New Jersey Wage And Hour Law
The New Jersey state wage and hour laws set forth comprehensive guidelines regarding the payment of wages and the hours of work for all employees in the State of New Jersey. While some public employees are exempted, all private employees are covered.
The Act applies not only to basic and overtime rates of pay, but also to how often wages are paid. The Act prohibits discrimination in wages (in addition to the discrimination in wages protected against by the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, or NJLAD), and also applied to hours or labor for those under the age of 18.
Under the wage and hour law, you have the right to assert either in a court of law an action on behalf of yourself or on behalf of yourself and others, that you’re not being paid the proper overtime rates, or are not being paid in the proper fashion. You also have the right to make administrative complaints at the Department of Labor. However, honestly, employers tend to respond more sincerely and more immediately to lawsuits filed in state court.
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Under the Wage and Hour Law, you have the right to recover lost wages on behalf of yourself and others. New Jersey employment rights attorneys at Costello, Mains & Silverman, LLC, have filed New Jersey Wage and Hour class actions to recover millions of dollars in unpaid overtime or in improperly withheld pay.
In addition, if you are retaliated against for having asserted your rights under the act either on behalf of yourself or others, you have the right to recover damages under either the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA) or under the “Wrongful Discharge in Violation of Public Policy” doctrine, otherwise known as the Pierce doctrine. Under these doctrines, you may be entitled to compensatory damages, punitive damages, equitable reinstatement, equitable back pay, equitable front pay and attorneys’ fees.
You are protected from retaliation both in the form of workplace harassment, such as the creation of a hostile work environment, and also you are protected from retaliation by way of wrongful discharge, failure to promote or unfair discipline.
Please call Costello, Mains & Silverman, LLC today at 866-944-3371 (toll-free) or contact us online to arrange a confidential consultation.