Revises law concerning family leave to extend protection by reducing, over time, employee threshold from 30 employees to five employees in definition of employer.

A1972

ASSEMBLY, No. 1972

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblyman CRAIG J. COUGHLIN

District 19 (Middlesex)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman McCoy

SYNOPSIS

���� Revises law concerning family leave to extend
protection by reducing, over time, employee threshold from 30 employees to five
employees in definition of employer.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning reinstatement of employees after taking
family leave and amending various parts of the statutory law.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 3 of P.L.1989,
c.261 (C.34:11B-3) is amended to read as follows:

���� 3.��� As used in this act:

���� a.��� "Child" means
a biological, adopted, foster child, or resource family child, stepchild, legal
ward, or child of a parent, including a child who becomes the child of a parent
pursuant to a valid written agreement between the parent and a gestational
carrier.

���� b.��� "Director"
means the Director of the Division on Civil Rights.

���� c.��� "Division"
means the Division on Civil Rights in the Department of Law and Public Safety.

���� d.��� "Employ" means
to suffer or permit to work for compensation, and includes ongoing, contractual
relationships in which the employer retains substantial direct or indirect
control over the employee's employment opportunities or terms and conditions of
employment.

���� e.��� "Employee"
means a person who is employed for at least 12 months by an employer, with
respect to whom benefits are sought under this act, for not less than 1,000
base hours during the immediately preceding 12-month period.� Any time, up to a
maximum of 90 calendar days, during which a person is laid off or furloughed by
an employer due to that employer curtailing operations because of a state of
emergency declared after October 22, 2012, shall be regarded as time in which
the person is employed for the purpose of determining eligibility for leave
time under this act. In making the determination, the base hours per week
during the layoff or furlough shall be deemed to be the same as the average
number of hours worked per week during the rest of the 12-month period.

���� f.���� "Employer"
means a person or corporation, partnership, individual proprietorship, joint
venture, firm or company or other similar legal entity which engages the
services of an employee and which:

���� (1)� (Deleted by amendment,
P.L.2019, c.37);

���� (2)� (Deleted by amendment,
P.L.2019, c.37);

���� (3)� With respect to the
period of time from the 1,095th day following the effective date of P.L.1989,
c.261 (C.34:11B-1 et seq.) through June 30, 2019, employs 50 or more employees
for each working day during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the then
current or immediately preceding calendar year; and

���� (4)� With respect to any
period of time
[
on
or after
]

from
June 30, 2019
until the effective date of P.L.��� , c.���
(pending before the Legislature as this bill)
, employs 30 or more employees
for each working day during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the then
current or immediately preceding calendar year
;

����
(5)� With respect to any
period of time after the effective date of P.L.��� , c.���� (pending before the
Legislature as this bill), employs 20 or more employees for each working day
during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the then current or immediately
preceding calendar year;

����
(6)� With respect to any
period of time after the 365th day following the effective date of P.L.��� , c.����
(pending before the Legislature as this bill), employs 10 or more employees for
each working day during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the then
current or immediately preceding calendar year; and

����
(7)� With respect to any
period of time after the 730th day after the effective date of P.L.��� , c.����
(pending before the Legislature as this bill), employs five or more employees
for each working day during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the then
current or immediately preceding calendar year
.

���� "Employer" includes
the State, any political subdivision thereof, and all public offices, agencies,
boards or bodies.

���� g.��� "Employment
benefits" means all benefits and policies provided or made available to
employees by an employer, and includes group life insurance, health insurance,
disability insurance, sick leave, annual leave, pensions, or other similar
benefits.

���� h.��� "Parent" means
a person who is the biological parent, adoptive parent, foster parent, resource
family parent, step-parent, parent-in-law or legal guardian, having a
"parent-child relationship" with a child as defined by law, or having
sole or joint legal or physical custody, care, guardianship, or visitation with
a child, or who became the parent of the child pursuant to a valid written
agreement between the parent and a gestational carrier.

