New York employers - don't forget to give yearly wage notice to your employees

I received a helpful reminder today from my friends employment attorneys Joseph Harris and Evan White at White Harris PLLC that all New York private sector employers must give an annual written notice of wage rates to their employees. The deadline is February 1st.

The New York Department of Labor has wage notice templates available on its website here. The wage notices must include:

• an employee's rate of pay, including the overtime rate, if applicable;
• how the employee is paid (salary, hour, commission, etc.);
• the regular payday;
• the official name of the business as well as any DBAs;
• the address and telephone number of the main office; and
• any allowances taken as part of the minimum wage.

Wage notices must be in English and in the employee's primary language. The notice must also include an affirmation by the employee that s/he identified his or her primary language, and that a wage notice in the correct primary language was provided. Employees must sign and date the notice and they must receive a copy for their records. The company must keep a copy for six years.

Employers must provide new employees with wage notices at the time of hire. During the year, when there is an increase in an employee's wage rate and the new rate is shown on the next wage statement, employers do not need to provide an additional wage notice. However, employees must be notified in writing seven days before any reduction in their wage rate takes effect. (Wage notices must be given to all employees, even those who are exempt from overtime or who have previously received notice.)

For more information about the wage notice requirement, here is a FAQ and a fact sheet from the Department of Labor: http://www.labor.ny.gov/workerprotection/laborstandards/PDFs/wage-theft-prevention-act-faq.pdf; http://www.labor.ny.gov/formsdocs/wp/P715.pdf.