34:8-51. Requirements

a. Every employment agency shall:

(1) Keep and make available to the chief, or a designee, during regular business hours, records containing information regarding services provided, products sold to job seekers or employers, and fees charged or collected, and other information required by rules and regulations to enable the chief to determine the status of compliance with the provisions of this act;

(2) Require all job seekers applying for positions of trust or work with private families to furnish the agency with names and addresses of individuals available as character references, and shall communicate, orally or in writing, with at least one of the individuals given by the job seeker as a character reference. If the job seeker has not furnished the name of any individuals available as character references, or if no favorable statement has been received from a character reference, the agency shall so advise the prospective employer to whom the job seeker is referred. This information shall be written upon the referral slip given by the agency to the job seeker to present to the prospective employer. The written result of the verification to determine the character and responsibility of any job seeker shall be kept on file in the agency subject to examination by the chief. If the employer voluntarily waives, in writing, a verification of references, the licensed agency shall not be required to make the verification;

(3) Give to each job seeker a copy of every writing the job seeker has signed, the form of which complies with P.L.1980, c.125 (C.56:12-1 et seq.).

(4) Furnish to each job seeker, who is sent to a prospective employer for an interview concerning the job seeker's qualifications or future employment in a job for which no order has been given to the agency, a card or paper containing the names of the job seeker and prospective employer, the address of the prospective employer and any other particulars the agency may determine are necessary. In each case, there shall be printed in bold-faced type on the card or paper the following:

"This card of introduction is given to . . . . . . . . . . . (name of job seeker) with the understanding that there is no obligation to this employment agency for any fee until, as a result of the services rendered by this agency, . . . . . . . . . (name of job seeker) is employed in a job with respect to which the agency received a bona fide order from an employer. . . . . . . . . . . (name of job seeker) has agreed to pay the fee under the foregoing conditions if the fee is not paid by an employer."

(5) Post in the agency in the places that the chief, or a designee, directs, an abstract of this act and the rules and regulations promulgated by the director. The chief shall provide the abstracts and charge for the printing of these abstracts.

b. In addition to the requirements set forth in subsection a., each employment agency which charges or may charge the job seeker a fee shall:

(1) File with the chief, for the chief's approval, a schedule of fees proposed to be charged for any service rendered or product sold to job seekers and adhere to the schedule in charging for these services or products. The chief shall not approve the fee schedule unless the chief is satisfied that the fee schedule is on a form which makes the schedule reasonably understandable by job seekers and that the fee schedule is in compliance with all other provisions of this section. The schedule of fees may thereafter be changed or supplemented, by filing an amended or supplemental schedule with the bureau. The changes shall not become effective until approval has been granted by the chief and the amended or supplemental fee schedule has been posted for not less than seven days in a conspicuous manner in the office of the agency. It shall be unlawful for any employment agency to charge, demand, collect or receive a greater fee for any service rendered or product sold to a job seeker than is specified in the most recent schedule filed with the bureau;

(2) Post the schedule of fees in a conspicuous manner in the office of the agency using forms provided by the chief;

(3) Compute fees paid by a job seeker seeking employment on the basis of permanent employment, unless the employment is temporary employment. Where temporary employment merges into permanent employment, or where a job seeker accepts permanent employment within 30 days after the termination of temporary employment, the permanent employment may be considered the result of the references to the temporary position and the fee may be based on the permanent employment with due credit given for the payment made for the temporary employment;

(4) Not charge to a job seeker who obtains employment and who is discharged without cause or who voluntarily terminates employment for just cause more than 1% of the scheduled fee for each day worked. For purposes of this paragraph, the employment agency shall repay to any job seeker so discharged or terminated any excess of the maximum fee in accordance with the fee schedule, allowing three days' time to determine that the termination was not due to any fault on the part of the job seeker. The employment agency may, however, by separate written agreement between the employment agency and the job seeker, retain the fee or any part of the fee which has been paid for the job from which the job seeker has been discharged without cause or terminated, if the agency furnishes the job seeker with another job and allows due credit for the retained payment;

(5) Not charge a job seeker who either fails to report for duty after accepting employment or voluntarily terminates employment without just cause within 30 days more than 30% of the scheduled fee;

(6) Obtain a bona fide order for employment prior to collecting any fee from a job seeker or sending out a job seeker to any place of employment. Except as may be otherwise provided in rules and regulations, no charge or advance fee of any kind shall be charged, demanded, collected, or received by the agency from a job seeker seeking employment until employment has been obtained by or through the efforts of the agency;

(7) Give to every job seeker from whom a fee is received, at the time payment is received, a receipt which shall state the name of the job seeker, the name and address of the employment agency and its agent, the date and amount of the fee and the purpose for which it was paid; and

(8) Furnish each job seeker, who is sent to a prospective employer, with a card or similar paper containing the nature of the prospective employment, the names of the job seeker and prospective employer, and the address of the employer.

L.1989, c.331, s.10.