���� i.���� "Family
leave" means leave from employment so that the employee may provide care
made necessary by reason of:

���� (1)� the birth of a child of
the employee, including a child born pursuant to a valid written agreement
between the employee and a gestational carrier;

���� (2)� the placement of a child
into foster care with the employee or in connection with adoption of such child
by the employee;

���� (3)� the serious health
condition of a family member of the employee; or

���� (4)� in the event of a state
of emergency declared by the Governor, or when indicated to be needed by the
Commissioner of Health or other public health authority, an epidemic of a
communicable disease, a known or suspected exposure to the communicable disease,
or efforts to prevent spread of a communicable disease, which:

���� (a)�� requires in-home care or
treatment of a child due to the closure of the school or place of care of the
child of the employee, by order of a public official due to the epidemic or
other public health emergency;

���� (b)� prompts the issuance by a
public health authority of a determination, including by mandatory quarantine,
requiring or imposing responsive or prophylactic measures as a result of
illness caused by an epidemic of a communicable disease or known or suspected
exposure to the communicable disease because the presence in the community of a
family member in need of care by the employee, would jeopardize the health of
others; or

���� (c)�� results in the
recommendation of a health care provider or public health authority, that a
family member in need of care by the employee voluntarily undergo
self-quarantine as a result of suspected exposure to a communicable disease
because the presence in the community of that family member in need of care by
the employee, would jeopardize the health of others.

���� j.���� "Family
member" means a child, parent, parent-in-law, sibling, grandparent,
grandchild, spouse, domestic partner, or one partner in a civil union couple,
or any other individual related by blood to the employee, and any other
individual that the employee shows to have a close association with the
employee which is the equivalent of a family relationship.

���� k.��� "Reduced leave
schedule" means leave scheduled for fewer than an employee's usual number
of hours worked per workweek but not for fewer than an employee's usual number
of hours worked per workday, unless agreed to by the employee and the employer.

���� l.���� "Serious health
condition" means an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental
condition which requires:

���� (1)� inpatient care in a
hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility; or

���� (2)� continuing medical
treatment or continuing supervision by a health care provider.

���� m.�� "State of
emergency" means a natural or man-made disaster or emergency for which a
state of emergency has been declared by the President of the United States or
the Governor, or for which a state of emergency has been declared by a
municipal emergency management coordinator.

���� n.��� "Health care
provider" means a duly licensed health care provider or other health care
provider deemed appropriate by the director.

(cf: P.L.2020, c.23, s.1)

���� 2.��� Section 24 of P.L.2019,
c.37 (C.43:21-55.2) is amended to read as follows:

���� 24. a.
Any covered
individual who took any temporary disability benefits pursuant to P.L.1948,
c.110 (C.43:21-25 et al.), or family temporary disability leave benefits
pursuant to P.L.2008, c.17 (C.43:21-39.1 et al.), shall, upon the expiration of
the leave, be entitled to be restored by the employer to the position held by
the employee when the leave commenced or to an equivalent position of like
seniority, status, employment benefits, pay, and other terms and conditions of
employment, except that nothing in this section or any section of P.L.2008,
c.17 (C.43:21-39.1 et al.) shall be construed as increasing, reducing or
otherwise modifying any entitlement provided to a worker by the provisions of
the "Family Leave Act," P.L.1989, c.261 (C.34:11B-1 et seq.) to be
restored to employment by the employer after a period of family temporary
disability leave. �The employee shall retain all rights under any applicable
layoff and recall system, including a system under a collective bargaining
agreement, as if the employee had not taken the leave.

����
b.
��� An employer shall
not discharge, harass, threaten, or otherwise discriminate or retaliate against
an employee with respect to the compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges
of employment on the basis that the employee requested or took any temporary disability
benefits pursuant to P.L.1948, c.110 (C.43:21-25 et al.), or family temporary
disability leave benefits pursuant to P.L.2008, c.17 (C.43:21-39.1 et al.),
including retaliation by refusing to
[
restore
]

reinstate

the employee
to employment
following a period of leave
[
, except that,
pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1948, c.110 (C.43:21-26), nothing in this section
or any other section of P.L.1948, c.110 (C.43:21-25 et al.) or P.L.2008, c.17
(C.43:21-39.1 et al.) shall be construed as increasing, reducing or otherwise
modifying any entitlement provided to a worker by the provisions of the
"Family Leave Act," P.L.1989, c.261 (C.34:11B-1 et seq.) to be
restored to employment by the employer after a period of family temporary
disability leave
]
,
if, and as, required by subsection a. of this section
.

