NJ Senate advances bill to provide job protection for family leave
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... A bill would allow for people that work for companies with less than 30 but more than five employees to be able to return to work after taking paid or unpaid family leave.
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This means that employees who take family leave benefits to care for a family member cannot be retaliated against by their employer refusing to reinstate them after the leave.
..... Yarrow William-Cole, Workplace Justice Program Director for New Jersey Citizen Action, supported the bill but called for amendments because she said it does not go far enough to preside accessibility and equity.
..... "No one should be prevented form accessing the paid leave benefits that they are contributing to and entitled for. We passed paid family leave 17 years ago and it took us 10 years to improve it - it should not take another decade to get this right," she said. "Our laws should reflect our society's growing care-giving needs. New Jersey is in fact not keeping up. when we compare ourselves to other states passing paid leave laws like Connecticut and Minnesota and even New York. these states provide workers who take paid leave with job protections."
..... Not everyone was in support of the bill.
..... Amirah Hussian, director of government relations at the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, spoke of the negative impact it might have on small businesses.
..... She said it introduces a new layer of risk to small businesses, which may hesitate to hire more employees to keep below the threshold or work with contractors instead of full-time staff.
..... "While there will always be bad actors in any space, the chamber believes it is important not to villainzie the many employers who want to do right by their employees," she said. "the overwhelming majority of business owners work collaboratively with their staff to find solutions that meet the needs of both the worker and the operational values of the business."
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This extends the opportunity to take family temporary disability leave to take the benefit that they had paid into. this will be phased in with the threshold dropping to companies with 20 employees when the bill goes into effect, 10 employees a year later and five employees a year after that.
..... According to the state Department of Labor website, as of January 1, 2021, workers contribute .28% of the first $138,200 earned during the calendar year. That means workers who do not earn $138,200 in a calendar year continue to have deductions taken out year round.
..... The bill has passed the assembly and needs to pass the senate before landing on Governor Phil Murphy's desk. It advanced with a vote of 8-5 with committee chair state Senator Paul Sarlo crossing party lines to vote against the bill along side all four Republicans.