NJ Migrant Workers Covered by State Minimum Wage Laws (1)

New Jersey businesses can’t avoid state minimum wage and overtime when compensating undocumented migrants, the state high court ruled Thursday.

The unanimous New Jersey Supreme Court held that the state’s Wage and Hour Law and Wage and Payment Laws apply to the compensation of workers regardless of their immigration status, and “barter agreements” between bosses and workers can’t get around the law.

“Otherwise, certain employers would be incentivized to hire undocumented workers—which is precisely the opposite of what federal law seeks to accomplish—and pay them less than the law requires,” said Chief Justice Stuart Rabner.

The justices reversed an appeals ...