Federal law shields a wide array of groups from employment discrimination, but members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community have received no such protection. In the flurry of news that has been coming out of Congress over the past several months, a landmark piece of legislation has attracted little attention until recently.
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) is proposed legislation that would finally extend the same protections that apply to race, gender, disability, age, religion and national origin to sexual orientation and identity. On Nov. 7, the Senate voted 64-32 to approve the bill. Every Senate Democrat who was present voted for approval. They were joined by 10 Republican senators, including two who had opposed the measure in the past — Orrin Hatch of Utah and John McCain of Arizona. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives, where it faces greater Republican opposition.
Fortunately for our state’s workers, New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination (LAD) already protects employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Employment discrimination lawyers are already able to seek justice for LGBT workers in court. Passage of ENDA, however, would open up federal remedies in New Jersey and would provide protections in states that do not ban discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Neil H. Deutsch has been practicing law for over 35 years and is known as a skilled negotiator in employment and discrimination law. He believes in a bottom-line approach of risk analysis and cost effectiveness for his clients. "Case evaluation is something we take seriously," says Mr. Deutsch who seeks top net dollar for his…
Bruce L. Atkins is the Senior Managing Partner at Deutsch Atkins & Kleinfeldt P.C., a prominent plaintiff employment law firm in the tri-state area. Mr. Atkins believes employees’ rights should be aggressively pursued when they’ve been wrongfully dealt with by their employers. He brings this philosophy to his practice when considering each case and its…
Adam J. Kleinfeldt joined Deutsch Atkins & Kleinfeldt, P.C. in March of 2015. He primarily represents individuals in employment litigation such as discrimination, retaliation and whistle blowing matters. He has extensive experience in all phases of the litigation process. Adam has obtained significant results for his clients, including a $525,000 jury verdict in a sexual…
Debra M. McGarvey joined Deutsch Atkins & Kleinfeldt, P.C. in December 2019. She has extensive experience defending employees and employers in state and federal court in employment litigation matters. She has represented clients on various issues arising out of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD), the New Jersey Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA), the…
Carly Skarbnik Meredith, Esq. is a Partner at the firm. Carly has focused her career exclusively in the field of employment law. She has a plethora of experience representing both employees and employers with their employment issues, needs, and concerns. She believes representing both employees and employers has made her an extremely well-rounded client advocate.…
