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Jonathan Wexler

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Jonathan A. Wexler is a Shareholder in Vedder Price's Labor and Employment practice area in the New York office.

He represents private-sector, not-for-profit and public-sector clients in litigation matters in federal and state courts and before such administrative agencies as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the New York State Division of Human Rights, the National Labor Relations Board and the New York Department of Labor.

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On March 25, 2025, in Tudor v. Whitehall Central School District, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated the Northern District of New York’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the Whitehall Central School District (the “District”) on a failure-to-accommodate claim brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by Angel Tudor (“Tudor”), a teacher in the District.  In its opinion, the court held that a reasonable accommodation may be required even when the employee can perform the essential functions of their job without the accommodation.Continue Reading The Second Circuit Holds That Reasonable Accommodations Under the ADA May Be Required Even When Not Necessary to the Performance of the Job

On March 17, 2025, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously held in Musker v. Suuchi that commissions are included in the definition of “wages” under New Jersey’s Wage Payment Law (“WPL”).  Wages under the WPL are defined as “direct monetary compensation for labor or services rendered by an employee, where the amount is determined on a time, task, piece or commission basis.”  The trial and appellate courts held that commissions were a “supplementary incentive,” which is excluded from the definition of wages under the WPL. Supplementary incentives were described by the court as additional “compensation that motivates employees to do something above and beyond their labor or services.”Continue Reading The New Jersey Supreme Court Finds that Commissions Are Wages Under the New Jersey Wage Payment Law

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On September 26, 2024, the New Jersey Legislature passed Senate Bill 2310. This new law requires New Jersey employers to include certain information about compensation and benefits in both internal and external job postings.  Governor Murphy has 45 days (i.e., until November 10, 2024) to sign the bill into law, and, once signed, it will go into effect seven months later.Continue Reading New Jersey Passes Wage Transparency Law

On September 4, 2024, Governor Kathy Hochul signed S8358C, the New York Retail Worker Safety Act (RWSA), into law. Through the RWSA, New York state seeks to address growing threats of workplace violence and fears among retail workers regarding their safety in the workplace. New York joins a handful of other states, including California, which have passed similar legislation.Continue Reading New York Governor Signs Legislation to Protect Retail Workers from Workplace Violence

In the California case of Okonowsky v. Garland, a male supervisor in a federal prison (a lieutenant) used his private Instagram account to post sexually offensive content about a female prison psychologist.  The District Court dismissed the psychologist’s hostile work environment claim, holding that the posts occurred entirely outside the workplace, were made on the lieutenant’s personal Instagram account, and were not sent or otherwise displayed to the psychologist.  The Ninth Circuit reversed the dismissal of the Title VII claim and found that, in view of the generally permanent nature of the sexual posts and the references to the workplace on the Instagram account, the psychologist’s work environment could have been made hostile, especially since she had to interact with the lieutenant on a regular basis, and despite the fact that the lieutenant’s conduct occurred “off-site.”Continue Reading Recent Judicial Decisions Highlight the Importance of Anti-Harassment Training

Although non-competition agreements are under ongoing attack at the federal and state levels (including being banned in California, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Oklahoma, among others), New York State is not yet ready to join that movement.  Late last month, New York Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed Senate Bill S3100A, which was passed in June 2023 by the NYS Assembly and the Senate and would have prohibited all non-compete agreements.  In vetoing the bill, Governor Hochul expressed concern about the impact that the legislation would have on the interest of the many businesses operating in the state to protect the competitive advantage that key employees bring.Continue Reading New York Governor Vetoes Bill Banning Non-Compete Agreements

As of November 26, 2023, the New York City Human Rights Law makes discrimination on the basis of an individual’s height or weight unlawful.  Accordingly, an employer may not discharge or refuse to hire an individual, or provide an individual with less advantageous terms, conditions, or benefits of employment on the basis of actual or perceived height or weight. Continue Reading New York City Bans Employers from Creating Height and Weight Requirements

On November 17, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul signed SB 4516, an amendment to N.Y. General Obligations Law §5-336 that prohibits liquidated damages clauses in nondisclosure provisions of settlement agreements involving discrimination, harassment or retaliation claims, and adds additional protections for individuals alleging such claims.  The amendment applies to agreements signed on or after November 17, 2023.Continue Reading New Law in New York State Impacts Settlement Agreements

In 2023, New York State and New York City amended several labor and employment laws about which employers should be aware to ensure that their policies and procedures remain compliant.  For more detailed information, check out the article here.Continue Reading New York State and City Labor and Employment Updates