Appellate Division Holds that the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination May Apply to Telecommuters W
The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) protects workers from discrimination based on race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, sex, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, or genetic information. The Appellate Division recently clarified the scope of the LAD in Trevejo v. Legal Cost Control, Inc., Dkt. No. A-1377-16T4 2018, N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 727 (App. Div. Feb. 27, 2018), wherein it held that the law may protect individuals who work for New Jersey-based employers on a telecommuting basis, even when the employee resides out of state. In Trevejo, the plaintiff sued for age discrimination after her employer, a New Jersey-based company, terminated
In May of 2018, Governor Murphy signed Executive Order 25, which created a Task Force to provide advice and recommendations on how to fight employee misclassification. More specifically, many employers in the State are erroneously classifying full-time employees as independent contractors so as to avoid providing these employees with benefits to which they are entitled including, but not limited to, paid sick leave, unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, and disability benefits. It also deprives these employees of protection under labor laws, as applicable, as well as occupational safety laws. Moreover, misclassification results in employers failing to pay required State and Federal
