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Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on October 15, 2019
Martin Gringer, one of the founders of Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C., is pleased to announce his availability to serve as a mediator in employment discrimination cases and wage and hour disputes:
I have practiced labor and employment law for many years, representing both plaintiffs and defendants and participated in hundreds of mediations. I believe that I can assist parties in reaching mutually advantageous resolutions of their cases. Litigation has become too expensive and time consuming for all involved. Mediation offers the parties an opportunity to reach a quicker and less expensive result. A good mediator must not only be familiar with the law but with the practical aspects of litigation. The mediator must be able to assess the pros and cons of each side’s position and communicate that assessment to the parties in an objective and credible way in order to reach a settlement.
If you would like further information about utilizing Martin Gringer as a mediator, please contact him at mgringer@franklingringer.com or at (516) 228-3131. You can view his resume by clicking here.
Posted in employer law, Firm News, News | Tagged mediator
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on August 28, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS IN NEW YORK STATE
- Governor Cuomo recently signed new legislation regarding workplace harassment for all employers in New York State, regardless of the number of employees.
- The following goes into effect in October 2019:
- The new bill lowers the current “severe or pervasive” standard employees must meet to show that they have been harassed or discriminated in the workplace.
- The new bill only allows an employer to escape liability if it can show that the alleged harassment comprises “petty slights or trivial inconveniences.”
- Under this new legislation, it will be easier for employees in New York to prove harassment or discrimination based on age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, familial status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, etc.
- An employer may still be held liable for harassment in the workplace even if the employee never reported such harassment to the employer.
- Effective January 1, 2020, any contract or agreement between an employer and an employee or potential employee may not prevent the disclosure of factual information related to any future claim of discrimination unless the agreement notifies the employee or potential employee that they are not prohibited from speaking with law enforcement, the equal employment opportunity commission, the state division of human rights, a local commission on human rights, or an attorney retained by the employee or potential employee.
If you have any questions regarding this or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged cuomo, employee, employer, employer law, law, new york, ny, nys, workplace harassment
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on August 23, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS
- The National Labor Relations Board has clarified a 2018 United States Supreme Court Decision regarding an employer’s use of arbitration agreements.
- It is legal for employers to compel employees to sign agreements requiring employees to rely on arbitration to settle legal conflicts between the employer and employee in lieu of employees opting into class actions or collective actions against the employer.
- An employer may terminate employees who refuse to sign these mandatory arbitration agreements.
- Consideration for these agreements can be continued employment, but not past employment.
If you have any questions regarding this or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged ARBITRATION AGREEMENTS, employer, law, National Labor Relations Board, SCOTUS, Use Of Arbitration Agreements
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on August 20, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS IN NEW YORK STATE
● On August 9, 2019, Governor Cuomo signed legislation amending the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) regarding discrimination based on religious attire, clothing or facial hair.
The previous law prohibited:
Making employment opportunities (i.e. promotions, advancement, transfers), contingent upon an employee altering their religious practices.
● The amended law now includes the following as protected religious practices:
The wearing of any attire, clothing, or facial hair in accordance with the employee’s religion.
● The law does carve out an exception if the employer demonstrates that the employee’s religious practices impose “undue hardships” on the employer’s business and operations.
● Additionally, employers are prohibited from treating employees or potential employees differently because of that person’s religious beliefs.
If you have any questions regarding this or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged employer law, ny, religious
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on August 5, 2019
LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK:
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has signed a bill prohibiting employers from threatening to contact an immigration enforcement agency [ICE] on an employee.
The law goes into effect in October 2019.
Under the law, an employer may not report or threaten to report the suspected citizenship or immigration status of an employee, a family member of an employee, or a household member of an employee to a federal, state, or local agency, e.g. ICE.
The above behaviors are considered discrimination and retaliation and thus workplace harassment.
- The consequences of violating this new law includes, but is not limited to:
o Fines in the amounts of:- $1,000-$10,000 for a first offense; and
- $1,000-$20,000 for a second offense within six months of the first violation.
- All appropriate relief deemed justified by the Commissioner of Labor, including, but not limited to:
- Financial damages to the affected employee;
- Rehiring/Reinstating the employee to his/her former/equivalent position; and
- Awarding the affected employee lost compensation or front pay instead of reinstatement.
If you have any questions regarding this or any other labor and employment law issue, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged bill, cuomo, employees, employer, ICE, immigration, law, ny, nyc
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on August 2, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS IN NEW YORK STATE
Effective October 8, 2019, New York State’s Pay Equity Law will be expanded.
The law previously required an employee to show that he or she received less pay while performing “equal work” as an employee of the opposite gender.
The new standard guarantees equal pay among employees performing “substantially similar” work, which means an employee will be able to establish a violation, even if his or her job is not identical to another employee’s.
Additionally, the new law extends its protections to employees, job applicants or interns based not only on gender, but on the following protected categories:
Age, race, color, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, and other categories protected by the New York State Human Rights Law.
