NJ Chamber Statement on family leave legislation passage by State Senate

We are deeply disappointed by the State Senate’s passage of the family leave extension bill. A-3451 delivers a significant blow to tens of thousands of small businesses that are already struggling in today’s challenging economic environment. At a time when these employers need support, this legislation instead imposes new regulatory and financial burdens.

New Jersey’s economic health depends on a strong foundation of nearly one million small and mid-sized businesses. This bill weakens that foundation, making growth and recovery even more difficult.

The Senate amended the original legislation by raising the family leave compliance threshold from five employees to fifteen. We strongly disagree. We believe there should be no change at all, and that the threshold should remain at the current level of businesses with 30 employees.

We urge the Assembly to reject the Senate bill and halt any effort to alter the existing family leave compliance policy.

This legislation underscores why New Jersey ranked 49th in business friendliness in CNBC’s most recent Top States for Business survey. Unfortunately, measures like this put us at risk of falling to dead last. The bill is unnecessary, poorly timed, and harmful to our ability to move the state’s economy forward.

-Tom Bracken, President & CEO, New Jersey Chamber of Commerce