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On July 8, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed a four-bill legislative package designed to take on the unlawful practice of misclassifying employees as independent contractors, effectively strengthening workers’ rights throughout the state.
“[This] action will give the state more tools to root-out and prevent misclassification,” Gov. Murphy said in a press release. “I am honored to sign these bills today on behalf of New Jersey’s workers.”
The four-bill legislative package includes the following:
- A-5890/S-3920 (Verrelli/Madden, Greenstein), which concerns itself with the enforcement of employee misclassification and stop-work order laws.
- A-5891/S-3921 (Egan, Karabinchak, Space/Madden, Oroho), which creates the Office of Strategic Enforcement and Compliance in the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
- A-5892/S-3922 (Sumter/Madden, Lagana), which took up the task of streamlining the identification of employee misclassification.
- A-1171/S-1260 (Freiman, Karabincak, Verrelli/Singleton, Oroho), which charged the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development to create a statewide database of certified payroll information for all public works projects.
Misclassification has been a problem of increasing concern in the State. Not only does it hurt the majority of employers who follow the law, but it also deprives employees of their right to be paid minimum wage, overtime, Workers’ Compensation benefits, unemployment benefits, family leave, sick leave, and more.
“We often see this problem representing injured workers in workers’ compensation cases, where an insurance company may attempt to deny benefits because a worker was improperly classified by their employer as an independent contractor and not an employee,” stated Attorney Todd D. Wachtel of Levinson Axelrod, P.A. “There are very strong laws in New Jersey that help us to straighten these problems out. This great new package of laws will work to resolve these issues sooner, and allow for injured workers to receive treatment, temporary disability, and permanency benefits quicker, among numerous other benefits for New Jersey workers.”
Thus, by protecting lawful citizens, employees, and employers, the state of New Jersey may very well be one of the best places in the United States for employees.
About Levinson Axelrod, P.A.
At Levinson Axelrod, P.A., we have represented New Jersey employees in workers’ comp claims and third-party cases for over 80 years. We put our all into ensuring that no employee is left with fewer benefits than they deserve. When you have been injured at work, trust our award-winning team to advocate for you.
For a free consultation, contact Levinson Axelrod, P.A. online or reach us by phone at (732) 440-3089.