Ask the Experts: Minimum Wage, Feedback, Handbooks

On Jan 7, 2026

In the latest installment of New Jersey Business Magazine’s Ask the Experts column, HR professionals working with the New Jersey Business & Industry Association respond to executives’ inquiries on three interesting workplace issues:

Which minimum wage do we need to follow if we have employees in multiple states?

This is a common question employers ask when they have people working remotely or have worksites in multiple states. The answer is simple: Employees should be paid the applicable minimum wage for where they’re doing the work, whether they’re at company headquarters, a satellite office, or in their own home.

This also means you should be sure you’re paying the applicable minimum wage when employees do work in novel locations. For instance, if you have an hourly employee who usually works in Texas but travels to California for one workweek per quarter, they’d be entitled to the relevant state or local minimum wage while there. Also keep in mind that some states and localities have differing minimum wages based on job type, such as for healthcare or hospitality workers.

In general, as with most employment laws, you should adhere to the law that is most beneficial to the employee.

Some of our managers give feedback that’s vague and unhelpful. Is there a feedback model you’d recommend we teach them?

Yes, the Situation Behavior Impact (SBI) model might do the trick. It’s a formula for providing clear, specific, relevant and factual feedback. Here’s a breakdown of the model:

Situation identifies the context of your feedback, so the employee knows exactly what you’re talking about. It’s best to be specific: “during the customer call yesterday” or “in this morning’s meeting,” for instance.

Behavior describes the specific actions of the employee, observed by you or others. When explaining what you or someone else observed, it’s important to keep assumptions and speculation out of it. For example, “you kept your voice calm while the customer yelled at you” or “you used last quarter’s slides with outdated data.” These descriptions are factual and, as a result, difficult to dispute.

Impact highlights the effect the behavior had on others or the organization. The impact could be how the behavior made people feel, the outcome the behavior had on someone’s work, or the business results the behavior led to. 

You don’t need to be super rigid when using the SBI model. Feedback should sound natural and sincere, not robotic or overly formulaic.

One of our employees refuses to sign the employee handbook. What should we do?

Start with a conversation to understand the employee’s concerns. It’s possible they believe their signing the handbook means they agree with everything in it. Make sure to explain that their signature only acknowledges that they’ve read and understood it.

If that doesn’t resolve the issue, make it clear that failure to sign the handbook doesn’t mean they’re exempt from the policies and procedures within it. Explain that all employees are expected to adhere to the same rules, regardless of whether they’ve signed the handbook.

Document that the employee refused to sign the handbook and that you made it clear that they’re still expected to follow your organization’s policies. You can do this directly on their handbook acknowledgment form.

To access more business news, visit NJB News Now.

Related Articles: