The Personal Injury Attorney in Fair Lawn, NJ, You Can Trust

A Fair Lawn resident says in a lawsuit that he was fired after 19 years at the local library because of his gender.

Caren Lissner, Patch Staff

|Updated Thu, Feb 27, 2025 at 10:56 am ET

FAIR LAWN, NJ — A Fair Lawn resident has filed suit in Bergen County Superior Court saying he was fired from the town library because he's a man.

Alexander Cardillo said in the suit that he worked at the Marcus M. Pine Library since 2004, but was fired in 2023 after a campaign of harassment by the library director.

After he returned to the library last March as part of a settlement, he says, he was suddenly told his hours would be capped at six per week.

'Steady Shift'

The suit says that Cardillo worked at the library's reference desk, where he was able to put his Master's in Library Science and a New Jersey State Librarian Certification to good use.

Find out what's happening in Hobokenfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

"Unlike working the main circulation desk or restacking books and journals," the suit notes, "the Reference Desk requires a greater knowledge of the various resources available to library patrons so that they could complete their respective projects."

For many years, he worked a steady shift and received positive reviews, according to the suit.

But he said that starting in 2022, Library Director Adele Puccio, who had been hired in 2016, began discriminating against him by giving fewer hours, replacing him with female staffers who had fewer qualifications, and harassing him.

In 2023, he was reprimanded unfairly several times, he said.

Suspension

Cardillo claims that Director Pucci failed to give him his annual wage increases in 2022, and soon told him she was cutting his hours "in an effort to harass and/or have Mr. Cardillo resign."

Cardillo says some of his hours were given to a new female employee with no certification.

Then, in February 2023, Cardillo says, the library had to temporarily close for an elevator repair. He said that at a birthday party held in the building, he and other library employees began discussing whether they'd be paid during the closure.

When Puccio found out, she sent him a written reprimand, he said. However, he says in the suit, other employees were involved in the discussion and were not reprimanded.

Cardillo says that on Feb. 14, 2023, Puccio sent him an email that stated, "in substance and in part, that Mr. Cardillo [is] removed from the schedule at the Library until further notice."

Around five days later, Cardillo received a Preliminary Notice of Disciplinary Action, alleging that he had violated the Library’s Confidentiality Policies by utilizing the Library’s computer to contact an employee, he says.

Cardillo was then suspended and replaced by "a female library employee who was neither qualified, nor had the credentials, to be assigned to such a location," Cardillo says.

"Defendant Puccio and/or the Library Board continued on their quests to harass, degrade and humiliate Mr. Cardillo, a male employee, by presenting false claims against him," the suit says.

Cadillo says that at a disciplinary hearing on April 6, 2023, Puccio accused Cardillo of harassing another employee without any factual basis.

In September 2023, he was terminated retroactive to the date of his suspension, he says.

After Cardillo contested the firing and the case was transferred to the state's Office of Administrative Law, the library settled with him, he says.

He returned to his old pre-2022 work schedule in March 2024. But that situation changed quickly, he said.

"Despite having entered into an agreement with apparent good faith, Defendants Puccio and the Library Board immediately undermined Mr. Cardillo," the suit says — capping his hours at six per week.

"In or about December 2024, a female employee resigned. In her place, Defendant Puccio hired a female," the suit notes. "Defendant Puccio offered another new female employee the Sunday shift that previously belonged to Mr. Cardillo."

'Based On Cardillo's Gender'

The suit says that when various hours opened up, they were always offered to female employees and not Cardillo.

Cardillo says that on the staff of 30, only four are male. He says Puccio hired only one man since becoming library director, and the man is a fill-in if no one else is available.

"The wrongful termination, continuous retaliation and harassment are based upon Mr. Cardillo’s gender," the suit says. "But for Mr. Cardillo’s gender, he would not have been ostracized, discriminated and/or retaliated against in the workplace, in violation of the law. A reasonable male employee would view the actions of Defendants as discriminatory and gender based harassment, retaliation and discrimination."