The Pay Equity Law allows employers to rely on a variety of factors to justify wage differences amongst employees, including:
- Differences in geographic location
- A seniority or merit system
- Other factors, such as education, training, or experience, provided that the employer can establish that the factor being used is job-related and consistent with the needs of the business.
- A system which measures earnings by quantity or quality of production.
If you have any questions regarding this or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, Firm News, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged employer law, employers, equla pay, New York Pay Equity Law, ny, nyc, Pay Equity Law
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on August 1, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS IN NEW YORK STATE
● Effective July 12, 2019, the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) was amended to prohibit discrimination on the basis of hairstyles or traits associated with race.
■ Traits historically associated with race include, but are not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles, such as braids, locks, and twists.
● This amendment to NYSHRL prohibits employers from having policies on braids, locks and other hairstyles relating to one’s race.
If you have any questions regarding this or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged Discrimination, employers, ny, NYSHRL, NYSHRL Now Prohibits Discrimination
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on June 28, 2019
IN JUNE 2019, NEW YORK LAWMAKERS PASSED AN ANTI-SEXUAL HARASSMENT BILL THAT WOULD MAKE IT EASIER FOR WORKERS TO WIN DISCRIMINATION LAWSUITS.
Governor Andrew Cuomo supports this bill and is expected to sign it in the near future.
The new bill would lower the current “severe or pervasive” standard employees must meet to show that they have been harassed or discriminated in the workplace.
o The new bill would only allow an employer to escape liability if it can show that the alleged harassment comprises “petty slights or trivial inconveniences.”
The new bill would also limit the Faragher-Ellerth Defense, which currently allows employers to escape liability if they made reasonable efforts to prevent the harassment and the employee failed to complain.
o The new bill recognizes that employees often do not report harassment out of fear of retaliation and under the new bill, the fact that an employee did not complain “shall not be determinative of whether such employer … shall be liable.”
What this all means is that it will be easier for employees in New York to prove harassment or discrimination based on age, race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation and the other categories protected under state law.
EMPLOYERS SHOULD CALL OUR FIRM IMMEDIATELY to ensure that their anti-discrimination and sexual harassment prevention policies are updated and to schedule the sexual harassment prevention training mandated by New York State law.
Recently, an employee, after attending one of our anti-discrimination/sexual harassment prevention training seminars and learning about the company’s zero-tolerance policy towards harassment and complaint procedure, decided to complain to the company instead of filing a claim with an administrative agency or court.
By keeping the complaint internal and addressing the issue immediately, the company saved themselves from a potential claim, which would have cost the company a significant monetary amount.
If you have any questions regarding this new bill or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged Anti-sexual Harassment Bill, employer law, new york, ny
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on June 7, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE FOR ALL EMPLOYERS IN MASSACHUSETTS
Massachusetts will begin offering covered individuals paid family and medical leave in January 2021. The state has set forth certain requirements starting in June 2019 that employers must comply with:
June 30, 2019
o All employers in Massachusetts must notify covered individuals about their rights under the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFML) by:
- Displaying the PFML workplace poster
- Providing written notice of contributions, benefits, and workforce protections to Massachusetts W-2 employees and Massachusetts 1099-MISC contractors; and
- Collecting signed acknowledgments of receipt of such notice
July 1, 2019
o Employers must begin deducting payroll contributions from a covered individual’s wages to fund the PFML benefits.
o A covered individual’s average weekly earnings will determine his or her benefit amount, for a maximum benefit of up to $850 per week.
January 1, 2021
o Covered individuals will be entitled to up to 20 weeks of paid medical in a benefit year if they have a serious health condition that incapacitates them from work.
o Covered individuals will be entitled to up to 12 weeks of paid family leave in a benefit year for:
- The birth, adoption or foster care placement of a child; or
- Because of a qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that a family member is on active military duty or has been notified of an impending call to active duty.
o Covered individuals may be entitled to up to 26 weeks of paid family leave in a benefit year to care for a family member who is a covered service member with a serious health condition.
July 1, 2021
o Covered individuals may be entitled to up to 12 weeks of paid family leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition.
If you have any questions regarding the PFML or any other labor and employment law matter, please contact an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in employer law, News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged employer law, Employer Law Update, Massachusetts paid leave, Medical Leave, Paid Family leave
Published Franklin, Gringer, Cohen PC on May 20, 2019
IMPORTANT LAW UPDATE IN NEW YORK CITY:
Effective May 10, 2020, employers and employment agencies in New York City will be prohibited from requiring job applicants to submit to marijuana drug testing as a condition of employment.
This law shall not apply to the following roles:
o Police officers or other safety-related positions
o Positions that require a commercial driver’s license
o Positions requiring the supervision or care of children, medical patients or vulnerable persons
o Certain federal contractors
Employers should take the following action:
o Review and revise existing drug-testing policies
o Determine whether the law applies to the job applicant in question
If you have any questions regarding this law or any other labor and employment law issues, please call an attorney at Franklin, Gringer & Cohen, P.C. at 516-228-3131.
Posted in News, Recent Legal Developments | Tagged employer law, marijuana, marijuana drug testing, marijuana drug testing law, marijuana new york, new york city, nyc
