03-02-09 In the Matter of Raymour and Flanigan Furniture, and
Neil Goldberg, President and Individually
A-4622-07T1
Appellant, Raymour and Flanigan, appeals from a decision of
the Commissioner of the Department of Labor and Workforce
Development. The Commissioner held that Raymour and Flanigan
did not qualify as a "trucking industry employer," and,
therefore, was not entitled to an exemption under the New Jersey
Wage and Hour Law allowing such employers to pay certain
employees an overtime rate of not less than 11⁄2 times the minimum
wage, rather than the statutorily required overtime rate of 11⁄2
times the employee's regular wage. Raymour and Flanigan argued
that although it is in the retail industry, for purposes of its
facilities from which it conducts its delivery operations, it
qualified as a "trucking industry employer," as that term is
defined by the Wage and Hour Law as any "business or
establishment" primarily operating for the purpose of conveying
property from one place to another. N.J.S.A. 34:11-56a4.
In affirming the Commissioner, we concluded that the
facilities in which Raymour and Flanigan conducts its trucking
operations are not separate establishments so as to qualify for
the trucking industry employer exemption. Thus, Raymour and
Flanigan is required to pay all employees 11⁄2 times the
employee's regular hourly wage for each hour the employee works
in excess of 40 in any week.
