Gibbons Law Alert

Gibbons Law Alert

Category: Discrimination

Gov. Murphy’s First Executive Order Prohibits State Government from Asking Applicants about Salary History

by

Posted in Discrimination / State Legislation

On January 18, 2018

Governor Phil Murphy has signed an executive order which bars state workers from asking job applicants seeking positions with the state about their previous salaries in his first official act after his swearing-in on January 16, 2018. State entities may now only inquire as to an applicant’s past salary history after the entity has made a conditional offer of employment, which includes an explanation of the compensation package being offered to the applicant. The goal of the executive order is to eliminate wage inequalities that result from female employees who accept lower starting salaries and then remain on a lower compensation track, with pay disparities compounding over time. Significantly, at the signing ceremony, the Governor stated that he would sign a bill that extended these same provisions to private sector employers which the legislative sponsors vowed to move quickly to his desk. In fact, legislation has already been introduced that prohibits an employer from inquiring about the salary history of an applicant. Assembly Bill 1094 was introduced on January 9, 2018 by Assemblywoman Joanne Downey (D-11) and referred to the Assembly Labor Committee. Senate Bill 559 was introduced by Senator Nia Gill (D-34) on January 9, 2018 and referred to the Senate Labor Committee. The legislation, described by legislative sponsors as an effort to promote...

Tax Bill Effects the Use of Nondisclosure Provisions in Settlements of Sexual Harassment and Sexual Abuse Claims

by

Posted in Discrimination

On December 22, 2017

While the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“the Act”), signed into law today, has received considerable media coverage, a provision included in the Act that affects the ability of employers to deduct settlement payments and attorney’s fees for claims involving sexual assault or sexual harassment has received little attention. Nonetheless, this provision will have a significant impact on how employers resolve claims of sexual harassment and sexual abuse. Specifically, the Act provides that any settlement or payment related to claims of sexual harassment or sexual abuse may not be deducted as a business expense if the payments are subject to a nondisclosure agreement. The Act also provides that any attorney’s fees incurred related to such a settlement with a nondisclosure agreement may not be deducted. The new law applies to “any settlement or payment related claims of sexual harassment or sexual abuse” whether or not a lawsuit has actually been filed. Importantly, these provisions are effective immediately, and thus all payments made after the effective date of the Act in connection with the settlement of a sexual harassment or a sexual assault claim are subject to these new provisions. Read literally, the new law precludes employers from deducting the amounts of such settlements for payments made after the effective date of the Act even if...

The Push for Pay Equity Legislation in New Jersey

by

Posted in Discrimination

On December 12, 2017

Equal pay for equal work is by no means a new concept. Achieving pay equity, defined as eliminating sex (and other) discrimination in the wage-setting system, has been debated for decades. Recently, however, pay equity has become a significant public issue, prompting many state and local governments to enact legislation aimed at eliminating pay disparities, with a strong focus on closing the gender wage gap. To date, attempts to pass pay equity legislation in New Jersey have been unsuccessful. However, with the recent election of Phil Murphy as governor, pay equity legislation in New Jersey appears almost certain. In this recent article published by the New Jersey Law Journal, Suzanne Herrmann Brock, Elizabeth Cowit, and Brittany E. Grierson provide insight into the most recent developments in state and local pay equity laws and discuss legislation on the horizon for New Jersey.

The Third Circuit Goes Its Own Way on ADEA Disparate Impact Claims

by

Posted in Discrimination

On February 15, 2017

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) protects from discrimination of employees who are at least 40 years of age. Recently, in Karlo v. Pittsburgh Glass Works, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit departed company with three of its sister Circuits by holding that plaintiffs asserting a claim of “disparate impact” under the ADEA may establish a disparate impact with comparisons between subgroups of employees and need not show that a challenged employment practice has had an adverse impact on employees 40 years of age or older compared to its impact on employees under 40. Thus, the Court permitted to go forward with a disparate impact claim based on a comparison between employees at least 50 years of age with employees under 50. The decision will have a profound impact on employers’ assessments of their potential ADEA liability for disparate impact claims and on the way ADEA disparate impact claims are litigated in the Third Circuit. Background To establish a claim of disparate impact discrimination under the ADEA, a plaintiff must show, through statistical evidence, that the employers implemented a facially age-neutral employment practice that fell more harshly on the protected group. If this showing is made, the employer can defeat the claim by demonstrating that the practice in question is...

