New Jersey’s labor commissioner defended a new state law mandating severance payments for workers affected by mass layoffs, telling a federal judge that a lawsuit challenging the mandate fails for lack of standing and lack of a proper defendant.
Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo on Monday asked that the case be dismissed, saying he isn’t a proper defendant because he has no enforcement authority over any provision of the New Jersey law. Asaro-Angelo also challenged the ERISA Industry Committee’s standing to challenge the law in court, arguing that the non-profit trade association representing employers with benefit plans hasn’t seen its services or ...