34:8-65. Registration of career consulting or outplacement organization; fee; bond; explanation of product or services; cancellation of contract; complaint

a. Every career consulting or outplacement organization operating within this State shall, within 60 days following the effective date of this act and annually thereafter, register in writing with the chief on a form prescribed by regulation.

b. Each registration form shall state the organization's name, and any fictitious or trade name used in its operation, each primary location, including street and street number of the building and place where its business is to be conducted, and the names and residence addresses of its principal owners or officers.

c. In addition to registering pursuant to this section, each career consulting or outplacement organization shall notify the chief, in writing, whenever it utilizes any location, including mobile units, other than its primary location for services rendered to job seekers.

d. Every agent, duly authorized and empowered by the owner of the registered organization to solicit business or otherwise act as an agent of the registered organization, shall, within 60 days following the effective date of this act and annually thereafter, register, in writing, with the chief on a form prescribed by regulation.

e. The director shall establish by rule and collect an annual fee from organization and agent registrants, which shall not be more than that paid by employment agencies or agents, to be used to the extent necessary to defray all expenses incurred by the bureau in the performance of its duties under this section.

f. Each registered organization shall, at the time of its initial registration with the director and annually thereafter, post a bond in the amount of $10,000 with a duly authorized surety company as surety, to be approved by the director. The bond shall be retained by the chief until 90 days after either the expiration or revocation of the registration. The director shall promulgate rules and regulations setting forth the terms and conditions of this bond and supply the prospective registrant firm with an approved form.

g. Every career consulting or outplacement organization registered under this section shall provide each prospective job seeker desiring its services or products with a written explanation of each service or product which it provides or makes available to job seekers and the price for each service or product which shall be made available to the job seeker at the time of the signing of any contract for services or products.

h. Any job seeker who signs a contract with any registered organization shall have the right to cancel the contract within three calendar days of the time of its signing and, upon the return of any materials provided to the job seeker by the registered organization, shall be entitled to receive a full refund of any fee, charge, or commission paid by the job seeker.

i. Not more than one-third of any fee, charge or commission shall be collected by the registered organization for its services or products more than 60 days in advance of the date on which the registrant provides its services or products as stated in its contract.

j. Every registered organization shall respond, in writing, within nine calendar days of receipt of any written complaint by a job seeker, stating the registered organization's position with respect to the complaint. Copies of a job seeker's complaint and the response shall be kept in a separate file by the registered organization for a period of one year after the date of the resolution of the complaint, or two years after the date of the complaint, whichever is later.

k. If a demand for refund is denied by a registered organization and if the denial is found to have been in bad faith or if the registered organization fails to respond to a demand for a refund, a court in an action instituted by the job seeker shall award damages to the job seeker in an amount not to exceed $200 in addition to actual damages sustained by the job seeker, together with reasonable attorneys' fees, filing fees, and reasonable costs of suit. If the registered organization refuses or is unable to pay the amount awarded by the court, the award may be satisfied out of the registered organization's bond.

l. A registered organization shall not:

(1) Negotiate a job seeker's compensation and demand or receive a percentage therefrom as a fee, charge, or commission unless the percentage fee, charge, or commission has been disclosed to and accepted by the job seeker in the contract;

(2) Contract with employers on behalf of a job seeker; or

(3) Solicit job openings from employers or otherwise act as an intermediary for job seekers.

m. Every contract for career consulting or outplacement organizations shall be in writing. A copy of the contract shall be given to the job seeker at the time the job seeker signs the contract. The contract shall contain all of the following:

(1) The name, address, and telephone number of the organization and the name of the organization's agent.

(2) The name and address of the individual signing the contract and the job seeker to whom the services are to be provided.

(3) A description of the services or products to be provided; a statement of when those services or products are to be provided and by which organizations, if other than the contracting organization; the term of the contract; and refund provisions, as applicable, if the described services or products are not provided according to the contract.

(4) The amount of the fee to be charged to or collected from the job seeker receiving the services or products or from any other individual, and the date or dates when that fee is required to be paid.

(5) The following statements, in at least 10-point bold-faced type:

"No verbal or written promise or guarantee of any job or employment is made or implied under the terms of this contract.

This organization is registered with the Bureau of Employment and Personnel Services of the State of New Jersey, (current address of the bureau). Inquiries concerning your contract may be sent to this address."

(6) The following statement, in at least 10-point bold-faced type:

"YOUR RIGHT TO CANCEL

You may cancel this contract for services or products, without any penalty or obligation, if notice of cancellation is given, in writing, within three calendar days after you have signed this contract.

To cancel this contract, just mail or deliver a signed and dated copy of the following cancellation notice or any other written notice of cancellation, or send a telegram containing a notice of cancellation, to (name of registrant) at (address of its place of business), not later than midnight of the third calendar day after you signed this contract.

CANCELLATION NOTICE

I hereby cancel this contract.

Dated: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Job seeker's Signature

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Job seeker's Name (print)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Address"

The requirement that the contract include this statement regarding the right to cancel shall not apply when time is of the essence and the services or products must be performed or provided within three calendar days of the date that the contract is entered into pursuant to the request of the job seeker, if the job seeker furnishes the registered organization with a separate dated and signed personal statement in the job seeker's own handwriting, describing the situation requiring the immediate provision of services or products and expressly acknowledging and waiving the right to cancel the contract within three calendar days.

(7) Any further information specified in regulations adopted by the director.

n. The requirements of this section shall not apply to any person who receives no prepayment for services or products from a job seeker and who:

(1) Provides services or products strictly on an hourly basis, with no financial obligation required of the job seeker beyond the hourly fee for services or products rendered; or

(2) Provides outplacement services exclusively as part of a job seeker's benefit or severance package with a current or former employer.

o. Newspaper advertising pertaining to services offered or provided in this State by career consulting or outplacement organizations appearing within or adjacent to help-wanted advertising shall contain the phrase "not an employment agency" in a clear, conspicuous, and prominent manner.

p. In addition to any act or practice in violation of P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.), it shall be a violation of this act for any registrant or its agent to:

(1) Make, or cause to be made, publish or cause to be published, any false, misleading, or deceptive advertisement or representations concerning the services or products that the registrant provides to job seekers.

(2) Disseminate information to a job seeker knowing or recklessly disregarding information that:

(a) The job does not exist or the job seeker is not qualified for the job;

(b) The job has been described or advertised by or on behalf of the registered organization in a false, misleading, or deceptive manner;

(c) The registrant has not confirmed the availability of the job at the time of dissemination of the information; or

(d) The registrant has not obtained written or oral permission to list the job from the employer or any authorized agent of the employer.

q. The director may refuse to issue, and may revoke, any registration for any failure to comply with, or violation of, the provisions of this section or for any other good cause shown, within the meaning and purpose of this section. A refusal or revocation shall not be made except upon reasonable notice to, and opportunity to be heard by, the applicant or registrant. The director, instead of revoking any registration, may suspend the registration for a period of time as shall be determined to be appropriate, or assess a penalty in lieu of suspension, or both, and may issue a new registration notwithstanding the revocation of a prior registration provided that the applicant is found to have become entitled to the new registration.

r. A registered organization may engage in activities requiring registration under sections 23 and 25 of this act if it complies with the requirements of those sections.

s. Any person who fails to comply with the provisions of this section or rules and regulations promulgated by the director shall be subject to sections 14 through 22 of this act.

L.1989, c.331, s.24.