Federal law generally requires employers to pay employees who are not otherwise exempt at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked, and overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Problems arise when employers fail to recognize and count certain hours worked as compensable time. Under federal law, “hours worked” may include time spent by the employee on-call or waiting for work to perform while on duty. Many states, however, have laws that grant employees expanded or additional rights above the federal requirements.
New York employers may be subject to the special wage rules below. However, additional requirements and exceptions may apply depending on the applicability of an industry-specific wage order.
Call-In Pay
When the employer directs the employee to stop working before the end of a regularly scheduled shift, the employer generally must pay the employee the applicable minimum wage rate for at least 4 hours or the number of hours in the regularly scheduled shift—whichever is less—as “call-in pay.”
Spread of Hours & Split Shifts
An employer generally must pay an employee 1 hour of additional pay at the applicable minimum wage rate for any day in which:An employee works a spread of hours—the interval between the beginning and end of an employee’s workday—that exceeds 10 hours;An employee works a split shift, which is a schedule of daily hours in which the working hours required or permitted are not consecutive; orBoth situations occur.
Tip Credits
Some employers are eligible to count the tips employees receive as a credit against their minimum wage obligation. In order to take the tip credit, an employer generally must:Follow the requirements of any wage order applicable to its industry; andBe able to prove that the employee actually received the credited tips.
Additional requirements and exceptions to the information above may apply. For more information, please contact the New York Department of Labor at 888-469-7365.
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
Employers are generally required to prohibit smoking and vaping in virtually all indoor places of employment, including restaurants and bars. Further details are provided below, but additional requirements and exceptions may apply. Please contact the New York Department of Health at 800-458-1158 for further information.
Posting Requirements
“Smoking” or “No Smoking” signs, “Vaping” or “No Vaping” signs, or a sign with the international “no smoking” symbol on it must be prominently posted and properly maintained where smoking and vaping are prohibited or permitted.
An outdoor dining area where smoking and vaping are permitted must be clearly designated with written signage as a smoking and vaping area.
A hotel or motel with a smoking and vaping policy for rooms rented to guests must post a notice at the reception area as to the availability, upon request, of rooms in which no smoking and vaping are allowed.
Further information and posters are available by clicking here.
Exceptions
Smoking and vaping generally may be permitted in the following areas and businesses (among other things):
Private homes that do not provide child care services;
Hotel or motel rooms rented to one or more guests; and
Up to 25% of seating in outdoor areas of restaurants with no roof or ceiling enclosure, if the area is at least 3 feet away from the outdoor area not designated for smoking and vaping and is clearly designated with signage as a smoking and vaping area.
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
Sexual harassment involves unwelcome conduct that is used as the basis for employment decisions or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment. All New York employers must comply with New York’s anti-sexual harassment law. The following chart explains the law and its requirements in detail.
What is Sexual Harassment?
Harassment is generally illegal when unwelcome conduct is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment or when it results in an adverse employment decision.Effective Oct. 11, 2019, it will be illegal for employers to subject any individual to harassment, regardless of whether the harassment would be considered severe or pervasive. However, to be considered harassment, conduct must be above petty slights or trivial inconveniences from the perspective of a reasonable victim of discrimination.
What Are the Types of Sexual Harassment?
Hostile environment: Generally words, signs, or violence of a sexual nature directed at an individual because of that individual’s sex.Quid pro quo: A person in authority tries to trade job benefits for sexual favors. This can include hiring, promotion, continued employment, or any other terms, conditions, or privileges of employment.
When Are Employers Liable for Sexual Harassment?
When it is conducted by an owner or high-level manager.When it is conducted by a lower-level manager or a supervisor, if that supervisor has sufficient control over the victim’s working conditions.When it knew or should have known about an employee’s harassment and was negligent about preventing or stopping it. Notably, any manager’s knowledge will be imputed to the employer.When it, its agents, or its supervisors knew or should have known of the sexual harassment of non-employees in its workplace.
Must Employers Adopt Policies or Provide Notice to Employees?
