New Jersey Raises Minimum Wage

In the elections held on 5 November 2013 New Jersey voters voted to amend the state constitution to allow the minimum wage to raise from $7.25 to $8.25 (a $1.00 increase).  The new measure also added automatic cost-of-living increases each year.  The cost-of-living increases will take place every September.  Hence small businesses in New Jersey will be hit with an automatic minimum wage increase going forward.  The new law will take effect 1 January 2014.

Last year Gov. Chris Christie vetoed a bill that would have raised the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour with annual inflation adjustments.  The Democratically controlled legislature overcame the veto by placing the measure on the November ballot.

The New Jersey Business and Industry Association (NJBIA) estimates that the increases will cost the state 31,000 jobs over 10 years.  According to the NJBIA of the 1.8 million workers in New Jersey who are paid by the hour, an estimated 49,000 (nearly 3%) are paid the minimum wage, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

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By Jack River