The suit names Director Puccio as well as the library and the Borough of Fair Lawn.

Cardillo is asking for compensatory damages, punitive damages, and legal fees, the suit says.

A story in the Paterson Times in 2020 says that Cardillo sued the Paterson School District for wrongful termination. The story says that he was subjected to a "pattern of harassment, abuse and hostility" and was terminated in spring 2019.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

A $22 million sale of an office building in Fair Lawn will make way for more medical office space.

The three-story building, located at 17-17 Route 208, was sold to Atkins Cos., a West Orange-based health care real estate developer, which announced the purchase on Monday. The 150,000-square-foot building is anchored by Summit Health, a health care provider that makes up 78,000 square feet of the property, according to an Atkins news release.

A multimillion-dollar renovation was recently completed at the site, including a new roof, renovated common areas and lobby, new elevators and landscaping, Atkins said.

Atkins “immediately filled” previous vacancies at the site, signing a 6,000-square-foot expansion with current tenant Gottlieb & Greenspan, LLC, a health care reimbursement law firm, and a new 4,600-square-foot lease with SportsCare Physical Therapy, the developer said. These new leases bring the property to full occupancy.

“Our acquisition of 17-17 Route 208 reflects our commitment to investing in high-quality, well-located medical office properties that meet the evolving needs of today’s health care providers," said Cory Atkins, principal of Atkins Cos., in a statement. "We are excited to bring the building to full occupancy and leverage our relationship-driven approach to ensure a premier experience for our tenants and their patients."

The three-story building is "strategically located" near Routes 4 and 7 and the Garden State Parkway, the company said.

The sale was brokered by Jeffery Dunne, Doug Rodio, Travis Langer and Dan Blumenkrantz of real estate company CBRE, in collaboration with Brannan Knott and Chris Bodnar of CBRE’s U.S. Healthcare Capital Markets team for the seller, Keystone Development + Investment, according to the press release. Peapack Private Bank & Trust also provided financing, according to the release.

Stephanie Noda is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: noda@northjersey.com; X: @snoda11

The Fair Lawn school district has filled a Board of Education vacancy with a longtime resident who has a background in grants and finance.

“I’m thrilled and really happy to be part of the board,” said Julie Kossoy, who is expected to be sworn in at the board's Feb. 27 meeting. “I’m excited to get started.”

Kossoy will fill the seat previously held by longtime member Michael Rosenberg, who stepped down at the end of 2024 after almost 18 years on the board. After asking potential candidates to submit their information early this year, board members interviewed seven candidates at a special Jan. 30 meeting before choosing their replacement.

Kossoy will fill the remainder of Rosenberg's term, which runs through this year. The K-12 district serves about 5,600 students.

The new trustee has lived in the borough for 16 years and had three kids go through district schools. Kossoy was involved with groups at Radburn Elementary School for 11 years, including the Fifth Grade Committee and the Parent Teacher Association, where she was president. She also volunteered for the Thomas Jefferson Middle School PTA when her kids attended that school.

Kossoy has worked as a grants specialist at Ramapo College for almost six years. She has a finance degree from Virginia Tech and a master's in business administration from William Paterson University.

“That’s one of the things I thought I could help the board with, to come in with some financial background, especially since I’ve been working in higher education for over 15 years,” she said Friday. “I thought having that perspective of higher education administration would be helpful."

She had wanted to run for the board for years, but with work commitments and taking care of three kids, Kossoy felt in the past that she didn’t have the time to commit. When she saw there was an opening this year, she thought it was the perfect time to put her name out there.

One important issue that encouraged her to seek the position is the health and wellness of students and the challenges they may be facing after COVID.

“Making sure the health and wellness of students is a high priority, I think that’s an important thing for all districts, Fair Lawn included," Kossoy said. "That’s one of the things I felt strongly about.”

She's also glad the board reflects the diversity of Fair Lawn and was happy to add to it with her background and skills. Kossoy is a fluent Russian speaker and said she looks forward to connecting with that part of the community.

