Most minimum wage workers in New Jersey will start earning $12 an hour beginning Friday.
The latest minimum wage hike is part of the state’s plan to gradually reach a $15 minimum wage for most industries through yearly $1 increases from now until 2024.
State Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, who sponsored the law, championed the latest hike.
“Too many workers aren’t earning enough to make ends meet especially during the current public health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said in a statement. “Continuing to gradually raise the minimum wage provides help for New Jersey residents and future generations and aids in alleviating poverty across our great state.”
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Not all workers will be earning the new $12 minimum wage, though.
Seasonal workers and those in businesses with fewer than six employees will now earn an hourly wage of $11.10. Agricultural workers, meanwhile, are now entitled to $10.44 an hour.
For tipped workers like waiters, their total earnings – hourly wage plus tips – must still equal at least $15 an hour. The state suggests a $4.13 hourly wage for these workers, with the rest expected to be made up in tips.
