As previously reported in a prior article, in May 2018, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed into law the Stop Sexual Harassment in NYC Act (the “Act”). The Act provides, among other things, starting September 6, 2018, all New York City employers must display the New York City Commission on Human Right’s (“NYCCHR”) new anti-sexual harassment poster in a conspicuous place in the workplace and provide the information to employees at the…

On Wednesday, May 2, 2018, Governor Phil Murphy signed into law the New Jersey Paid Sick Leave Act (the “Act”). The Act, which goes into effect on October 29, 2018, preempts all existing New Jersey municipal earned sick leave laws and, like the New York City Earned Sick Time Act, allows employees to accrue one (1) hour of sick leave time per thirty (30) hours worked.…

On Tuesday, April 24, 2018, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law the Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act (the “Act”), which amends the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (“NJLAD”) to provide enhanced equal pay protections for New Jersey employees. The Act, which becomes effective on July 1, 2018, prohibits pay disparities based upon characteristics protected by the NJLAD, such as race, creed, color, national origin, nationality, ancestry, age, sex, etc. Specifically,…

New York City Councilman Rafael Espinal has proposed a bill which would prohibit private-sector employers from requiring their employees to access work-related electronic communications outside of their usual work hours. This bill is modeled after a similar law in France. If passed, the bill would make New York City the first American city to enact such a law. A copy of the complete bill can be found here.…

Last month, the New Jersey State Senate introduced Senate Bill 3518 (the “Bill”), which, if passed, will severely restrict the use and enforceability of employee non-compete agreements in the state of New Jersey. Most significantly, the Bill would: (1) prohibit entering or enforcing non-compete agreements with certain groups of employees; (2) require employers to pay full wages, salary, and benefits to employees during their non-compete period: (3) prohibit applying an arbitration provision or other such…

Last year New Jersey state and local legislatures implemented several employment laws and ordinances that are set to take effect in 2017.  This update summarizes these new legal requirements to help New Jersey employers prepare and comply in 2017.…

On May 26, 2016, in the matter of Lewis v. Epic Systems Corporation, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that an arbitration agreement, which required employees to submit to individual arbitration for any wage and hour claims against the company, violates the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) and is unenforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”).  In issuing this decision, the Seventh Circuit gave credence to the National Labor Relations Board’s…