Yes. All New York employers must adopt either the state’s model sexual harassment prevention policy or one that equals or exceeds the standards of the state policy, and provide it to employees in writing. If English is not the employee’s primary language, the employee should receive the policy in his or her primary language, provided that a model policy is made available by the state in that language. The policy must be provided to all employees at the time of hiring and at every annual sexual harassment prevention training. In addition, New York City (NYC) employers must post a poster in employee breakrooms or other common areas and distribute an information sheet to employees at the time of hire. Click here to download the required notices.
Must Employers Provide Sexual Harassment Prevention Training?
Yes. By Oct. 9, 2019, and annually thereafter, all New York employers must provide sexual harassment prevention training to all employees using either the state’s model training program or one that equals or exceeds the state program. Additionally, NYC employers with 15 or more employeesmust:Annually conduct training for all employees that slightly differs from the state-required training; andKeep a record of all trainings for at least 3 years. Notably, an employer with training requirements in multiple jurisdictions complies with NYC law if the NYC requirements are fulfilled in annual employee training.
Is There a Deadline for Filing a Sexual Harassment Claim?
Workplace sexual harassment claims must be filed within 3 years of the alleged conduct. Other discrimination claims must filed within 1 year.
Special Note: Nondisclosure Agreements:
Employers cannot use nondisclosure agreements to prevent the disclosure of the underlying facts and circumstances of a sexual harassment claim, except in certain circumstances when the person bringing the claim requests confidentiality as a condition of a settlement.
Nondisclosure agreements are void to the extent they prohibit or restrict individuals from:
Initiating, testifying, assisting, complying with a subpoena from, or participating in any manner with an investigation conducted by the appropriate local, state, or federal agency; or
Filing or disclosing any facts necessary to receive unemployment insurance, Medicaid, or other public benefits to which the individual is entitled.
In addition, beginning on Jan. 1, 2020, nondisclosure agreements related to any future discrimination claim are unenforceable unless the employee or potential employee is notified that the agreement does not prohibit the employee from speaking with:
Law enforcement
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The state Division of Human Rights
A local commission on human rights
The employee’s attorney
Special Note: Mandatory Arbitration
Unless permitted by federal law or a collective bargaining agreement, employers cannot require employees to submit their sexual harassment claims to mandatory arbitration.
Additional requirements and exceptions to the information above may apply. For more information, please contact the New York State Division of Human Rights or the New York City Commission on Human Rights.
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
Employers are generally required under both federal and state law to retain certain types of records relating to their current and former employees. The chart below outlines the general state law requirements for recordkeeping in New York.
Category
Employer Requirements
Retention Period
Wage, Hour, and Payroll Records
Employers must keep weekly payroll records that show the following for each employee:Name, address, and Social Security number;Daily/weekly hours;Rate(s) of pay and basis of payment;Deductions;Allowances, if any, claimed as part of the minimum wage; Gross and net wages; Student classification (if applicable); andWhen a piece rate is used, the rate(s) and number of pieces completed at each rate.In addition, for executive, administrative, or professional employees, the employer’s records must show each employee’s:Name, address, and Social Security number;Occupation description; andFor employees in an executive or administrative capacity, total wages, and the value of any allowances for each payroll period.
6 years
Unemployment Insurance
The following information must be retained for each employee:Name and Social Security number;Beginning and ending dates of each pay period;Total amount of compensation for each pay period, including value of non-cash remuneration (e.g., board, rent, housing) and tips; andTotal amount of compensation subject to unemployment compensation contributions under state law.
3 years
Safety and Health/Workers’ Compensation
The following organizational records must be kept for workers’ compensation:Federal Employer Identification Number;Business name and form (corporation, partnership, e.g.);Articles of incorporation or organization; andCurrent list of officers, partners, or principals of the business.The following employment records must be kept for each employee:Name, Social Security number (or taxpayer identification number);Each day, month, and year or pay period of employment; A description of general duties sufficient to allow classification for workers’ compensation premium purposes;All records provided for salary, wage, or earned income;The value of other remuneration such as meals, tips, or lodging;Federally required annual wage or earnings statements;All written agreements with the employee describing the terms of employment;Tax records filed pursuant to federal and state law.
3 years
Records must be kept of any injury or illness incurred by an employee in the course of employment on the appropriate form prescribed by the workers’ compensation board.
18 years
Employers must keep a record of the name, address, and Social Security number of each employee who uses or handles a hazardous substance, and which substance was handled by which employee.
