New Jersey · reporting-time · N.J.A.C. 12:56-5.5
New Jersey show-up is one hour at the applicable wage rate — not two, not three, not 3×.
N.J.A.C. 12:56-5.5 (NJ DOL Wage and Hour Laws): an employee who by request of the employer reports for duty on any day shall be paid for at least one hour at the applicable wage rate, except when the employer has already made available the agreed minimum hours before work started. A 15-minute day at $20 is $20 — not New Hampshire’s unconditional 2 hours, not Maine’s lesser of 2 hours or the scheduled shift, not Massachusetts’ 3 hours at basic MW, not Rhode Island’s 3× regular. The 2026 New Jersey minimum wage $15.92 is a floor for that applicable rate, not the statutory measure. Punches prove the report; unpaid lunch minutes come out of hours furnished, so a bona fide meal on a shorted shift is a punch-gap the weekly hour box cannot see.
Read the regulation: one hour at the applicable wage rate
Fetched the official NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development text NJ State Wage and Hour Laws and Regulations (12:56-5.5 on-page) and Cornell LII N.J. Admin. Code § 12:56-5.5 (both HTTP 200). 12:56-5.5(a): “An employee who by request of the employer reports for duty on any day shall be paid for at least one hour at the applicable wage rate, except as provided in (b) below.” 12:56-5.5(b): “The provisions of (a) above shall not apply to an employer when he or she has made available to the employee the minimum number of hours of work agreed upon by the employer and the employed prior to the commencement of work on the day involved.”
Applicable wage rate is the employee’s regular rate. The 2026 New Jersey statewide minimum wage $15.92 is a floor for that applicable rate if the typed rate is lower — it is not what the section measures. Hours actually worked stay at the typed regular rate; the make-up is only the shortfall down to one hour × applicable. Reporting-time dollars are not hours worked and do not change FLSA weekly 40.
Report, furnished 15 minutes @ $20 → $20 (1h floor)
Report, identical in/out (0 furnished) @ $20 → $20
Furnished 1 hour or more → no extra
09:00–10:00 with 30 unpaid lunch @ $20 → 30 minutes furnished, floor $20
12:56-5.5(b) on, furnished 15 minutes @ $20 → $5 (floor off)
In scope
- Punch-in/out to prove the employee reported at the employer’s request
- One hour at the applicable wage rate (typed regular, not less than $15.92)
- Unpaid lunch minutes deducted from hours furnished
- Subsection (b) agreed-hours-available toggle
- FLSA weekly 40 on hours worked; reporting-time dollars are not hours worked
Out of scope
- NH RSA 275:43-a (unconditional 2 hours at regular)
- Maine 26 M.R.S. § 639-A (lesser of 2h or scheduled-shift pay)
- MA 3 hours at basic MW, RI 3× regular, CA IWC 2–4h half-shift, NY 142 / 146 call-in
- A lunch premium — 12:56-5.5 is a reporting floor, not a meal hour
- Gating coverage tests (industry, exemption) in the math
FAQ
What is New Jersey reporting-time pay under N.J.A.C. 12:56-5.5?
An employee who by request of the employer reports for duty on any day shall be paid for at least one hour at the applicable wage rate. Clock in and out prove the report. Identical punches are a report with zero hours furnished. A 15-minute day at $20 is $20, not $5, and not New Hampshire’s $40.
When does the New Jersey 1-hour floor not apply?
12:56-5.5(b): the 1-hour floor does not apply when the employer has made available to the employee the minimum number of hours of work agreed upon by the employer and the employee prior to the commencement of work on that day. That is a toggle on this page. Hours actually furnished are then paid at the regular rate only.
Is the applicable wage rate the New Jersey minimum wage?
No. The statute is one hour at the applicable wage rate — the employee’s regular rate. The 2026 New Jersey minimum wage $15.92 is a floor for that applicable rate, not the statutory measure. If you type $20, the floor is $20. If you type below $15.92, the floor is $15.92.
Is this the same as New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, or Rhode Island reporting-time?
No. New Hampshire RSA 275:43-a is two hours at regular. Maine 26 M.R.S. § 639-A is the lesser of two hours at regular or the originally scheduled shift. Massachusetts 454 CMR 27.04(1) is three hours at basic minimum wage. Rhode Island § 28-12-3.2 is 3× the regular rate if under 3 hours. California IWC is a 2–4 hour half-shift. New Jersey is one hour at the applicable wage rate.
