STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman GARY S. SCHAER
District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)
Assemblyman HAROLD "HAL" J. WIRTHS
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Space
SYNOPSIS
Requires employers within construction industry to notify employees of certain rights.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act requiring employers within the construction industry to notify employees of certain rights and supplementing P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. An employer subject to the provisions of P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.) shall conspicuously post notification, in a place or places accessible to all individuals working in each of the employer's workplaces, in a form issued by regulation adopted by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development, of the rights of employees to unemployment benefits, minimum wage, overtime and other federal and State workplace protections, including the protections against retaliation and the penalties pursuant to P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.). The employer shall provide each individual working for the employer with a written copy of the notification: (1) not later than 30 days after the form of the notification is issued by the commissioner; (2) at the time of the individual's hiring, if the individual is hired after the issuance; and (3) at any time, upon the first request of the individual.
b. The notification shall also provide information on how an individual or an individual's authorized representative, may contact, by telephone, mail and e-mail, a representative of the commissioner to provide information to, or file a complaint with, the commissioner’s representative regarding the provisions and possible violations of P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.).
c. The commissioner shall make the notification required by this section available in English, Spanish, and any other language that the commissioner determines is the first language of a significant number of workers in the State. This determination shall be, at the discretion of the commissioner, based on the numerical percentages of all workers in the State for whom English or Spanish is not a first language or in a manner consistent with any regulations promulgated by the commissioner for this purpose. The employer shall post and provide the notification in English, Spanish, and any other language for which the commissioner has made the notification available and which the employer reasonably believes is the first language of a significant number of the employer's workforce.
d. An employer who violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of a disorderly persons offense and shall, upon conviction, be subject to a civil penalty of up to $1,500 for a first violation, and up to $5,000 for any subsequent violation within a five year period.
e. Any
sum collected as a penalty pursuant to this section shall be applied toward
enforcement and administration costs of the Division of Wage and Hour
Compliance in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill supplements the “Construction Industry Independent Contractor Act,” P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.), which establishes a standard for the misclassification of employees as independent contractors within the construction industry. Specifically, this bill requires employers subject to the provisions of that act to conspicuously post notification of the rights of employees to unemployment benefits, minimum wage, overtime and other federal and State workplace protections, as well as the protections against retaliation and the penalties provided under P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.). This notice must contain contact information for individuals working for the employer or their representatives to file complaints or inquire with a representative of the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development about the provisions and possible violations of P.L.2007, c.114 (C.34:20-1 et seq.), as well as be provided in English, Spanish or other languages required by the commissioner. Employers who violate these provisions will be guilty of a disorderly persons offense and, upon conviction, be subject to a civil penalty of up to $1,500 for a first violation, and up to $5,000 for any subsequent violation within a five year period.