Paid Leave in NJ
NJ Workers’ Rights to Paid Leave
In New Jersey, workers have many protections under various programs and laws to help ensure that they can take time off to care for their own health, as well as for loved ones’ health. Some programs and laws are state laws and others are federal.
New Jersey’s Earned Sick Leave Law
guarantees workers the right to earn 40 hours or 5 days of paid sick time. The law covers most* full-time, part-time and temporary workers regardless of their immigration status. Employers can require workers to accrue their sick leave, earning 1 hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked. You can use the time for your own health reasons or to care for a loved one -- health reasons can be related to COVID-19 or not. For more information visit the NJ Department of Labor website www.mysickdays.nj.gov/ & file a complaint: https://wagehour.dol.state.nj.us/
New Jersey’s Paid Family & Medical Leave
also called Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance benefit programs. These programs provide 85% of your average weekly wage up to $1,025/week when you take leave for the following reasons;
if you are unable to work because a health condition prevents you from doing so (including COVID-19 diagnosis, treatment, and/or quarantine),
if you need to care for a seriously ill loved one,
for both parents to bond with a new child (adopted, foster, or birth)
to care for yourself or a loved one after gender-affirming surgery,
Currently to receive these benefits you need to meet minimum gross earnings (you have worked 20 calendar weeks earning at least $260 in those 20 weeks, or $13,000 in the base year period before taking leave), and have a social security number.
Exemptions include:
federal government employees, out of state employees, and workers that are technically not employees (such as contractors).
To receive these benefits, you apply to the NJ State Department of Labor. For more and to apply, visit www.myleavebenefits.nj.gov
NJ Workers’ Rights to Paid Leave
In New Jersey, workers have many protections under various programs and laws to help ensure that they can take time off to care for their own health, as well as for loved ones’ health. Some protections are related to COVID-19 and others are permanent. Some programs and laws are state laws and others are federal.
Additionally, Governor Murphy signed a law that prohibits an employer from firing or otherwise punishing an employee who requests time off or takes time off from work based on a medical professional’s determination that the employee has, or is likely to have, COVID-19. The law only applies during the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health emergency. For more details visit, www.nj.gov/labor/assets/PDFs/CovidDiscrimination_FINAL.pdf
Your job may also be protected when you need to take leave to bond with or care for a loved one under the NJ Family Leave Act (FLA), or the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). These are permanent job-protected leave laws that now also include protections for taking leave. For more details, visit www.nj.gov/oag/dcr/downloads/fact-FLA.pdf and www.njtimetocare.org/njjobprotections
New Jersey laws protects you against retaliation from your employer when asserting many of your workplace rights. Retaliation for standing up for your rights can take many forms. It can include:
getting fired,
getting a poor performance review,
changed salary, increased oversight on job duties,
changed workplace responsibilities,
getting denied a raise,
getting excluded from meetings that you would typically attend, getting transferred, and many other scenarios.
If you believe you have been retaliated against it may require your employer hearing from the Department of Labor directly to end the retaliation being taken against you, you can contact the NJ Department of Labor at 609-292-2305.
All of these laws and programs can be confusing.
Try not to feel discouraged and seek support from others and organizations that can help you.
You can also check out the various possible different scenarios and benefit options in this guide (other languages available here) on the NJ Department of Labor Website. However, keep in mind, some employers may have their own more generous policies. Consider speaking with your employer about alternatives that may be available such as paid time off, working remotely, taking a leave of absence, and other opportunities or flexibilities that may be available.