Court Upholds NJ Temporary Workers’ Rights Act

The Third Circuit affirmed the District Court’s decision, holding that The Temporary Workers' Rights Act ["Act"] was found to be a permissible exercise of New Jersey’s police power, not in violation of the dormant Commerce Clause, and sufficiently clear to meet constitutional standards. 

NJ Industry Groups Challenge The Temporary Workers’ Rights Law

In February 2023, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed a new law that would give temporary workers in the state more protections.

Temporary Workers Bill of Rights Act Signed into Law by Governor Pat Murphy.

The New Jersey State Senate concurred with Governor Pat Murphy's recommendations in his conditional veto of the temporary workers’ bill of rights bill. A1474 The revised legislation was passed by the Senate on Thursday. It was signed into law on Monday by Governor Murphy for his signature.

Temporary Workers Bill of Rights Passed by NJ Assembly

The New Jersey State Assembly concurred with Governor Pat Murphy's recommendations contained in his conditional veto of the temporary workers’ bill of rights bill. A1474 . The revised legislation was passed by the Assembly in a 41-20-3 vote. It was received in the NJ Senate and listed for a 2nd reading and concurrence. 

OSHA Moves to Protect Temporary Workers

OSHA launches initiative to protect temporary workers from injuries at work.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced an initiative to further protect temporary employees from workplace hazards. The announcement was made during a program at the department's headquarters marking Workers' Memorial Day – an annual observance to honor workers who have died on the job and renew a commitment to making work sites across the country safer.

Dr. David Michaels

OSHA today sent a memorandum to the agency's regional administrators directing field inspectors to assess whether employers who use temporary workers are complying with their responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Inspectors will use a newly created code in their information system to denote when temporary workers are exposed to safety and health violations. Additionally, they will assess whether temporary workers received required training in a language and vocabulary they could understand. The memo, which can be viewed at http://s.dol.gov/ZM, underscores the duty of employers to protect all workers from hazards.

"On Workers' Memorial Day, we mourn the loss of the thousands of workers who die each year on the job from preventable hazards," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "Many of those killed and injured are temporary workers who often perform the most dangerous jobs have limited English proficiency and are not receiving the training and protective measures required. Workers must be safe, whether they've been on the job for one day or for 25 years."

Temporary Employees Cannot Be Excluded From Workers’ Compensation

Today's post comes from Paul J. McAndrew, Jr. of the Iowa bar. Paul 's expertise in workers' compensation issues is nationally known and he has bee an zealous advocate for workers' rights.

According to a recent decision by the Texas Supreme Court, a temporary employee cannot be excluded from an employers’ workers’ compensation policy. In 2005, Rafael Casados was killed on his third day at work at a grain storage facility owned by Port Elevator-Brownsville L.L.C.

Because Casados was a temporary employee of Port Elevator at the time of his death, he was initially awarded a liability ruling of $2.7 million directly from Port Elevator.

However, according to the latest Supreme Court ruling, Casados’s family should receive remedy under Port Elevator’s workers’ compensation policy instead. Port Elevator’s insurance provider is liable for Casados’s death benefits, despite the fact that Port Elevator never paid workers’ compensation insurance for any of their temporary employees.

According to the decision: “If Port Elevator’s policy had set out certain premiums solely for temporary workers and Port Elevator had not paid those premiums, Casados would still have been covered under the policy and the failure to pay premiums would be an issue between Port Elevator (their insurance provider).”    

 Photo Credit:sixninepixels / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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