Civil Rights

July 24, 2012

New Jersey Public School District Pays to Settle Disability Discrimination and Retaliation Claims

The New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (“DCR”) recently announced that a Bergen County school district has agreed to pay $90,000 to settle claims that it failed to reasonably accommodate a former employee’s disability and then retaliated against her for her complaint of disability discrimination.

Maria Osnowitz was a teacher’s aide for the West New York Board of Education. She suffers from knee injuries that impair her mobility. For the most part, she utilizes a motorized wheelchair or scooter to get around. When walking is necessary, she utilizes two canes.

In her first DCR Complaint, Ms. Osnowitz alleged that West New York Board of Education failed to reasonably accommodate her disability. Specifically, she alleged that, because of her disability, she requested to park her car in a covered parking area close to the entrance of the school where she worked, but that the school principal refused to allow her to do so. In addition, she alleged that the school repeatedly held meetings — and required her attendance — at locations that were not wheelchair-accessible. She further alleged that she requested that the meeting locations be changed, but that the school refused to do so.
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July 9, 2012

Too Sexy for this Job?… Gender Discrimination in the Workplace

by Resnick Law Group, P.C.

As New York employment lawyers, we know first-hand that employment discrimination comes in many shapes and sizes. But, is the hourglass one of them?

That question has recently been raised by Lauren Odes, a woman who filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charging gender discrimination and religious discrimination against her employer, Native Intimates, in New York. Native Intimates is a lingerie wholesaler that allegedly fired Lauren Odes because she was “just too hot for this office.”
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June 1, 2012

Bullying and The New Jersey Healthy Workplace Bill: Beyond Harassment and Hostile Work Environment

by Resnick Law Group, P.C.

From the classroom to the break room, bullying is a term that has become ubiquitous over the past several years, and the need for legislation to protect employees from this particular type of behavior has become all the more evident. While current employment laws provide employees protection from discrimination, sexual harassment, other harassment, and a hostile work environment, there is no law that protects employees against the abuses that result from bullying. In order to address this gap in the employment law, the New Jersey Healthy Workplace Bill was submitted to the Senate Labor Committee earlier this year. The Bill goes a step further than the current employment discrimination laws by providing redress to employees who are the victims of abusive conduct, regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, or any other protected class for that matter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x92tBd9jkvo

March 14, 2012

Are New Jersey Employers Allowed to Ask for Access to a Job Applicant’s Facebook Account?

by Resnick Law Group, P.C.

If you’re reading this online blog, you almost certainly have at least one personal account on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or some other social media website. Your account is undoubtedly password protected, and if it is a Facebook or Twitter account (as opposed to a LinkedIn account, which tends to be more professional), you very likely have posts, photos, or other personal information on your page that you would prefer to keep private from a prospective employer.

However, a recent and disturbing trend is developing, as employers are increasingly demanding that job applicants provide their personal social media login information as part of the job application process. Some employers alternatively request a “shoulder surfing” session, during which job applicants log on to their social media accounts and navigate their posts while a nearby interviewer observes and reviews the applicant’s posts, photos, comments, tweets, likes, friends, followers, connections, groups, etc. The issue has become so concerning that the American Civil Liberties Union (or ACLU) and some state lawmakers have become involved, advocating for the privacy rights of job applicants.

The issue at stake is whether a prospective employer’s demand for personal social media login information of a job applicant, or request for a “shoulder surfing” session, violates the job applicant’s right to privacy. New Jersey courts have not yet decided the issue, but it is clear that, when the issue does present itself in Court, New Jersey employment lawyers representing public sector applicants (those who apply to work for a government employer) will have more arguments than New Jersey employment lawyers representing private sector applicants (those who apply to work for a private sector employer).
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