Mark & Galusha, LLC: Civil Rights Attorneys in Newark and Bayonne, New Jersey.

Disparate impact is an adverse employment action that does not require intentional discrimination on the part of the employer. This event takes place when an employer institutes company policy which in turn, produces a negative impact on a protected class of individuals. For example, if a company required that job seekers possess a college degree to perform duties that someone without a college degree could perform, the result of this decision may preclude minorities from applying as they are often provided with less opportunity to attend college. Conversely, a fire department may only hire firefighters capable of lifting 100 pounds or more and this decision based off of biological differences alone does have an impact on women. As the ability to perform this task is necessary in the field, it is not considered disparate impact.

In the matter of Gregory Meditz v. the City of Newark, Mr. Meditz, a lawyer, did what most attorneys advise against and represented himself pro se after he fell victim to disparate impact. Mr. Meditz is a white, non-Hispanic man who applied for a position with the Newark Housing Department. Mr. Meditz was rejected for this position in 2007 as the City of Newark held a policy which required all "non-uniformed employees" to reside in Newark during their initial tenure.

Defendant filed a Motion for Summary Judgment, wishing to dismiss Plaintiff's complaint in its entirety. In response to the motion, Mr. Meditz produced detailed statistics which outlined the ethnic make-up of employees with the general ethnic make-up of the City of Newark. The statistics showed that the City of Newark was inadvertently discriminating against white, non-Hispanics as the majority of the population within Newark that met the residency requirements based off an address alone were shown to be minorities.

Initially, the District Court determined that Plaintiff had not provided substantial proof to make his prima facie case and therefore, the case was dismissed. However, when the Third Circuit reviewed the matter, the matter was remanded for further review by the District Court as it was found that the District Court applied the wrong standard of review when deciding to dismiss Mr. Medtiz's Complaint. The Third Circuit further recommended the analysis of the job market in Newark to be conducted independently in order to arrive at any definitive conclusion.

If you believe you have been the victim of unfair job treatment at your current position or are being excluding due to your race during your search for employment, please do not hesitate to contact our attorneys. We are seasoned lawyers who handle discrimination and civil rights cases throughout Newark, Bayonne and Hudson County. It is important to act immediately as many situations come with statutes of limitations. Contact our offices at (908) 626-1001 or 973-440-2311, or simply tell us your story by clicking the contact us page.