New Jersey’s Legislature Attempts to Override Governor’s Objections to “Equal Pay” Bill

by and

Posted in Discrimination / Regulatory Counseling and Departmental Action

On December 16, 2016

The sponsors of pay equity legislation passed by the New Jersey Senate and Assembly earlier this year have announced that the State Senate will attempt to override Governor Christie’s veto of the bill on December 19, 2016. Senate Bill 992/Assembly Bill 2750 would amend the Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”) to promote gender pay equality. The New Jersey bill follows a trend of recently enacted state laws, in California, New York, Maryland, and Massachusetts, that aim to make it easier for plaintiffs to bring pay equity claims and subject employers to potentially greater damages.

NJ Legislators Look to Prohibit Asking Applicants about Salary History

by

Posted in Discrimination / Employment Agreements / Regulatory Counseling and Departmental Action

On October 3, 2016

The New Jersey Legislature is poised to take up another thorny issue for employers, salary history. Described by legislative sponsors as an effort to promote pay equity, the legislation would amend the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination to bar employers from asking job applicants about their salary history, or relying on it to determine salary at any stage in the hiring process. Two separate pieces of legislation have been introduced that prohibit an employer from inquiring about the salary history of an applicant. Assembly Bill 4119 was introduced on September 15, 2016 and referred to the Assembly Labor Committee. Senate Bill 2536 was introduced on September 15, 2016 and referred to the Senate Labor Committee.

EEOC Issues New Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation

by

Posted in Discrimination

On September 1, 2016

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), retaliation has become the most frequently alleged basis of discrimination of all charges received by the EEOC. In light of this, and after allowing for public comment on the EEOC’s proposed enforcement guidance issued earlier this year, on August 29, 2016, the EEOC issued its new Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation and Related Issues. This replaces the EEOC’s Compliance Manual Section 8: Retaliation, which was issued in 1998. The enforcement guidance sets forth the EEOC’s position on retaliation and addresses retaliation under each of the statutes enforced by the EEOC by providing a number of illustrative examples. Helpful to employers, the enforcement guidance concludes by providing employers “promising practices” to reduce the risk of violations. A general outline of the enforcement guidance follows.

NJ Supreme Court Broadens Scope of LAD’s “Marital Status” Protection

by

Posted in Discrimination

On July 27, 2016

On June 21, 2016, in Smith v. Millville Rescue Squad, the Supreme Court of New Jersey addressed the scope of the marital status protection afforded to employees by the Law Against Discrimination (LAD). The Court ruled that the LAD’s marital status provision is not limited to the state of being single or married but protects employees who have announced “they will marry, have separated, have initiated divorce proceedings or have obtained a divorce.”

U.S. Supreme Court Clarifies Statute of Limitations for Constructive Discharge Claims

by

Posted in Discrimination

On June 22, 2016

On May 23, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Green v. Brennan, held that the statute of limitations for a constructive discharge claim begins to run when the employee gives notice of his or her resignation, not at the time of the employer’s last allegedly discriminatory act giving rise to the resignation. The “constructive discharge” doctrine refers to a situation in which an employer discriminates against an employee to the point that the employee’s working conditions become so intolerable that a reasonable person in the employee’s position would feel compelled to resign.

N.J. Supreme Court Invalidates Agreements to Shorten the LAD’s Statute of Limitations

by

Posted in Discrimination

On June 20, 2016

On June 15, 2016, the New Jersey Supreme Court, in Rodriguez v. Raymours Furniture Company, Inc., held that an agreement by an employee to bring claims against his employer within six months of the allegedly wrongful employment action was unenforceable insofar as the agreement applied to claims brought under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (“the LAD”). In 1993, the Court had held that New Jersey’s general two-year statute of limitations for personal injury actions provides the appropriate limitations period for LAD claims. In Raymours, the Court ruled that the employer’s attempt to reduce this limitations period to six months undermined the LAD’s specific enforcement scheme for the elimination of discrimination and thus, for public policy reasons, could not be judicially sanctioned. In addition, the Court found that the particular agreement at issue, set forth as part of the boilerplate in the employer’s standard employment application form, constituted an unenforceable contract of adhesion.

Connect:

About Gibbons

With 200 attorneys, Gibbons is a leading law firm in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington, DC, and Florida, ranked among the nation’s top 200 by The American Lawyer. More…

Subscribe

Archived Blog Posts

Categories