Long Island Employment Lawyers

Employment Discrimination

Workplace discrimination cannot be tolerated. Because discrimination is a state of mind, it takes a careful lawyer to find the evidence necessary to build a successful employment discrimination case. Through years of experience, our employment lawyers have developed sharp eyes, trained to find the hidden evidence of discrimination in the workplace. At Famighetti & Weinick PLLC, our employment lawyers handle a wide range of employment discrimination matters, including:

Race Discrimination : Sex Discrimination : Gender Discrimination : National Origin Discrimination : Age Discrimination : Disability Discrimination : Religious Discrimination : Sexual Orientation Discrimination : Criminal Conviction Discrimination : Familial Status Discrimination : Family Medical Leave Act : Military Service Discrimination

Retaliation in the Workplace

One of the fastest growing areas of illegal workplace practices is retaliation. Employers are prohibited from acting against employees who complain about discrimination, improper pay, or who engage in other activities such as talking about forming a union. Unlawful retaliation may include firing the employee, reducing pay, or transferring the employee to a worse job assignment. Our lawyers are experienced in finding evidence of retaliation at work and we work closely with our clients to build the strongest retaliation case possible.

Wage & Hour

Too often, businesses take advantage of vulnerable workers by committing wage theft. Employers often improperly pay their workers to avoid paying payroll taxes and insurance or to simply cheat their employees of their lawfully earned wages. Wage theft can occur when an employer refuses to pay workers the lawful minimum wage or when an employer fails to pay its workers proper overtime pay. Misclassification of workers as independent contractors instead of employees, or as exempt instead of non-exempt, are common problems in Long Island workplaces. Because wage theft usually impacts those workers who need to be paid properly the most, we give particularly close attention to wage and hour clients to ensure we recover the maximum amount owed, which oftentimes includes punitive or liquidated damages.

Hostile Work Environment

Employees spend a substantial amount of their lives at work. Workers should not have to endure hostility in the workplace. Famighetti & Weinick PLLC’s Long Island employment lawyers are experienced in negotiating on behalf of employees who are facing a hostile work environment. We have obtained relief for victims including money damages, separation pay, and other changes for employees’ work environments to alleviate the hostility. When necessary, we have prosecuted hostile work environment claims in administrative agencies and court.

Wrongful Termination

Although New York is an at-will employment state, employers are nonetheless prohibited from terminating employees for wrongful and illegal reasons. Sometimes these reasons may not be obvious. The Long Island employment lawyers at Famighetti & Weinick PLLC carefully review the facts of each potential wrongful termination case to uncover lurking facts which may show that an employer’s decision to fire an employee was unlawful. After those facts are discovered, our lawyers may draft a persuasive intent to sue letter to the employer or it may be appropriate to bring the case directly to court or to an administrative agency.

Sexual Harassment

The #MeToo movement has emphasized the fact that victims of workplace sexual harassment must not remain silent. From sexual jokes and innuendos to improper touching or worse, our employment lawyers understand the sensitivity of sexual harassment claims. For victims concerned about the publicity of bringing sexual harassment to light, we can oftentimes resolve sexual harassment cases confidentially through private resolution avenues such as mediation. We are also experienced in litigating sexual harassment cases in court and in administrative agencies such as the EEOC and the New York State Division of Human Rights.

Public Employees’ Rights

Public employees are workers employed by the government, such as state, county, town, or village workers. Because the government must follow the United States Constitution, public employees have some additional workplace protections than private employees do. Further, many government workers in New York are covered by the Civil Service Laws which also provide workplace protections, such as the requirement that employees be given a hearing before termination. Famighetti & Weinick PLLC’s employment lawyers serving clients on Long Island are experienced in termination hearings as well as claims against the government for violations of the First Amendment or Fourteenth Amendment.

Civil Rights

The United States Constitution gives all citizens important rights, such as the freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association, and the right to not be deprived of life, liberty, and property without due process. These rights arise under the First Amendment and the Fourteenth Amendment. At Famighetti & Weinick PLLC we’re experienced in “Constitutional Torts.” We are knowledgeable in the laws which hold the government accountable for violating the Constitutional rights of a citizen. A free consultation with one of our Long Island civil rights lawyers can determine whether your civil rights have been violated.