Blog: Employment Law

A former executive of New Jersey’s Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. filed a lawsuit against the company after being terminated from her position. She believes the termination was because she blamed the company for disguising kickbacks as research. While the company denies the allegations, it is not the first time that it has been under investigation or […]

The Supreme Court of New Jersey will hear a case that could have serious ramifications for employees intending to report wrongs committed by their employers this fall. The New Jersey Work Environment Council denounced what they claim is a corporate attack on concerned workers’ rights in what appears to be a possible rollback of a […]

A New Jersey emergency medical technician agreed to $25,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit she filed against the township that employs her. The amount covers back pay, front pay and compensatory damages. The settlement agreement that led to the payment did not include an admission of guilt and was decided by the Deptford Township’s […]

Getting along with everyone at work can be difficult. Mismatched personalities and work style or policy conflicts can create distance among employees or between a worker and a manager. In some Bergen County businesses, company officials signal displeasure with employees through pay cuts, job transfers, demotions or outright dismissals. Two long-time police officers have filed […]

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a federal antidiscrimination law. The law bans employer discrimination for members of protected groups and forbids sexual harassment. A Bergen County employer controls a workplace environment, so a company that encourages or permits sexual harassment may be held responsible for harm. A New Jersey government […]

Courts can order employers to hire workers back who have been discriminated against or wrongfully dismissed. Judges sometimes decide this is not for the best. A job may no longer be available for the worker, or the relationship between a Bergen County employer and employee could be too strained to consider reuniting them. A New […]

Some workplaces develop bunker mentalities toward Bergen County employees who complain about company wrongdoing. The collective defensiveness sometimes leads to illegal retaliation against the outspoken worker. Punishments for doing the right thing in the wrong environment may include demotions, lack of promotions, harassment, pay restrictions and wrongful dismissal. A supervisor, a 24-year veteran of the […]

Offensive language can be disguised as “just kidding” when the speaker realizes he or she has gone too far. When this uncomfortable situation happens in a Bergen County workplace, it’s hard to know how to react. Do you brush it off as an unfortunate incident or take action against the offensive party? A 16-year veteran […]

U.S. Code 21:13-812 is the Controlled Substances Act, which declares the use of marijuana is illegal and conflicts with laws in states like New Jersey where medical marijuana use is permissible. State law protects Bergen County medical marijuana users from criminal charges. There’s no guarantee the statute will save a medical marijuana patient’s job. Employer […]

The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination bans discrimination at work based on a host of familiar employee characteristics like race, nationality and religion. The statute is an expansion of federal worker protections. Sexual harassment is illegal in both state and federal laws. A salesperson for a copier company recently filed a federal lawsuit against her […]