Articles Discussing New Jersey Wage & Hour Laws.

New Jersey voters approved, 61 to 39 percent, an amendment to the state constitution that increases the state’s minimum wage to $8.25 per hour for non-exempt employees, a $1 per hour increase from the current $7.25 per hour minimum wage. Under the amendment, each year on September 30 the minimum wage will increase if the consumer price index (CPI) increases, with the revised minimum wage taking effect the following January 1. If, however, the federal minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 per hour, exceeds the state rate, the state rate will increase to match the federal rate, and further revisions based on the CPI will be based on the increased, matched rate.

This November, New Jersey voters will have the opportunity to vote on an increase to the state minimum wage. The ballot referendum also would authorize an amendment to the New Jersey State Constitution to link future minimum wage increases to the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

New Jersey’s Governor Chris Christie has vetoed legislation passed by the New Jersey Senate and Assembly (S3/A2162) that would have raised the state’s minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $8.50 an hour and based future increases on the consumer price index (CPI). While issuing his conditional veto on January 28, 2013, Governor Christie proposed a $1-an-hour raise in the minimum wage that would be phased in with a 25-cent increase this year, a 50-cent increase in 2014, and another 25-cent increase in 2015. He also proposed a 25-percent increase to the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit, which would be implemented fully in taxable year 2014. The Governor’s office stated that the EITC increase would provide a $550 benefit for struggling working families.

Executive Summary: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has conditionally vetoed a $1.25 minimum wage hike, instead proposing a $1.00 increase that will phase in over three years.

The New Jersey Senate has approved a bill (S3) that would raise the state minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.50 per hour and base future increases on the consumer price index (CPI). The proposed measure now heads to the state Assembly. The Assembly approved an almost identical bill earlier this year. If S3 becomes law, the wage increase would take effect on March 1, 2013, and the CPI provision would go into effect on January 1, 2014.

As we reported earlier, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DLWD)amended its wage and hour regulations in September 2011 to eliminate inconsistencies between state and federal overtime law. In so doing, the DLWD inadvertently omitted the exemption for commissioned sales employees, commonly referred to as the “inside sales” exemption, from the amendment. The DLWD’s mistake, which it acknowledged was inadvertent, potentially put employers at risk for misclassification lawsuits.

On November 16, 2011, the New Jersey Appellate Division affirmed a finding that registered nurses who were paid on an hourly basis were exempt from the overtime requirements of the New Jersey Wage and Hour Law (“NJWHL”), even though the regulation applicable at the time only extended the “professional” exemption to employees compensated on a “salary or fee basis.”

In an ASAP published on October 17th, Littler reported that, in recent amendments to its overtime regulations, New Jersey had inadvertently eliminated the exemption for sales employees paid on commission, which closely tracked an exemption in Section 7(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (sometimes known as the “inside sales” exemption).

The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (“NJDOL”) has adopted the federal regulations regarding white collar overtime exemptions, repealing existing state regulations and eliminating inconsistencies between the two regulatory schemes. This will provide employers with greater certainty regarding proper worker classifications and puts New Jersey in line with the majority of states that track certain federal overtime exemption requirements. The new regulations are effective immediately.

New Jersey has taken the first step towards bringing the State’s regulations on overtime exemptions in line with federal law. The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (“NJDOL”) on March 21, 2011, proposed to adopt the federal regulations regarding overtime exemptions and repeal the existing State regulations. The move would eliminate needless inconsistencies between the two regulatory schemes and provide greater certainty to employers and employees regarding appropriate worker classifications. The current proposal comes on the heels of the NJDOL’s adoption of federal regulations regarding practices in rounding employees’ wages.

The New Jersey Supreme Court has held that a wage claim may be timely even though the alleged discrimination occurred outside the New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination’s two-year statute of limitations. Alexander v. Seton Hall Univ., No. A-87-09 (Nov. 23, 2010). According to the Court, this is because each alleged discriminatory paycheck is a separate act, re-starting the limitation period. The Court, however, limited the plaintiffs’ damages to the two-year period from the date they filed their complaint.