employers, such as local, state, and federal employers, as well as local education agencies (schools); and private sector employers with 50 or more employees for at least 20 workweeks in the current or previous calendar year – including joint employers and successors of covered employers.

If you think you're being discriminated against because of your age at work, you're probably right. Here are some indicators that your employer is discriminating against you based on your age. Hearing Age-Related Insults; Observing a Pattern of Hiring Only Younger Employees; Being Turned Down for a Promotion; Being Overlooked for Challenging Work Assignments; Feeling Isolated or Left Out; Being Encouraged or Forced to Retire; Experiencing Layoffs; Having Your Position Eliminated; Receiving a Performance Improvement Plan; or Facing Unfair Discipline

Independent contractors usually work on a project-by-project basis under the terms of a written contract with a company or individual. Payments to independent contractors are not subject to federal or state taxes, Social Security taxes, or unemployment compensation taxes. Companies are not your employers if you work as an independent contractor; they are your clients. They do not have the authority to direct your work process as clients. They do have the right to set performance specifications, and the independent contractor agreement may include approval provisions. Independent contractors have the authority to choose where and how a project is completed.

Employers are not prohibited by federal law from inquiring about your race. However, because such questions may indicate a possible intent to discriminate on the basis of race, employers are advised to only ask about race for legitimate reasons. For example, your employer may require race information for affirmative action purposes or to comply with government laws requiring race information reporting. If you feel it was not for legitimate reasons, you should consult with an experienced employment attorney.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that allows employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for family or health-related reasons, such as childbirth or newborn care. If you take an FMLA-related leave of absence, your employer must allow you to return to work in the same or similar capacity after your leave is completed.

Depending on the type of case, you may only have six months to a year to file your claim in New Jersey. To determine the statute of limitations in your case and to discuss your legal options, contact an employment lawyer today.

To disclose illegal employer behavior, such as fraud, you might submit a whistleblower claim. Whistleblowers are protected by federal and state laws in both the public and private sectors, but you should consult an attorney before bringing a claim to ensure that your rights are protected.

In most cases, the answer is yes. If you have a disability that prevents you from getting the COVID vaccine; if your doctor has specifically advised you not to get the COVID vaccine while pregnant or breastfeeding; or if you have a sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance that prevents you from getting the COVID vaccine, there are some exceptions. If you fall into one of these categories, you have the right to request a "reasonable accommodation" from your employer that will allow you to continue working despite your lack of vaccinations. Allowing you to work from home or moving you from a shared workspace in an open office to a traditional, closed-door office room are examples of such accommodations.

When someone is discriminated against because of their relationship with another person, this is known as associational discrimination.

Employees have specific rights under state and federal law regulating their hours and pay, including: The right to be paid a living wage. For most New Jersey employees, the minimum wage is $12 per hour as of January 2021. The right to be paid for working overtime. Employers must pay employees one-and-a-half times their regular hourly salary for all hours worked exceeding 40 in a workweek, according to federal law. State laws in New Jersey are comparable to those in other states. The right to be compensated for taking short breaks. Although companies are not obligated by New Jersey or federal law to allow employees to take breaks, if an employee is allowed to take a break of up to 20 minutes, the employer must compensate him or her for that time.

The anti-retaliation clauses of the NJLAD and the federal Civil Rights Act are comprehensive enough to include nearly any type of retaliation for exercising one's rights under both statutes. Employers, however, continue to strive to prevent workers from exercising their legal rights or punish them for doing so by: Wrongfully terminating their employment; reducing their pay or benefits; passing them over for promotion; giving unjustifiably low performance reviews; reassigning them to lower-paying or lower-status positions; subjecting them to workplace harassment; or providing false reports to subsequent prospective employers to discourage them from hiring the workers.

The ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act) makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate against a person with a disability in job application procedures, employee hiring, advancement, or discharge, employee compensation, job training, or other employment terms, conditions, and privileges.