“I hope to bring my expertise, especially with the budget and finance piece, as we go into the next budget cycle,” she said. “I’m sure there will challenges and work to do, so I’m happy to bring my knowledge and skills. I’m looking forward to listening and learning, since I know we have a great team in place.”

Stephanie Noda is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: noda@northjersey.com; X: @snoda11

Soon after Oradell's Kelly Castro learned that her son had autism, she began hearing the tough truth from other parents: School programs and other support for autistic children largely disappear after kids turn 21.

"No matter where I was, no matter who I was speaking to, every single [parent], they all described it the same way: Once they turn 21, they fall off a cliff,” Castro said. “I didn’t understand at first, but one mom told me, ‘Everything your son gets right now, that all goes away.’”

Instead of accepting that fact, Castro has set out in her own way to change the status quo. On Saturday, she'll open her second business designed to provide work opportunities and training to adults with autism. Her new Fair Lawn bakery, Just a Taste of New Jersey, will hold a ribbon-cutting at noon on Saturday, after a soft opening last month. The store at 25-05 Broadway not only works with adult students with autism, it also features goods and products from other local businesses that employ people with disabilities.

“There’s all this focus on these individuals in school, or early intervention before they are even in school, on 'how do we get them to progress?'” Castro said. “It’s all about progress, and then they turn 21 and don’t have anything to do with the skills they worked so hard to get.”

Just a Taste is an expansion of the operation she started out of her home in 2023, Carson’s Cookie Dough, which also trains students with autism. The business was inspired by Castro's 8-year-old son, Carson, who was diagnosed with autism at an early age.

His mother was "terrified" after hearing about the diminishing prospects for kids like Carson once school support runs out.

But that changed at a retreat where Castro met the owners of Maplewood-based Beloved Bath, two moms whose adult sons have autism. Their bath-products company employs many who have autism.

“A lightbulb went off in my head," said Castro, who thought, "I could do that."

She started renting time at a kitchen in the Westwood Community Center, where she would work with two to three adult students with autism at a time, helping them learn to prepare and make her cookies. But scheduling became difficult, as the kitchen was shared with other people.

Castro searched for a bigger space to call her own and found something unexpected: a former bakery in Fair Lawn that provided both a kitchen and a storefront. Instead of just making cookies, she realized, she also could sell products of businesses with a similar mission.

She called the venture Just a Taste because it's meant to give customers “a taste of what these adults are able to do,” Castro said. Products on sale include popcorn from Piscataway-based Popcorn for the People, coffee from Little Falls and Morristown cafe Ethan & the Bean, honey from Pony Power Therapies of Mahwah, socks from Long Island-based John's Crazy Socks, and body lotions and candles from Beloved Bath.

“Every product that we have in there is made by a company which specifically hires adults with autism, Down syndrome, and differently abled adults,” Castro said.

Having her own storefront has been a “complete game changer” for Castro's efforts, she said. About 20 adult students can now participate five days a week to learn job skills, such as speaking with customers, making coffee or running a register. The volunteers are people ages 18 to 21 who attend autism programs at Cresskill public schools, Northern Valley Regional High School and the Park Ridge school district and in Little Falls.

“Our mission for both companies is to support adults who are differently abled with the ultimate goal of hiring these adults,” Castro said, noting that the organization is still in its infancy. “In the meantime, while we aren’t able to hire anybody yet, we are able to work with these adult students from various adult programs throughout Bergen County.”

The Just a Taste kitchen is set up with the students in mind. Its accommodations include step-by-step instructions near the cash register and in the kitchen. Castro learns something new every day with her workers, she said, as each brings different skills and personalities to the bakery.

“I think ‘if this person is having difficulty with this task, what can I do to make it easier for her?’” she said. “Maybe we can add a different seating option, put new signage or have picture messaging. Our kitchen is set up very specifically and labeled very specifically. We want the adults to not only succeed at the tasks but also interact with each other to build socialization skills that can also be challenging.”

“It’s cool to see their confidence,” she added. “You can see them interacting with the customers, and they are so proud of themselves. That’s an unexpected element we’re beginning to see.”

