The state is warning 40 business with outstanding violations of wage, benefit and tax laws that if they do not resolve their cases this month, they will be barred from state or local government contract work and have their names and locations publicly posted to the state’s online list of bad actors.
The Workplace Accountability in Labor List, aka “The WALL,” will go live in September, the New Jersey Department of Labor & Workforce Development announced on Monday. Any business whose name appears on The WALL is barred from public contracting with state, county, or local governments, until they fully pay their liabilities and their name is removed from the WALL.
“The WALL is the first major initiative of our new Office of Strategic Enforcement and Compliance,” said Director Peter Basso. “This resource is just one part of our coordinated cross-division, cross-state agency strategic enforcement efforts to ensure employers are adhering to New Jersey’s state, benefit, and tax laws.”
Posting on The WALL is separate from – and may be in addition to – other accountability measures, such as public contractor debarment and business license suspension or revocation. State, county and municipal procurement officers will be able to cross-reference The WALL before awarding public contracts, as they do with the debarment list, NJDOL said.
NJDOL did not identify the 40 businesses whose names are scheduled to be publicly posted on The WALL next month, saying only that the companies had been sent “Notices of Intent to Post Company Name on the WALL” and given one last opportunity to settle delinquent liabilities for worker wages, penalties, and fees. Additional business will receive warning letters in the fall.
The list of bad actors will be available to view or download at nj.gov/labor/wall starting in September and updated monthly.
NJDOL said questions about the WALL should be directed to OSECInquiries@dol.nj.gov or 609-376-4952. An online Q&A about the WALL can be found here.
