Articles Posted in New Jersey Labor Law

New Jersey Employment Lawyers have written a series of blogs that help explain how the law in New Jersey applies to the worker and the company.

New Jersey law affords many protections to workers so they aren’t subjected to workplace discrimination or retaliation, and their wage and hour rights are not violated. The law states that a person can’t face discrimination based on any of the following reasons:

• race, creed, color, national origin, nationality, ancestry, age, sex, familial status, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, atypical hereditary cellular or blood trait, genetic information, liability for military service and mental or physical disability, perceived disability and AIDS and HIV status

The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development lays out information about how workers can be treated and guidelines that employers must legally follow.

Employment of Minors: Child labor laws were established in the United States in the early 20th Century, but federal agencies note that hundreds of thousands of children are employed as farm workers in this country to this day.

Outside of school, on vacation or during other breaks, children between 14 and 16 are allowed to work.

For minors under 18, they aren’t allowed to work more than six straight days or for more than 40 hours in one week/eight hours in a day. They aren’t allowed to work before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m., except in a restaurant, supermarket or other retail establishment. The law goes on to list specific examples of jobs that can require extended hours for teen workers.

Farm Labor: The Seasonal Farm Labor Act regulates how seasonal farm workers must be treated and sets up the boundaries for workers.

For instance, a farm workers can’t be fired, suspended, demoted, transferred or otherwise penalized for exercising their rights through laws in New Jersey or established by the federal government. Employers, or “crew leaders,” as defined by the law, can face fines and other penalties if they violate the law.

Drinking water, toilets and hand washing stations should be furnished in the field for workers.

Apparel Industry: The apparel industry is defined as work regarding sewing, cutting, making, assembling or producing apparel intended to be worn by a consumer and sold at retail shops.

These businesses must be registered with the state and manufacturers and contractors must keep accurate records about employees, including:

• Names and addresses of each production employee and the age of every production employee who is a minor
• The number of hours of work and the time of day work begins and ends for production employees
• The wages, wage rates and piece rates paid during each payroll period
• Contract worksheets indicating the price per unit agree between manufacturer and contractor

Those who violate the terms and conditions of the law can be subjected to fines of up to $4,000 and the company can be subjected to suspension for a period of time. It is good to know that employees throughout New Jersey have specific protections for their industry, but violations still occur. They must be explored by an experienced and aggressive New Jersey Employment Lawyer as soon as possible to protect your rights and to prevent the rights of future employees from being violated. .
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As the school year starts, many teens will be leaving summer jobs to go back to school. But for many others, they are still seeking employment in order to save for college or pay bills.

The U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics reports unemployment among young people increased by 745,000 between April and July — the July employment rate was the lowest on record for teens since the agency began keeping track in 1948.This trend appears to show that adults are taking jobs that teens would be more likely to have as the economy is slow to recover. But it also serves as a warning that parents and teens should be aware of child labor laws in New Jersey.

The youth labor force is classified as people 16 to 24 who are working or actively looking for work. April to July is the time when this segment of the labor force grows sharply because many high school and college students are out of school and graduates are looking for full-time work. It’s also legal for 14 and 15 year olds to work under strict guidelines and with careful supervision.

The bureau reports that unemployment among teens grew from 571,000 last year to 745,000 this year.

Perhaps one of the biggest factors why teens were less able to find work this year is that many adults have resorted to taking jobs normally reserved for teenagers. With our state’s unemployment at 9.5 percent in July, according to the bureau, many people are scrambling to take any work they can get.

So, the ice cream shops, shoreline hospitality jobs and other work that tends to peak during the summer may have been snatched up by older workers. This can result in teens taking jobs for which they are less suited — or not reporting dangerous working conditions or other work safety violations for fear of losing a job.

These are adult concerns for sure, since everyone has the right to a safe work environment. But child labor laws have been specifically written to protect our youngest workers. In addition to state child labor laws specific to New York and New Jersey, federal child labor laws include:

-Work limits during school hours.

-Hour limits per day and per week.

-Limits regarding work in manufacturing, mining and processing operations.

-Limits involving the operation of machinery.

-Regulations regarding riding in motor vehicles.

-Loading and unloading rules and regulations.

In general, work options for those ages 14 and 15 are severely limited. While those ages 16 and 17 have more options. There are also any number of regulations involving participation in work-study programs, after-school programs and working in agriculture.
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