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On February 26, 2014, New York City Council, by a vote of 46 to 5, passed a bill, Int. No. 1-A-2014 (the “Bill”), amending the New York Earned Sick Time Act to provide that effective April 1, 2014, among other revisions, employers in Manhattan which employ five to 14 employees must give each employee one hour of paid sick time for every 30…Read More

As this author has previously explained, most workers in New York State are eligible for temporary cash benefits, known as NYS short term disability benefits (“STD benefits”), when they are disabled by injury or sickness that is not work-related. See N.Y. Workers’ Comp. Law § 201(9)(A)(defining ” ‘Disability’ “). In particular, most employees in Manhattan may receive up to 26 weeks (during…Read More

On October 21, 2013, Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop signed into law the Jersey City Earned Sick Time Ordinance, Ordinance 13.097 (the "Jersey City Earned Sick Time Ordinance," the "Earned Sick Time Ordinance," the "Ordinance," or the "JCESTO").  Effective January 24, 2014, the Earned Sick Time Ordinance requires employers in Jersey City, New Jersey which employ 10 or more employees to give each employee…Read More

Whether a business in New Jersey must offer or provide health insurance to its employees depends on the number of workers that the business employs.  In general: Employers in New Jersey with 50 or more employees must provide "minimum essential" health care coverage for employees who work 30 or more hours per week or must pay an annual penalty; Businesses in the Garden State with…Read More

On November 5, 2013, New Jersey residents voted, by a tally of 61% to 38%, to approve an amendment to the New Jersey State Constitution (the “New Jersey Constitution” or the “State Constitution”) increasing the State’s minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $8.25 per hour.  The amendment, which took effect on January 1, 2014, sets New Jersey's minimum wage at $1.00 per…Read More

Because it is unsettled who -- the employer or, instead, the employee -- bears the burden of showing that an employee has worked the 1,000 base hours, during the immediately preceding twelve-month period, that render the employee eligible for leave under the New Jersey Family Leave Act, N.J.S.A. §§ 34:11B-1- 34:11B-16 (the “NJFLA”), employers in New Jersey are best advised to maintain true and accurate…Read More

On August 28, 2013, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed into law a statute, Pub. L. 2013, ch. 155, prohibiting employers in New Jersey from requiring or requesting that employees or applicants for employment provide or disclose any user name or password for their social media accounts, such as Facebook or Twitter accounts. The new statutory provision takes effect on January 1, 2014.…Read More

In wrongful termination lawsuits, the courts of Manhattan, and federal courts applying NY Law, do not preclude either employers or workers from relitigating issues of fact or law decided adversely to them in unemployment insurance benefits hearings. See N.Y. Labor Law § 623(2). In most unemployment insurance benefits hearings in Manhattan, the disputed issues are one or more of the following: Did the claimant “voluntarily separat[e]”…Read More

On June 26, 2013, the New York City Council, by a vote of 47 to 4, overrode Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s veto of the Earned Sick Time Act, Local Law 46 of 2013 (the “the New York Earned Sick Time Act,” the “Earned Sick Time Act,” the “Act,” or the “NYCESTA”). Effective April 1, 2014, and provided that certain economic benchmarks are met,…Read More

In September 2012, in Kadden v. VisuaLex, LLC, No. 11 Civ. 4892, 2012 WL 4354781 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 24, 2012), the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Manhattan (Scheindlin, J.), after a three-day bench trial, held that the plaintiff individual, a litigation graphics consultant (“graphics consultant”) who held a law degree, was not exempt from the overtime pay requirements of the Fair Labor Standards…Read More