Under the New Jersey Financial Empowerment and Security Act (NJ SAFE Act), employees are entitled to take up to 20 days of unpaid time off as necessary because they, or a member of their immediate family, have been a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault. No federal or state law requires employers to provide paid or unpaid vacation to their employees. However, if employers choose to offer paid or unpaid vacation leave to their employees, they must comply with applicable state law or employment contract. If the employee requests consecutive leave to care for a child placed in foster care or adoption care or for a newborn, they must give at least 30 days' notice.
All materials have been prepared for general information purposes only to allow you to learn more about the licensing laws of this region. An employee must give at least 15 days' notice, unless there are emergent circumstances, for intermittent leave. In New Jersey, employers are not required to provide employees with vacation benefits, whether paid or not. Employees can take leave to care for a parent, spouse, child, father-in-law, or domestic partner in a civil partnership.
Unlike the FMLA, New Jersey law does not give employees the right to take time off for their own serious health conditions. Another federal law, the Untrained Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) gives eligible employees the right to be reinstated after taking up to five years of service break in the U.S. UU. If you receive an indemnity package from the company, you may be entitled to payment for the unused vacation days accrued in addition to any amount of compensation you receive.
Often, however, state law applies to a broader set of employers, has more flexible eligibility requirements for employees, or covers a broader set of family members. Although New Jersey authorities are silent on many vacation policy issues, based on the contractual emphasis New Jersey has placed on vacation policies, an employer is likely to be free to implement the vacation policy of their choice. New Jersey law also gives employees the right to leave work, without fear of retaliation, for the civic responsibility of serving on a jury. In this situation, the employer's policy or practice of paying vacation time becomes a contract with the employee and is considered an employment benefit.
An employer cannot fire, penalize, threaten, or otherwise coerce an employee with respect to employment, because the employee is required to attend court to serve as a jury.
