Here's an important reminder for NY State employers:
The New York State Wage Theft Prevention Act (Section 195.1 of the Labor Law ) was amended in April 2011 to require employers to provide a Written Notice of Rates of Pay and Regular Payday, both to all new employees at the time of hire and to all existing employees on or between January 1 and February 1 each year. 2012 is the first year the annual notice to existing employees is required.
The employer is also required to get a signed acknowledgement from each employee that they have received the notice. The notice must be in English and also in the employee's primary language if the primary language isn't English. Failure to comply carries a stiff fine.
Here's what needs to be on The Written Notice of Rates of Pay and Regular Payday:
1. the employee’s rate or rates of pay
2. the overtime rate of pay, if the employee is subject to overtime regulations
3. the basis of wage payment (per hour, per shift, per week, piece rate, commission, etc.)
4. any allowances the employer intends to claim as part of the minimum wage including tip, meal, and lodging allowances
5. the regular payday
6. the employer’s name and any names under which the employer does business (DBA)
7. the physical address of the employer’s main office or principal place of business and, if different, the employer’s mailing address
8. the employer’s telephone number
Employee Acknowledgement
The employer must have the employee sign a statement acknowledging receipt of the written notice in English and the employee’s primary language. Employees must also acknowledge that they have properly identified their primary language to their employer. The employer must keep the signed and dated notice and acknowledgement for six years and provide a copy to the employee.
Notice and Acknowledgement Templates
The NY State Department of Labor (DOL) has prepared templates for several common types of pay agreements, including dual language versions in Chinese, Haitian-Creole, Korean, Polish, Russian and Spanish. An employee acknowledgement of receipt section is included in the templates prepared by the Department. Templates are available on the forms and publications page of the Department’s web site (scroll down to find the version that applies to you) as well as in hard copy.
If the Department of Labor does not make a template in a particular language available, employers may provide notice to that employee in English only.
Additional information answers to frequently asked questions are available on this page on the NY State website.