New York State Wage Theft Prevention Act Notice Requirements

The New York State Wage Theft Prevention Act ("WTPA") is still in effect, which means that the February 1, 2013 deadline to provide written notice to employees is fast approaching. Pursuant to the WTPA, New York employers must provide New York employees with a written notice and acknowledgment of pay rate and payday on an annual basis, on or before February 1st. In particular, the WTPA requires the following:

1. The written notice provided to employees must contain the following information: (1) the employee's rate or rates of pay; (2) the overtime rate of pay, if the employee is subject to overtime regulations; (3) whether the employee will be paid by the hour, shift, day, week, salary, piece, commission or otherwise; (4) whether the employer will claim any allowances as part of the minimum wage (e.g., tip, meal or lodge allowances); (5) the employer's regular payday; (6) the employer's name and any names under which the employer does business; (7) the physical address of the employer's main office or principal place of business and, if different, the employer's mailing address; and (8) the employer's telephone number.
2. The written notice must be provided to employees at the time of hire and, on or before February 1st of each subsequent year of the employee's employment.
3. The written notice must be provided to the employee in English and in the language identified by each employee as his/her primary language.
4. The employee must sign written notice acknowledgement receipt of the same.
5. The written notices provided to the employees must be preserved and maintained by the employer for six years.

Remember, employers who do not give the required annual notice may have to pay damages of up to $50 per employee for each week that the violation continues to occur, up to a maximum of $2,500 per employee.

To assist with your compliance of the WTPA's requirements, please review the Notice of Acknowledgment of Pay Rate and Payday from the New York State Department of Labor, the Department of Labor Guidelines for Written Notice of Rates of Pay and Regular Payday, as well as the Wage Theft Prevention Act Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). You do not have to use the Notices provided by the Department of Labor, so long as the notice you create contains all of the information the WTPA requires.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.