In a case of first impression, a judge in Middlesex County, New Jersey, Superior Court has ruled that an employee who takes leave due to COVID-19 symptoms is protected under New Jersey’s whistleblower and anti-discrimination laws and public policy mandates.

The decision is the first time a New Jersey judge has put such extensive workplace protections for COVID-19 symptoms in a written opinion, according to plaintiff counsel Christopher Eibeler of Smith Eibeler in Holmdel.