Melissa Van Cleft, a job coach from the Cresskill school district’s Community Steps to Independence program, said three of her students visit Just a Taste twice a week. They enjoy the feeling of growing independence.

Castro "really makes them feel so comfortable and so welcomed," Van Cleft said. "One boy goes in and has learned how to make the dough himself. It’s really a nice thing she’s doing for her family and the community.”

Castro hopes her example will encourage other employers to be more inclusive. Her goal for Carson’s Cookie Dough and Just a Taste isn’t to have employees who work there for 20 years; she wants to be a launchpad that helps students gain skills to work at other businesses as well.

“The unemployment rate is over 80% for adult who are differently abled, with autism, and it’s such a staggering number,” she said. “I thought, ‘People don’t want to hire someone just because they have autism?’ I see how hard my son works and how hard his classmates work. I think this hasn’t been on anybody’s radar. When you do realize it, you think, ‘What steps could I do to add these individuals to our workforce?’”

Just a Taste's initial hours of operation will be Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Castro said the hours will expand in the coming weeks.

“These individuals are such a delight,” she said. “They make anybody smile. The town of Fair Lawn has been absolutely incredible. We’ve had a very warm welcome across the board.”

Stephanie Noda is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: noda@northjersey.com; X: @snoda11

A Fair Lawn Public Library worker says he faced discrimination for being a man and was fired and replaced by a woman who was less qualified.

Alexander Cardillo has been an employee at the library since 2004, assigned to work at the reference desk, which requires extensive knowledge of available library resources. A lawsuit he filed in state Superior Court on Feb. 13 says Cardillo has a master's degree in library science and a state librarian certification.

Fair Lawn, the library and its director and board are named as defendants in the suit. Borough Manager Kurt Peluso did not respond to an email for comment.

The suit says the library's staff of 30 is overwhelmingly women, with only four men, and Library Director Adele Puccio had hired only one other man since becoming director in 2016, and only to fill in when no one else is available to work.

Cardillo's suit says Puccio violated the state's Law Against Discrimination by denying his annual raise since 2022, cutting his hours and chastising him about a conversation held with other library workers about being paid during a repair.

He said his hours were cut to harass him or get him to resign and that Puccio told him she had hired a female employee who wasn't certified and they would alternate hours. The lawsuit says Cardillo spoke to two library board members and his hours were restored.

The suit says Cardillo received an email on Feb. 14, 2023, notifying him that he would be removed from the schedule until further notice, but he never received a Rice notice, required before a discussion of a person's job. Several days later he received a preliminary notice of disciplinary action, accusing him of using a library computer to contact an employee, which would violate the library's confidentiality policy. Cardillo said Puccio immediately removed him from his position "until further notice."

The lawsuit says Cardillo's position at the reference desk was filled by a female employee "who was neither qualified nor had the credentials to be assigned to such a location."

During his hearing, Cardillo said he was falsely accused of harassing another employee and eventually was fired after a disciplinary hearing. He appealed his firing, it was transferred to the Office of Administrative Law, and almost a year after he was fired, Cardillo reached a settlement agreement with the library board.

In March 2024, he returned to his work and his previously established schedule from 2021 at the library. However, Cardillo said the library board and Puccio "immediately undermined" him by cutting his hours, capping them at six per week, denying him the ability to work discretionary hours, which are given only to female employees, and refusing to communicate with him. Puccio sharing the contents of the agreement with outside parties, Cardillo said.

He accused Puccio of favoring the female employees by exclusively offering jobs to them and offering a new female hire the Sunday shift that previously belonged to him. He said Puccio "made it a point of discussing her animus towards men" and made comments at a December 2024 library board meeting about some people coming into the library "to perform an audit of the First Amendment Rights." The suit says Puccio "disregarded the question and answered, in substance and in part, those are guys who live in their mother's basement."

The suit says Cardillo suffers from physical, emotional and economic damage because of these actions and is seeking several kinds of damages, attorneys fees and the cost of the lawsuit.