New York Wage Notice Requirement to Be Eliminated

UPDATE: On December 29, 2014, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed a bill eliminating the requirement that, before February 1 of each year, employers notify and receive written acknowledgement from every worker about their rate of pay, allowances, pay day, etc. Accordingly, employers are no longer required to provide employees with annual statements starting in 2015. Employers are still required to notify employees as required at the time of hire, however.

Author: Marta Moakley, XpertHR Legal Editor

December 24, 2014

New York employers will no longer have to provide employees with annual wage notices under the state Wage Theft Prevention Act if Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signs a bill that strikes the requirement. However, the bill also enhances the Act's other enforcement provisions, including increasing the penalties for an employer's failure to comply with current requirements.

The bill, AO8106, also enhances penalties for repeated offender employers. In addition, the bill ensures that the largest percentage owners of a limited liability partnership would be personally liable for all debts, wages or salaries due to its workers.

XpertHR has confirmed that the bill was delivered to the Governor's Office on December 17, 2014. The bill is subject to a 10-day rule: the Governor has 10 days (not counting Sundays) to sign or veto it. If the Governor fails to take action within that time, then the bill automatically becomes law at the end of the 10-day period.

Currently, New York employers must provide written notice to an employee regarding his or her pay rate, basis of wage payment and other related information. The notice must be provided upon hire, on an annual basis on or before February 1st and at least seven calendar days before a change of information included on the notice.

Although the bill would typically take effect 60 days after enactment (i.e., a possible February date), it is possible that an amendment would be adopted in the next legislative session to eliminate the notice requirement immediately. Therefore, the annual notice requirement for employers could be eliminated as of 2015.

The passage of AO8106 follows a record year for the New York Department of Labor in terms of wage theft investigations. As of June 2014, the state DOL had:

  • Completed the investigations of almost 5,000 cases;
  • Disbursed more than $16.4 million in wages, interest and damages to 21,050 workers; and
  • Collected nearly $850,000 in penalties from employers.