Being Denied Overtime in New Jersey
My employer isn't paying me overtime — here's what New Jersey law says and what to do next.
Statute: N.J. Stat. § 34:11-56a4
Deadline: 2190 days
Penalty: Employer may be liable for unpaid overtime plus up to 200% additional liquidated damages (effectively treble recovery), plus reasonable attorney fees and costs. Six-year SOL under the NJ Wage Theft Act
What is being denied overtime?
The rule is older than your grandparents and it hasn't changed: work more than 40 hours in a single workweek and your employer owes you at least 1.5 times your regular rate for every hour past 40. That's the Fair Labor Standards Act, on the books since 1938.
It covers most hourly workers automatically. If you're salaried but earn less than $684 a week ($35,568 a year), you're owed overtime no matter what your job title says. Above that salary line, your employer can call you "exempt" — but only if your actual day-to-day duties fit one of the narrow categories the DOL spells out (executive, administrative, professional, computer, or outside sales). The label isn't enough; the duties have to match.
One thing worth knowing: the DOL tried to raise the salary threshold to $58,656 in 2024, which would have pulled millions of mid-level salaried workers back into overtime eligibility. A federal judge in Texas vacated the rule in November 2024, so the line is still $35,568 going into 2026.
What to Do If Your Employer Doesn't Pay Overtime
Cases get won on records, not memory. Start there.
Step 1: Keep your own time log. Note when you start, when you stop, and every break. A notebook, a phone app, even photos of the time clock — anything contemporaneous beats your boss's word in front of a DOL investigator.
Step 2: Check the math on your pay stubs. Pull every week you cracked 40 hours. The overtime hours have to be paid at 1.5× your regular rate, and the "regular rate" includes most non-discretionary bonuses and commissions — which is why a lot of overtime claims are even bigger than people first think.
Step 3: Put it in writing. A short email to HR or your manager asking them to correct the underpayment is enough. Save the response (or the silence).
Step 4: File the complaint. The DOL Wage and Hour Division takes complaints at 1-866-487-9243 or online at dol.gov. You can also call an employment attorney — most take overtime cases on contingency, so there's no money up front.
How New Jersey differs from federal law
New Jersey follows the federal FLSA overtime standard (1.5x after 40 hours/week) but has significantly stronger enforcement mechanisms:
- NJ Wage Theft Act (2019): One of the strongest wage theft laws in the country. Employers who violate overtime rules face liquidated damages equal to 200% of the wages owed (triple damages total), plus attorney fees.
- Extended statute of limitations: You have 6 years to file a wage claim in New Jersey, compared to 2–3 years under federal law.
- Anti-retaliation protections: Employers who retaliate against workers for filing wage complaints can face additional penalties, including reinstatement and back pay.
- Record-keeping requirements: NJ employers must keep payroll records for 6 years. Failure to maintain records creates a presumption in favor of the employee's claimed hours.
Additional steps in New Jersey
File a wage claim with the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development at nj.gov/labor or call (609) 292-2305. The NJ Wage Theft Act gives you strong protections and potentially triple damages.
What you should NOT do
Don't work off the clock. If your boss tells you to clock out but finish the task, that's textbook wage theft. Make a quick note of when it happened and what you were asked to do.
Don't take "you're exempt" at face value. Run the salary and duties tests yourself. If anything's off, you may be owed years of back pay.
Don't sit on it. The FLSA gives you 2 years from each paycheck (3 if the violation was willful). Wait too long and the earliest weeks fall off the back end of your claim.
Don't quit before you file. You can file while you're still on the payroll, and retaliation for filing a wage complaint is itself illegal under FLSA §15(a)(3).
Don't wait — the clock is ticking.
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