New Jersey: Wage Theft Law Substantially Expands Wage and Hour Laws

New Jersey recently enacted the Wage Theft Law, imposing new notice requirements on employers and substantially expanding potential individual, joint and successor liability for employers and officers/agents.

Notice Requirement.  The Department of Labor and Workforce Development will release a statement concerning employees’ rights under the New Jersey wage and hour laws.  Employers must provide this statement to all current employees and new employees at time of hire.

Failure to Maintain Records.  Employers who fail to produce records as required under wage and hour law face a rebuttable presumption that any allegations concerning the time and number of hours related to a wage and hour claim are true.  Similarly, failure to present records in criminal proceedings creates the assumption the allegations are true unless the employer demonstrates good cause for the failure.