Know the Law

The New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR) is the state agency charged with enforcing New Jersey’s civil rights laws, including the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), the New Jersey Family Leave Act (FLA), and the Fair Chance in Housing Act (FCHA). The mission of DCR is to protect the people of New Jersey from discrimination and bias-based harassment in employment, housing, and public accommodations.
 

• NJ Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD): The NJLAD is the nation’s first and most comprehensive anti-discrimination laws in the nation. The LAD prohibits discrimination and bias-based harassment based on many protected classes in employment, housing, and places of public accommodation.
• New Jersey Fair Chance in Housing Act (FCHA): The FCHA bars housing providers from asking about criminal history on housing applications in most instances. The FCHA is the first state law of its kind in the country and is intended to ensure people with past criminal histories have a fair shot at accessing safe and affordable housing.
• New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA): The NJFLA provides job-protected leave for an employee of a state or local government agency, or an employee of a company or organization with 30 or more employees worldwide, who has been employed by the company for at least one year and worked at least 1,000 hours in the past 12 months.