At Zatuchni & Associates, our mission is to assist you in obtaining financial recovery and justice through the legal system. If your wrongful discharge lawsuit is successful, you will be able to: get your job back, receive back pay, receive front pay, compensatory damages for pain and suffering and emotional distress, punitive damages, promotion if you were unfairly denied promotion opportunities, reasonable accommodations if the court found that your employer failed to make reasonable accommodations, and lastly, attorneys’ fees.

Age discrimination occurs when an employer treats a job applicant or employee less favorably because of their age, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Workers over the age of 40 are protected by state and federal age discrimination laws.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires covered employers to provide up to twelve weeks of non-paid leave for : incapacity due to pregnancy, prenatal medical care, or childbirth; care of the employee’s child after birth, or placement for adoption or foster care; care of the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent, who has a serious health condition; or for a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the employee’s job.

There are laws in New Jersey and on the federal level that protect your rights as an employee. If you feel that you are the victim of discrimination at work, your first step should be to consult with an experienced employment attorney.

Before quitting voluntarily, any employee who has been subjected to discrimination or harassment should think carefully and strategically. You lose your right to sue for economic damages if you resign and a court determines that your employer's behavior was not sufficiently "intolerable." Furthermore, you may be denied necessary unemployment benefits. Be sure to consult with an attorney before quitting, as there may be legal options available to you of which you are not aware.

The LAD doesn't just make it illegal for employers to discriminate against employees who belong to a "protected class" (i.e., a group based on factors like race, national origin, gender, age and disability). Employers are also prohibited from retaliating against any employee who complains or reports discrimination, whether it is directed at them or another employee, under the LAD. Meaning it is illegal for your employer to fire you for complaining about or reporting the discrimination that is occuring.

If you were demoted, reassigned, or otherwise treated unfavorably because of stereotypes about your age, you can file an age discrimination claim. You do not have to be fired from your job to be entitled to legal protection. Your best step would be to immediately schedule a consultation with an experienced employment attorney.

Some of the most common examples of unfair treatment in the workplace include slurs, offensive/inappropriate comments, wrongful termination, wrongful discipline, failure to promote, and any other types of disparate treatment based on your membership in certain protected categories such as race, gender, or age. If you feel you are being unfairly treated at work in New Jersey, consult with an experienced attorney to know if you have a case.

No, they cannot. Under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (the “LAD”), employers are prohibited from discriminating on the basis of marital status. Meaning they cannot discipline, demote, terminate, or otherwise negatively impact your employment because of your marital status.

Neither state nor federal law prohibits a boss from inquiring about an employee's pregnancy status. However, discrimination laws make it illegal for an employer to use the information they receive to make hiring decisions. Furthermore, harassing questions may be in violation of other workplace protections.

The length of a discrimination case can vary greatly. One may take months, and another a few years. Typically, you can expect a discrimination lawsuit to take 17+ months from the time of the complaint to the trial. It is a lengthy process, but if you have a case, an experienced attorney can help you realize that it will be worth the wait.

In New Jersey, yes. However, the New Jersey Opportunity to Compete Act prohibits employers from, (1) posting advertisements or solicitations for job openings that explicitly state that no one with a criminal record will be considered, (2) requiring job applicants to fill out job applications or other screening forms that ask about their criminal record, or (3) asking job applicants about their criminal record during the “initial application process". Visit our website to learn more about this.

In New Jersey, no they cannot. Under an amendment to the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, employers in New Jersey are prohibited from screening job applicants based on their salary history, or requiring that an applicant's salary satisfies a minimum or maximum threshold.

In New Jersey, wrongful termination is when an employee is fired or laid off because of discrimination, breach of contract, retaliation for exercising your rights, retaliation for refusing to engage in illegal conduct, taking lawfully protected job leave, or an unjust violation of written procedures. If you think you have been wrongfully fired or laid off from your job, talk with a wrongful termination lawyer.

Being passed over for promotions when others of another race who came into the company at the same time have moved up, not receiving advanced training offered to others of another race, working the worst shifts and doings more menial tasks than others in the same job of another race, and being paid less than others of another race doing a similar job. These are all signals that you've been the victim of racial discrimination at your place of work.