����
[
b.
]

c.
������� Upon a
violation of subsection a.
or b.
of this section, an employee or former
employee may
, as an alternative to any action that the employee is permitted
to take for the violation pursuant to the provisions of P.L.1948, c.110
(C.43:21-25 et al.), P.L.2008, c.17 (C.43:21-39.1 et al.), or the "Family
Leave Act," P.L.1989, c.261 (C.34:11B-1 et seq.),
institute a civil
action in the Superior Court for relief
[
.��
All
]

in
which all
remedies available in common law tort actions shall be available
to a prevailing plaintiff.� The court may also order any or all of the
following relief:

���� (1)� an assessment of a civil
fine of not less than $1,000 and not more than $2,000 for the first violation
of any of the provisions of this section and not more than $5,000 for each
subsequent violation;

���� (2)� an injunction to restrain
the continued violation of any of the provisions of this section;

���� (3)� reinstatement of the
employee to the same position or to a position equivalent to that which the
employee held prior to unlawful discharge or retaliatory action
, or other
failure to reinstate the employee in violation of this section
;

���� (4)� reinstatement of full
fringe benefits and seniority rights;

���� (5)� compensation for any lost
wages, benefits and other remuneration; and

���� (6)� payment of reasonable
costs and attorney's fees.

����
d.��� An employee who is
eligible for both earned sick leave pursuant to P.L.2018, c.10 (C.34:11D-1 et
seq.), and either� temporary disability benefits pursuant to P.L.1948, c.110
(C.43:21- 25 et al.), or family temporary disability leave benefits pursuant to
P.L.2008, c.17 (C.43:21-39.1 et al.) shall have the option of using either the
earned sick leave or whichever is applicable of temporary disability benefits
or family temporary disability leave benefits, and may select the order in
which the different kinds of leave are taken, but shall not receive more than
one kind of paid leave simultaneously during any period of time.

(cf: P.L.2019, c.37, s.24)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill extends to employees
of employers with less than 30 employees and five or more employees the right
to be reinstated to employment after taking family temporary disability leave
benefits or unpaid family leave, thus ensuring that more workers who pay for
family temporary disability leave insurance (FLI) will be able to able to
return to work after taking FLI benefits.� The extension is phased in, with the
threshold reduced to 20 employees upon the effective date of the bill, to 10
employees one year later after the effective date, and to five employees two
years after the effective date.� Under the bill, upon completion of the
phase-in, employees of employers with five or more employees will be entitled
to 12 weeks of job protected leave, whether that leave is paid or unpaid.�

���� Once the phase-in is complete,
the bill extends to employees of employers with five or more employees, the
provision under current law that provides that a covered employee who takes FLI
benefits to care for a family member has an affirmative right of job
reinstatement with their employer after the leave.� Currently, an employer who
employs less than 30 workers, and is thus exempt from the reinstatement
requirements of the Family Leave Act (FLA), is also exempt from the
reinstatement requirements of that provision.� By reducing this exemption, the
bill extends that provision�s reinstatement rights to recipients of FLI
benefits even if their employers have less than 30 employees, in the same way
that provision currently provides that reinstatement protection for temporary
disability insurance recipients no matter how few employees the employer has.

���� Once fully phased in, the bill
also amends the FLA to make employers of five or more employees subject to that
law�s requirement to reinstate leave takers, thereby extending that right of
reinstatement to employees of employers with five or more employees, whether or
not the employees receive FLI benefits.

���� The bill provides that an
employee who is eligible for both earned sick leave, and either temporary
disability benefits or family temporary disability leave benefits will have the
option of using either the earned sick leave or whichever is applicable of
temporary disability benefits or family temporary disability leave benefits,
and may select the order in which the different kinds of leave are taken, but
may not receive more than one kind of paid leave simultaneously during any
period of time.