What do you do when you believe you are the victim of wage theft, because your NJ employer:

• Has withheld minimum wages from you;
• Failed to pay you at overtime rates for work you performed over 40 hours in one week; or
• Improperly classified you as a salaried employee, “exempt” from overtime, when in fact you should be “non-exempt”?

In all such cases, your best, fastest, least expensive bet is to file a complaint with the NJ Department of Labor’s Division of Wage and Hour Compliance.  http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/wagehour/wagehour_index.html 

Filing a Claim

While we do not recommend this, you have the option of filing your claim anonymously, but keep in mind that you will only receive information on anonymous claims if a resolution is reached in your favor and monies are due you.  For anonymous claims, you must use the term “ANONYMOUS” in the name section of your claim form.  To remain anonymous, you must fax or snail mail your forms.

Should you choose to file a claim that identifies you, your employer may see all information related to your claim.  This is their right under the NJ Open Public Records Act (OPRA).  However, if the employer retaliates against you, or threatens to, then that is both a violation of New Jersey law and an independent basis for a claim.

All claims for wages and hours must be filed within two years of the asserted violations.

You may file a claim with both the NJ DOL and the Superior Court of New Jersey.  However, your claim with the NJ DOL will not be heard until the Superior Court case has been resolved.  Since the NJ DOL process takes less time, you should strongly consider filing there exclusively, unless your wage theft claim is above $50,000 (not a legal threshold, but a practical one).

Wage Claim Forms

Wage Claim (MW-31A) – Use this form if you are an employee working in New Jersey or you are working for a New Jersey based company and you have a complaint about underpaid or unpaid wages.

Wage Claim for Non-Payment of Prevailing Wage Rate (MW-31B) – Use this form if you are an employee working in New Jersey in a construction-related public works project. Also use this form if you provide building services (e.g. janitor, security guard, window cleaner, etc.) for a property owned or leased by the State of New Jersey.

Selected Labor Laws – Complaint Form (MW-31C) – Use this form if you are an employee working in New Jersey or you are working for a New Jersey based company and you have a complaint about an employment issue enforced by Wage & Hour (e.g. unemployed need not apply, criminal record inquiries, etc.). Do not use this form if you have a wage claim – Use form MW-31A, Wage Claim.

Mandatory Overtime in a Health Care Facility – Complaint Form (MW-31OT) – Use this form if you are a health care worker who provides direct patient care (e.g. nurse, nursing assistant, home health aide, etc., but not a doctor) and you believe your New Jersey employer improperly required you to work overtime.

Mail or fax your completed claim form to:
New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development
Division of Wage and Hour Compliance
P.O. Box 389
Trenton, NJ 08625-0389

Fax: (609) 695-1174
After your claim has been filed, your employer will receive a summons to appear in court in 15 days.

Overtime versus Exempt Salaried Worker

If you work any more than 40 hours per week, New Jersey labor law considers this overtime, and your employer is legally required to pay you 1.5 times your regular hourly rate of pay.
Employees who are not entitled to overtime pay include:

• Outside salespeople/independent contractors
• Hotel employees
• Executives, administrative personnel, or professionals
• Farm employees
• Passenger Bus Drivers (common carriers)
• Limo Drivers
• Non-Profit or religious Summer Camp employees (June-September)
• Those who care for or raise livestock

New Jersey employers are not required by law to pay you for meal breaks or rest periods, although you are entitled to both.  Your employer must also receive your written approval to deduct earnings from your wages for retirement accounts, medical care, and uniform cleaning.
Employers who violate your wage and hour rights and the laws of NJ may have to pay administrative penalties.  The amount of the penalty would depend on the number of violations and they may also face up to 100 days in prison.

Investigation of Complaints

Investigations of all the above employee complaints are carried out by the Division of Wage and Hour Compliance.  To avoid error that may affect your application and for the best results in the outcome of your claim, you may want to consider hiring an experienced employment lawyer to assist you in completing and submitting your forms.  These lawyers will help you understand the process and advocate for you if a hearing is required.

How can I speed up the process?

• Hire an experienced employment lawyer to assist you
• Make sure to answer all questions on the forms, as incomplete responses delay claim processing
• Attach copies of documented proofs that support your claim
• Do not file more than one claim – as second or third claims cannot be processed by the Division of Wage and Hour Compliance
• Employees of the state, county, municipality, or Board of Education should contact the U.S. Department of Labor.  The Division of Wage and Hour Compliance doesn’t have jurisdiction over your claim.

Conclusion

The employment lawyers at Hanan M. Isaacs, P.C., are committed to helping workers get the best possible results in their employment law claims.  Wages and hours, discrimination, retaliation, are all the types of matters that we want to handle for you.  We will work hard to get you the results you deserve. To arrange an initial consultation at a reduced hourly rate, please call or write us today.  We will be happy to help.