Family Leave Retaliation

Statewide representation including Northern and Central New Jersey
New Jersey Family Medical Leave Act Lawsuits

Victim of Pregnancy or FMLA Retaliation?

Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in 1993 to prevent employers from terminating or sanctioning employees for pregnancy leave, extended recuperation, or leave to care for an ailing family member. Despite this important legislation, many employers continue to punish workers by changing their work assignments, harassing them, or terminating them.

The FMLA establishes employee leave rights and shields workers from employer retaliation, but only if you have competent legal counsel. The Bridgewater, New Jersey law firm of Montgomery, Chapin & Fetten, P.C. offers extensive experience in state and federal employment law, including:

• Workplace discrimination
• Sexual harassment
• Wrongful termination

Pregnancy Discrimination

The FMLA grants most workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a newborn or a newly adopted child. This can include leave taken before the birth of the child (e.g., doctor-ordered bed rest). The employee must be allowed to return to the same job or an equivalent position, and health coverage must be extended during the leave.

It is illegal for an employer to sanction a woman in any way when she becomes pregnant – demoting or imposing adverse work assignments, termination, harassment or denial of benefits. The same applies to a father who chooses to take paternity leave to care for the child.

Personal and Family Medical Leave Discrimination
The FMLA grants up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to (a) recover from a personal health condition that prevents the employee from fulfilling job duties, or (b) to care for a son, daughter, parent, or spouse who has a serious health condition. FMLA does not have to be taken all at once.

Employers often try to circumvent the FMLA by terminating or sanctioning the employee for a trumped-up reason.

Victims of employer retaliation can file family medical leave act lawsuits seeking: reinstatement and back pay, or front pay (future earnings if they were still employed), compensatory damages such as emotional distress, punitive damages, and/or fee shifting (coverage of attorneys’ fees and court costs).

Montgomery, Chapin & Fetten, P.C. offers extensive experience in all aspects of New Jersey and federal employment law. Contact our FMLA retaliation claims attorneys, who will vigorously advocate on your behalf. We offer a free initial consultation, including weekends and evenings by appointment. We have Spanish and Greek speaking attorneys on staff.