Beginning January 1, 2015, the minimum wage in New Jersey is $8.38 per hour, up from $8.25 per hour. This pay hike is the result of the November 2013 voter-approved state constitutional amendment that requires that New Jersey’s minimum wage be adjusted annually to reflect any percentage increase of the consumer price index for all urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) for the prior year. Because the CPI-W increased by 1.59 percent from August 2013 to August 2014, the state minimum wage for 2015 was raised by 1.59 percent, or thirteen cents per hour.
If you have workers in New Jersey subject to the state minimum wage, take steps now to adjust your payroll system to reflect the higher minimum wage. Remember too that if the federal minimum hourly wage is raised to a rate greater than the New Jersey minimum wage, you must comply with the higher federal minimum wage rate.
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