The New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA), established in 1989 and enforced by the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, is designed to provide job security for eligible employees in New Jersey who need to take family leave for specific reasons. This law addresses a primary concern for many workers: the fear of job loss when taking necessary time off for family matters. While the NJFLA itself focuses on job protection, it’s crucial to understand how it works in conjunction with New Jersey’s Family Leave Insurance (NJFLI) to provide New Jersey Paid Family Leave, offering both security and financial support.
Who is Eligible for New Jersey Family Leave?
The New Jersey Family Leave Act has specific eligibility requirements for both employers and employees.
Employer Eligibility: The NJFLA applies to state and local government agencies, as well as private companies and organizations with 30 or more employees worldwide.
Employee Eligibility: To be eligible for job-protected family leave under the NJFLA, an employee must meet the following criteria:
- Work for a covered employer (as described above).
- Have been employed by the company for at least 1 year.
- Have worked at least 1,000 hours in the past 12 months.
If you meet these requirements, you are generally entitled to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave within a 24-month period for qualifying reasons.
Qualifying Reasons for New Jersey Family Leave
The NJFLA allows eligible employees to take leave for the following reasons:
- Caring for or Bonding with a New Child: This includes leave to bond with a newborn, adopted child, or foster child. The leave must commence within one year of the child’s birth or placement.
- Caring for a Family Member with a Serious Health Condition: This encompasses caring for a child, spouse, parent, domestic partner, civil union partner, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling with a serious health condition. Notably, this also includes caring for someone who is the equivalent of family. A serious health condition can include a diagnosis of COVID-19.
- Caring for a Family Member Due to Quarantine or Isolation: If a family member (or someone equivalent to family) is quarantined or isolated due to suspected exposure to a communicable disease (including COVID-19) during a state of emergency, you may take leave to care for them.
- Childcare Due to School or Care Closure: If a child’s school or place of care is closed by order of a public official due to an epidemic of a communicable disease (like COVID-19) or another public health emergency during a state of emergency, you can take leave to provide necessary care or treatment.
Employees can take this leave as a continuous block of up to 12 weeks, or intermittently, or on a reduced work schedule, depending on their needs and the employer’s agreement.
Job Protection and Benefits Under NJFLA
One of the key benefits of the NJFLA is job protection. When you return from family leave, you are legally entitled to be reinstated to the same position you held before taking leave, or to an equivalent position with the same pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment. Employers are also prohibited from retaliating against employees for taking or attempting to take leave under the NJFLA.
While the NJFLA provides job protection, it’s important to understand that it does not mandate that employers pay employees during this leave. This is where New Jersey’s Family Leave Insurance (NJFLI) comes in. NJFLI is a state program that provides cash benefits to eligible workers who take time off work for many of the same reasons covered under the NJFLA, including bonding with a new child or caring for a sick family member. To access paid leave benefits, you need to apply separately to the NJFLI program, which is administered by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL). You can find more information about NJFLI at www.myleavebenefits.nj.gov/fli.
It’s also worth noting New Jersey’s Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI), available at www.myleavebenefits.nj.gov/tdi, which provides cash benefits for your own physical or mental health condition preventing you from working. Furthermore, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), detailed at www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla, offers job protection for leave due to your own serious health condition, among other reasons.
Filing a Complaint for NJFLA Violations
If you believe your rights under the New Jersey Family Leave Act have been violated, you have the right to file a complaint with the Division on Civil Rights (DCR). You must file your complaint within 180 days of the incident. For more information on how to file a complaint, you can visit the DCR website (link needed – to be updated with actual link from original if available, or generic DCR contact page).
Stay Informed on NJFLA Updates
The New Jersey Division on Civil Rights regularly issues guidance and updates regarding the NJFLA. Staying informed about these updates ensures you are aware of the most current protections and your rights. Recent press releases highlight the DCR’s commitment to enforcing and clarifying the NJFLA, ensuring that New Jersey employees can access the family leave benefits they are entitled to. Reviewing resources like the DCR’s guidance documents and press releases (links provided in the original article) can provide valuable insights into the evolving landscape of New Jersey paid family leave and job protection.
In Conclusion
New Jersey Paid Family Leave is a combination of job protection provided by the NJFLA and potential wage replacement benefits offered through NJFLI. Understanding your eligibility and rights under these programs is crucial for New Jersey employees. By utilizing these resources, workers can take necessary family leave without the fear of job loss and with potential financial support, ensuring they can care for their families when needed most.
