What happened
On September 29, 2026, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced the minimum wage rates for 2027. The new rates take effect on January 1, 2027. The department sets them each year from the change in the Consumer Price Index published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The 2027 rates
- Most employees: $16.48 an hour, up 56 cents from $15.92.
- Seasonal employers and employers with fewer than six workers: $16.25 an hour, up from $15.23.
- Agricultural workers: $15.00 an hour, up from $14.20. This is the first year farm work reaches $15.00.
- Direct care staff at long-term care facilities: $19.48 an hour, up 56 cents.
- Tipped workers: a cash wage of $6.61 an hour, up from $6.05. The most an employer may count from tips stays at $9.87, so the cash wage plus tips must still reach the full minimum.
What it means for workers
From the first pay period that covers work on or after January 1, 2027, every hour has to be paid at the new rate. There is no grace period. Overtime after 40 hours in a week is one and a half times your regular rate, so a raise in the minimum raises the overtime rate too.
If you are tipped, check the arithmetic each week. The employer may pay $6.61 an hour only when your tips bring you to at least $16.48 for every hour. If they do not, the employer owes the difference.
Watch the first few checks of January. A rate that does not change, or a change that starts late, is a shortfall you can claim. New Jersey wage claims reach back six years, and the 2019 Wage Theft Act allows up to twice the unpaid amount on top.
What it means for employers
Update payroll before the first January pay period, including tipped cash wages, the long-term care rate and any piece rates that have to clear the hourly minimum. Posters have to show the current rate. Check salaried staff who sit near the overtime line, because the salary level for an exemption is set separately from the minimum wage.
The current rates, for comparison
Through December 31, 2026 the rates remain $15.92 for most employers, $15.23 for seasonal and small employers, $14.20 for agricultural work, $18.92 for long-term care direct care staff, and a $6.05 cash wage for tipped workers.
This summary is general information, not legal advice. Usher Law Group was not involved in this matter.
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