40 years
Child Labor
Employment certificates must be kept on file for each minor.
Certificates must be returned to minors upon termination of employment.
Additional requirements and exceptions to the information above may apply, especially for specific industries. For more information, please contact the New York Labor Department.
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
The following posters are mandatory for New York employers so that employees have access to and information about applicable labor laws. These posters can be downloaded from the links below.
General State Posting Requirements
Posting Requirements
Notes
Poster Format
Criminal Conviction Records Notice
Employers must post a copy of Article 23-A of the correlation law. This article relates to the employment of individuals with a criminal record.
Employers must notify their employees of sick leave, vacation, personal leave, holiday and hours of work policies. The notice can be provided in writing or by publicly posting them. Click here for more information.
Employers must provide this notice to employees who are returning to work following the birth of a child and to all employees through a handbook or by posting it in a central location.
Employers generally must display or post a notice concerning PFL. Upon securing PFL insurance or Board-approved self-insurance, employers must obtain Form PFL-120 from their insurance carrier or licensed agent and display the form in a conspicuous location. Self-insured employers can obtain this form by contacting the Workers’ Compensation Board.
Sexual Harassment Prevention Policy Notice
Employers must provide, in writing, a copy of this policy. The policy must include annual sexual harassment prevention training. Click here fore more information.
This poster is obtained by registering with the Unemployment Insurance Division and calling 888-899-8810.
Workers’ Compensation
These posters are required for employers subject to New York’s workers’ compensation laws:Workers’ Compensation noticeDisability Benefits poster
Employers must obtain from their insurance carrier
Industry-Specific and Other Special Poster Requirements
Industry
Poster Requirements
Poster Format
Agricultural Industry
Farm Minimum Wage: farm employers are required to post it where employees can see it. Print on legal size, 8.5 inch x 14 inch, paper. Click here and scroll down to “Postings/Fact Sheets.”
Breastfeeding Mothers’ Bill of Rights: must be conspicuously posted in a public place in each maternal health care facility and each child day care facility.
Prevailing wage rate schedule: the current schedule must be:Posted on the site of the public work project where workers can see and access it;Encased in, or made of, weatherproof materials; and Titled “PREVAILING RATE OF WAGES” in letters that are at least 2 x 2 inches.
Obtain from contracting agency. Click here for more information.
Employers with 4 or more employees subject to the Fair Chance Act. Note: If, after a job offer, an employer wants to revoke the offer based on the existence of a criminal record, the employer must, among other things, use the Fair Chance Notice to explain why.
New York City employers with at least 4 employees must provide lactation rooms, as well as refrigerators, in reasonable proximity to work areas for employees to express and store breast milk. these employers are also required to implement a written lactation room accommodation policy to be distributed to all new employees. Click here to download model policies and a request form.
Mandatory Sick Leave
Employers must provide employees, upon commencement of employment, a written notice about their right to sick leave. The notice must be in English and in the employees’ primary language (as applicable). The notice may also be conspicuously posted at the employers’place of business in an area accessible to employees.
Employers must conspicuously post a notice regarding the New York City Temporary Schedule Change Law in English and in any other primary language that is spoken by at least 5% of the employees who work at that particular location (provided the City has made the notice available in that language). These notices must be printed on and scaled to fill an 11″ x 17″sheet of paper.
NYC employers must post a sexual harassment poster in employee breakrooms or other common areas and distribute a sexual harassment fact sheet to employees a the time of hire. The poster must be posted in both English and Spanish.
Some of the statutes and regulations enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and other federal agencies require that notices be provided to employees or posted in the workplace. The DOL provides free electronic and printed copies of its required posters through its elaws Poster Advisor.
The Advisor can be used to determined which posters employers are required to display at their paces or business. Posters, available in English and other languages, may be downloaded and printed directly from the Advisor, or from this page.
Please Note: The posters presented herein are for general reference only. This information has been taken from sources which we believe to be reliable, but there is no guarantee as to its accuracy. State or local laws or individual circumstances such as size of company or industry may impact the state requirements related to specific employer posters and notices. As such, we do not guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of posters featured in the Posters section.
Covered employers must comply with state law protecting personal information. A general overview of the New York law is presented below.
