New Jersey Bills Seek to Prohibit Employers from Requiring or Obtaining Credit Checks from Applicants or Employees

Upon taking office, President Joe Biden, through an executive order, instructed the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to review prior guidance on the availability of an individual to receive unemployment benefits if the individual has refused to return to work or take new work due to a fear of contracting COVID-19. On February 25, 2021, the DOL issued new guidance related to a return to work under a scenario in which an individual feels unsafe.

Less than a month after the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) was signed into law, new U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) guidance and model forms are clearing up a number of employer concerns about the 100 percent COBRA coverage subsidy for continuing health benefits that runs from April 1, 2021, to September 30, 2021.

A recently proposed bill (S1609), currently under review by the New York Senate Labor Committee, would amend the New York Labor Law to allow any employee who is a victim of domestic violence 90 days of unpaid leave from employment during any 12-month period in order to address ongoing domestic violence. The bill provides that the leave may be taken intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule, and the employer may require a sworn statement or other documentation to corroborate the employee’s request for this leave.