Bill > S2145

Introduced Session

This bill supplements and amends the "New Jersey State Wage and Hour Law," P.L.1966, c.113 (C.34:11-56a et seq.), to require all employers to provide meal and rest periods for employees working for shifts of specified lengths, and to have the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development set by regulation requirements regarding work quotas in warehouse distribution centers. The bill requires all employers to provide paid meal periods of at least 30 minutes for employees who work for more than five hours continuously, and paid rest periods of at least a 15 minutes for any continuous work period of more than four hours. Current New Jersey law requires 30-minute meal breaks for minors who work five or more continuous hours, but has no requirement for adults, and no requirement for rest breaks for adults or minors. 21 states currently require meal breaks for adults and six of those states also have rest break requirements. The bill directs the commissioner to adopt regulations setting requirements for work quotas in covered warehouse facilities to assure that the quotas: 1. include the quantified number of tasks to be performed or materials to be produced or handled, within the defined time period, and any potential adverse employment action that could result from failure to meet the quota; 2. do not result in rates of work or workloads under which the wages paid are not fairly and reasonably commensurate with the value of the service provided; 3. permit rates of work and workloads which workers can maintain on a sustained basis, and do not result in high levels of turnover of the workforce, or otherwise adversely affect the general well-being and efficiency of the workers; and 4. do not prevent compliance with required meal and rest periods, prevent needed use of bathroom facilities, prevent breaks or other accommodations required by the Law Against Discrimination in connection with pregnancy or breastfeeding, or hinder any other accommodations required pursuant to any State or federal anti-discrimination or safety and health laws. In setting requirements for quotas, the commissioner is directed to consider information regarding quotas imposed by warehouse employers, data regarding the rates of work and workloads in warehouses, information regarding adverse impacts of excessive work speeds on warehouse workers, data on turnover rates and wage levels in warehouses in this State and elsewhere, and the adequacy of those wage levels to meet a cost of living necessary for health and well-being. The commissioner is also directed to consult with warehouse employer organization representatives, representatives of labor organizations representing warehouse employees, and individuals not employed by those organizations who have expertise regarding the effects of work speed and quotas on the well-being, efficiency, and turnover rates of warehouse workers. Warehouse employers are required to provide employees with a written description of quotas to which the employee is subject. The employers are prohibited from requiring any employee to meet a quota that violates any requirement set by the regulation pursuant to the bill, and are prohibited from taking any adverse employment action against an employee for failure to meet a quota that does not meet the requirements set those regulations or for failure to meet a quota which the employer has failed to disclose. Actions taken by an employee to comply with occupational health and safety laws or standards are considered productive time for purposes of any quota or monitoring system. Current and former employees who believe that meeting a quota caused a violation of the provisions of the bill are given the right to obtain from an employer a written description of each quota and employee's own personal work speed data. Any employer who violates the bill's provisions is subject to sanctions in the "New Jersey State Wage and Hour Law."

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Joe Cryan (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Labor Committee (on 01/09/2024)

Official Document