NJ Minimum Wage Law: Impact on Agencies
and Self-Directed Employees
Earlier this year, Governor Murphy signed a law to raise New Jersey’s minimum wage to $15 by 2024. The new law may impact some provider agencies and individuals who receive DDD-funded services from a self-directed employee (SDE). The minimum wage in New Jersey is $8.85 per hour, and the increase will happen in increments as follows:
EFFECTIVE DATE: MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES TO:
July 1, 2019 $10 per hour
January 1, 2020 $11 per hour
January 1, 2021 $12 per hour
January 1, 2022 $13 per hour
January 1, 2023 $14 per hour
January 1, 2024 $15 per hour
The first step for individuals who need to raise their SDE’s hourly wage in order to comply with the law will be to contact their support coordinator (SC). The SC will need to work with the individual/family to identify a wage that complies with the law and is supported by the budget.
Below are the steps needed to raise an SDE hourly wage in the PPL model and in the current (non-fee-for-service) Easterseals model:
For PPL SDEs
- Individual/family contacts SC to discuss a higher SDE wage and how it will impact the service plan.
- Individual/family submits Employee Hourly Wage Change Form to PPL.
- PPL processes form, notes the change in their system, and emails new billable rate to SC.
- SC receives email from PPL with new billable rate and creates new SDE service line (and stops previous SDE service line).
- Revised plan is approved.
The new hourly wage is not in effect until the revised plan is approved.
For Current Easterseals SDEs (e-Record and Interim)
- Individual/family or SC contacts Easterseals and identifies the new hourly wage desired for the SDE.
- Easterseals reaches out to the DDD Self-Directed Services Unit to review the plan, service, current budget and anticipated tier budget, and justification for the SDE wage increase.
- DDD SDS Unit advises whether desired hourly wage is viable or services need to be adjusted to make it viable.
- SC revises plan accordingly and submits to DDD for review.