Definitions
Personal information is any information concerning a natural person which, because of name, number, personal mark, or other identifier, can be used to identify such natural person. Private information is generally personal information consisting of any information combined with any 1 or more of the following data elements, when either the personal information or the data element is not encrypted, or encrypted with an encryption key that has also been acquired:Social Security number (SSN);Driver’s license number or non-driver identification card number; orAccount number or credit or debit card number, combined with any required security code, access code, or password that would permit access to an individual’s financial account.Personal identifying information includes a person’s:SSN;Home address or telephone number;Personal email address;Internet identification name or password;Parent’s surname before marriage; andDrivers’ license number.
Notification Requirements
Any employer that conducts business in New York, and which owns or licenses computerized data that includes private information must disclose any breach of system security following discovery or notification to any New York resident whose private information was (or is reasonably believed to have been) acquired by an unauthorized person. The disclosure generally must be made in the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay.If any New York residents are to be notified, the employer must notify the state attorney general, the department of state, and the division of state police as to the timing, content, and distribution of the notices and approximate number of affected persons. Such notice must be made without delaying notice to affected New York residents.If more than 5,000 New York residents are to be notified at one time, the employer must also notify consumer reporting agencies as to the timing, content, and distribution of the notices and approximate number of affected persons. Such notice must be made without delaying notice to affected New York residents.Click here for the methods and contents of notice.
Additional Requirements
Employers generally may not: Publicly post or display an employee’s SSN;Visibly print an SSN on any identification badge or card (including any time card);Place an SSN in files with unrestricted access; orCommunicate an employee’s personal identifying information to the general public.Note : It is presumptive evidence that a violation of the law was knowing if the employer has not put in place any policies or procedures to safeguard against such violation (including procedures to notify relevant employees of these provisions).
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
New York employers generally must pay employees 1 ½ times their regular rates of pay for work in excess of 40 hours per week. If an employee is paid at different rates for different hours, the employer must pay overtime at 1.5 times the regular rate, determined by dividing gross earnings by the hours worked.
The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) exempts some types of employees from the overtime pay requirement, and New York follows these exemptions. However, workers exempt from the FLSA but covered by New York’s Miscellaneous Wage Order (which covers industries other than hospitality and building services) must be paid overtime, but only at the rate of 1.5 times the state minimum wage, regardless of their regular rate of pay.
Some occupations are exempt from the overtime pay provisions of New York law and the FLSA. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
Administrative Employee Exemption
Executive Employee Exemption
Farm Laborer Exemption
Outside Salesperson Exemption
Professional Employee Exemption
Executive and Administrative Employee Exemption
New York’s wage orders dictate the salary threshold that executive and administrative employees need to meet to qualify for an overtime exemption. The salary threshold for executive and administrative employees depends on the employer’s location. Employers are encouraged to visit the NYSDOL website and use the following answers to frequently asked questions.
Employers must report the following information for each newly hired or rehired employee within 20 calendar days of the hiring date (if an employer reports electronically, it must submit two monthly reports—if needed—between 12 and 16 days apart):
Employee name (first, middle initial, last), address (street, city, state, and ZIP code), Social Security number, and hire date.
Employer name, address (street, city, state, and ZIP code), and identification number (assigned by the IRS).
Whether dependent health insurance benefits are available to the employee and if so, the date the employee qualifies for the benefits.
Employers required to report to New York State (and multistate employers who designate New York as their reporting state) should use one of the methods below to submit the new hire information:
Submit a copy of the employee’s Form IT-2104 in place of, or in addition to, the federal Form W-4 via fax/mail to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.
Additional requirements may apply. Click here for more information.
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
*This rate will be adjusted and announced annually by the New York Department of Labor until it reaches $15 per hour.
Tipped Employees
New York state law allows employers in all industries (except for building service) to satisfy the minimum wage by combining a “cash wage” paid by the employer with a credit or allowance for tips that the employee receives from customers.
Cash wages and tip credits in New York state depend on location and industry. Employers should review the information published by the NYDOL for more information.
Please Note: The state laws summaries featured on this site are for general informational purposes only. In addition to state law, certain municipalities may enact legislation that imposes different requirements. State and local laws change frequently and, as such, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information featured in the State Laws section. For more detailed information regarding state or local laws, please contact your state labor department or the appropriate local government agency.
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