December 2022: Reminder: NY WTPA Notices Have To Be Provided Yearly

Update Applicable to:
All employers in the state of New York.

What happened?
On April 9, 2011, the New York State Wage Theft Prevention Act (WTPA) took effect. Included in the WTPA’s requirements is an employer’s obligation to provide each newly hired employee with written notice of the employee’s pay rate(s).

What are the details?
The notice must also include, among other things, overtime rate(s) of pay for non-exempt employees, allowances taken (if any), how the employee is paid (e.g., by the hour, shift, day, week, commission, etc.), regular payday, and the employer’s official and “doing business as” names, address, and phone number.

The notice must be provided to the employee in English and the employee’s primary language (if the DOL offers a translation in that language).

Per Section 3 (1)(A) of the WTPA

“Section 3 (1)(A) “[notify]  PROVIDE his or her employees, in writing IN ENGLISH AND IN THE LANGUAGE IDENTIFIED BY EACH EMPLOYEE AS THE PRIMARY  LANGUAGE OF  SUCH EMPLOYEE, at the time of hiring [of], AND ON OR BEFORE FEBRUARY FIRST OF EACH SUBSEQUENT YEAR OF THE EMPLOYEE’S EMPLOYMENT  WITH THE EMPLOYER…” (A11726 WTPA)”

Penalties for Non-Compliance
Failure to provide proper Notices of Pay Rate may be subject to penalties of up to $5,000 per employee.

Employers are reminded of these Notices of Pay Rate obligations, which remain a focus of DOL audits and investigations and New York State and federal wage and hour litigation.

For more information, please see the links below:

A11726 WTPA

New York Wage Theft Prevention Act (WTPA)

Article

What do employers need to do?
Employers should review the links provided above, provide notice to their employees on or before February first of each subsequent year of the employee’s employment, and conduct self-audits, with the advice of their advisor or counsel, to confirm compliance.