With its minimum wage now tied to inflation, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced the minimum wage in January 2019 will increase to $8.85 per hour. The minimum wage hike, put in place by New Jersey voters in a 2014 referendum, brought the wage up to the current $8.60 and then tied it to inflation starting next year. Murphy announced the CPI-driven increase, then called it “grossly insufficient”, promising to increase it again to $15 per hour. The $15/hour push has been delayed in the democratic controlled legislature because as State Senate President Stephen Sweeney stated last week, the proposal needed “carve-outs”, which democrat Murphy does not support. Notwithstanding the dispute, we would expect a $15/hour bill to gain traction next year as democrats control all branches of NJ government.