Wage & Hour Rules for Home Care Agencies in New Jersey

Minimum wage (2026). $15.92/hour for most employers effective January 1, 2026 (CPI-indexed; seasonal and small employers with fewer than 6 employees follow a lower catch-up schedule). Source ↗

Overtime. New Jersey Wage and Hour Law requires 1.5x over 40 hours/week; the state's Wage Theft Act adds liquidated damages up to 200% and a 6-year lookback. Source ↗

Earned sick leave. All employers must provide earned sick leave: 1 hour per 30 worked, up to 40 hours/year — home care employees are covered. Source ↗

Domestic Workers' Bill of Rights. Effective July 2024, New Jersey's DWBR gives domestic workers — including many caregivers — rights to written agreements, meal/rest breaks, termination notice, and anti-retaliation protection; agencies placing caregivers in private homes should assess coverage. Source ↗

ABC test regulations (Oct. 1, 2026). NJDOL adopted final regulations codifying the strict ABC independent-contractor test across six laws (wage-hour, wage payment, sick leave, UI and more), operative October 1, 2026. Caregivers directed in how and when they deliver care will almost never pass prong A or C — agencies should treat 1099 caregiver models as high-risk. Source ↗

Pay transparency. Since June 1, 2025, employers with 10+ employees must include pay ranges and a benefits description in job postings and internal promotion notices. Source ↗

Health care service firm rules. Home care agencies operate as registered 'health care service firms' under the Division of Consumer Affairs, which layers registration, bonding, and accreditation obligations on top of wage-hour compliance. Source ↗

FLSA coverage. Caregivers employed by home care agencies are covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act: federal minimum wage ($7.25) and overtime apply, because agencies are 'third-party employers' of domestic service workers. Source ↗

2013 Home Care Rule. Under the 2013 Home Care Rule (29 CFR 552.109), third-party employers such as home care agencies may NOT claim the FLSA companionship-services or live-in domestic worker exemptions — only the individual, family, or household using the services can claim them. Source ↗

Rescission proposal status (July 2026). On July 2, 2025 DOL proposed rescinding the 2013 Home Care Rule (comments closed Sept. 2, 2025), but as of July 2026 no final rule has issued — the 2013 rule remains legally in effect. Field Assistance Bulletin 2025-4 (July 25, 2025) directed WHD staff to pause enforcement of the rule against third-party agencies, but the FAB does not affect private lawsuits by caregivers, which can still recover back overtime plus liquidated damages. Source ↗

Sixth Circuit upholds rule (2026). In April 2026 the Sixth Circuit (DOL v. Americare Healthcare Services) upheld the 2013 Home Care Rule as a valid exercise of authority Congress expressly delegated to DOL, even post-Loper Bright. Practical takeaway for agencies: keep paying minimum wage and time-and-a-half overtime to caregivers unless and until a final rescission rule takes effect. Source ↗

Overtime & travel time. Agency caregivers must receive 1.5x their regular rate for hours over 40 per workweek, and travel time between clients during the workday is compensable hours worked (commuting to the first client and home from the last is not). Source ↗

Sleep time on 24-hour shifts. For shifts of 24 hours or more, an employer and live-in or shift caregiver may agree to exclude a bona fide sleep period of up to 8 hours if adequate sleeping facilities are provided and the worker usually gets at least 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep; interruptions for work must be paid. On shifts under 24 hours, all time on duty — including permitted sleep — is compensable. Source ↗