S2136 1R

An Act concerning job postings and supplementing Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

¹1. The Legislature finds and declares that :

a. Transparent and accurate job postings and advertisements promote fairness for job applicants and efficiency in the labor market;

b. Advertisements for job postings that do not correspond to hiring need and are never filled, commonly referred to as ghost jobs, create an undue burden on job seekers leading many to distrust employers and make the job finding process more difficult;

c. According to internal data from the hiring platform Greenhouse, between 18 percent and 22 percent of jobs advertised in 2024 were postings for positions that were never filled, with nearly 70 percent of companies on the platform posting at least one ghost job in the latter half of 2024;

d. Ongoing recruitment efforts for anticipated staffing needs or recurring positions are necessary to maintain workforce stability; and

e. This act is not intended to prohibit recruitment practices that include appropriate disclosures or to hold employers liable for third-party job posting companies acting outside of the control of the employer.¹

¹[1.] 2.¹ a. An employer or third-party job posting company who publicly advertises a job posting shall include in the posting:

(1) a statement disclosing whether the posting is for an existing vacancy or not, and if the posting is for an existing vacancy, an estimated timeframe of when the position will be filled, or, if the posting is not for an existing vacancy, a disclaimer that ¹[there is not an existing vacancy] the employer is accepting applications for an anticipated vacancy¹, provided that the posting and disclaimer shall not be permitted unless the employer has, within the preceding ¹[12] 18¹ months, listed the same position not less than three times or hired not less than ¹[six] four¹ employees for similar roles, and provided further that the posting and disclaimer shall expire after ¹[90] 120¹ days and the posting shall be removed ¹, except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection¹; ¹[and]¹

(2) ¹[any other information relating to the position as deemed appropriate by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development] if the posting is for a seasonal position, a statement disclosing the anticipated employment season or period of employment and a disclaimer that the position is seasonal in nature; or

(3) if the posting is not for an existing vacancy and is advertised by a temporary help service firm or consulting firm registered with the Division of Consumer Affairs pursuant to P.L.1989, c.331 (C.34:8-43 et seq.) or section 1 of P.L.1981, c.1 (C.56:8-1.1), a disclaimer that the temporary help service firm or consulting firm is accepting applications for an anticipated vacancy, provided that the posting and disclaimer shall expire after 120 days and the posting shall be removed¹.

b. For job postings that are for existing job vacancies, employers and third-party job posting companies shall comply with the following requirements:

(1) When a position for which an employer has publicly advertised has been filled, the employer shall remove any posting or advertisement ¹[made] created, controlled, or requested¹ by the employer within two weeks of the position having been filled or within 30 days of the original posting, whichever is later. If the employer is aware or should reasonably be aware that a third-party job posting company posted the position independently of the employer, the employer shall ¹make reasonable efforts to¹ notify the third-party company ¹using publicly available contact information or through an existing business relationship,¹ that the position has been filled. ¹An employer shall not be liable for the continued display of a posting or advertisement by a third-party job posting company that was not created, controlled, or requested by the employer.¹

(2) If a third-party job posting company knows or has reason to know that a post for a particular position has been filled or has otherwise expired, the third-party job posting company shall remove the post within two weeks of the date it knows or has reason to know of the position being filled or within 30 days of the original posting, whichever is later.

c. ¹[If an employer conducts an interview with an applicant for a publicly advertised job posting for an existing job vacancy, the employer shall, within the timeframe provided in the job advertisement, provide the applicant with an affirmative response as to whether the position has been filled, or if the position has not been filled, whether the employer is still considering the applicant for the position. If the employer notifies the applicant that the applicant is still in consideration for the position, the employer shall provide the applicant with an estimated timeframe of when the employer will make a final decision as to the position.

d. ]¹The Department of Labor and Workforce Development shall have the authority to conduct audits of employer and third-party job posting company practices to determine ongoing violations of this act. Any person aggrieved by a violation of this act may report the violation to the department.

¹[e.] d.¹ Any employer or third-party job posting company violating any of the provisions of this act shall¹:

(1) receive a warning from the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development, in a manner and form as prescribed by the commissioner, to rectify the violation within seven business days; and

(2) if the person does not rectify the violation within seven business days¹ be liable to a penalty of not more than $300 for a first offense, and not more than $600 for a subsequent offense, to be collected in a civil action by a summary proceeding under the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.). ¹[Each week] For purposes of this paragraph, a violation shall be assessed on a per job posting basis and shall not be multiplied based on the number of platforms, websites, or third-party job posting companies on which the same job posting appears.

Following the warning in paragraph (1) of this subsection, each month¹ that a job advertisement ¹[is posted] remains¹ in violation of this act ¹after the expiration of the cure period¹ shall constitute a separate ¹[and distinct]¹ violation, ¹[except during the time an appeal from the summary proceeding may be taken or is pending] provided that multiple appearances or duplicative postings of the same job on different platforms shall not constitute separate violations. Each violation shall be tied to a single job posting cycle, regardless of redistribution or third-party reposting outside the direct control of the employer or third-party job posting company¹.

¹[f.] e.¹ The commissioner shall adopt and promulgate, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act.

¹[g.] f.¹ For the purposes of this section¹[:

(1) A] a¹ position shall be regarded as filled on the first day that a selected candidate begins the performance of job duties under the terms of employment.

¹[(2)] g. As used in this act:

“Employer” means a person engaged in business in the State, including the State and any political subdivision or other instrumentality of the State, who employs more than 10 employees.¹

¹[“Interview” means a formal or informal meeting or conversation between an employer or representative of the employer and a job applicant that is conducted with the intention of assessing the candidate’s qualifications, skill, or suitability for a specific position, provided that “interview” does not include preliminary screenings or assessments of information about a job applicant, including information submitted by the applicant, which is conducted by human resources personnel or other representatives of the employer solely to verify basic qualifications or interest in the position or to determine whether to interview the applicant.]

“Third-party job posting company” means a person or entity that is not the employer for which a job is posted that posts multiple job vacancies or listings on behalf of employers or independently of employers for job seekers to search and apply to job postings on one platform.¹

¹[2.] 3.¹ This act shall take effect ¹[immediately] on the first day of the 13th month next following enactment¹.