New York Employers: A reminder that under long-standing law, “manual workers” – a term that has been interpreted quite broadly by the NYS DOL – generally must be paid on a weekly basis (as opposed to semi-monthly or biweekly).
The penalties for failing to comply can be draconian and include prejudgment interest on all wages that were not timely paid, liquidated damages in the amount of 100% of all wages that were not timely paid, and reasonable attorney’s fees expended in pursuing their claim.
Employers who pay workers semi-monthly or bi-weekly should promptly review their pay practices with legal counsel to ensure they are not inadvertently running afoul of this law.