New York State labor laws give workers some of the strongest wage, leave, and anti-discrimination protections in the country, and they bind nearly every private employer in the state regardless of size. The rules below reflect 2026 figures and are enforced primarily by the New York State Department of Labor and the Division of Human Rights.
Minimum Wage
New York uses a two-tier minimum wage. As of January 1, 2026, workers in New York City, Nassau County, Suffolk County, and Westchester County must earn at least $17.00 per hour. Everywhere else in the state, the floor is $16.00 per hour.1The State of New York. New York State’s Minimum Wage Both rates adjust annually based on economic indicators like the Consumer Price Index.
Overtime
Most employees are entitled to one and a half times their regular hourly rate for every hour worked past 40 in a single workweek.2Legal Information Institute. 12 NYCRR 142-2.2 – Overtime Rate The regular rate isn’t just base pay; it includes commissions and non-discretionary bonuses. An employer who skips overtime pay can be ordered to pay the unpaid amount plus liquidated damages of up to 100 percent, which effectively doubles what the worker is owed.3New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 198 – Penalties
Executive and administrative employees can be exempt from overtime, but only if they are paid on a fixed salary basis above a threshold. For 2026, the salary floor is $1,275.00 per week in New York City and the surrounding downstate counties, and $1,199.10 per week in the rest of the state.4New York State Department of Labor. Minimum Wage Frequently Asked Questions Docking an exempt worker’s pay for a slow week can destroy the exemption and expose the employer to back overtime.
Spread of Hours and Meal Breaks
If an employee’s workday runs more than 10 hours from start to finish, including unpaid breaks and split shifts, the employer owes one extra hour of pay at the basic minimum wage rate.5Legal Information Institute. 12 NYCRR 142-2.4 – Spread of Hours This is on top of any overtime owed. A server who starts at 10 a.m. and finishes at 9 p.m. has an 11-hour spread, so the extra hour applies even if actual working time was less.
Meal breaks are set by Labor Law Section 162. Factory workers get at least 60 minutes for a midday meal. Non-factory workers get at least 30 minutes if the shift runs more than six hours and covers the noon meal period of 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Any employee whose shift starts before 11 a.m. and runs past 7 p.m. is entitled to an additional 20-minute meal break between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.6New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 162 – Time Allowed for Meals A meal break is unpaid only when the worker is fully relieved of duties. Short rest or coffee breaks are not required by state law, but when offered, they count as paid work time.
How and When Wages Must Be Paid
Labor Law Section 191 ties pay frequency to the type of job. Manual workers must be paid weekly, no later than seven calendar days after the end of the workweek. Clerical and other office employees can be paid semi-monthly. Commission salespeople must be paid at least once a month under a written agreement.7New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 191 – Frequency of Payments
The Wage Theft Prevention Act requires every private employer to give new hires a written wage notice stating the pay rate, pay basis, regular payday, employer name and address, and any allowances claimed against the minimum wage.8New York State Department of Labor. Notice of Pay Rate Government employers are not covered by the Act.9New York State Department of Labor. Wage Theft and Labor Standards Law Every paycheck must also come with a wage statement showing dates worked, gross wages, deductions, and employer contact information.
What Can and Cannot Be Deducted
Employers can only deduct from a paycheck when the law requires it, like taxes, or when the employee has given express written authorization for something that benefits them, such as health insurance premiums, retirement contributions, union dues, or charitable giving.10New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 193 – Deductions From Wages Deductions for cash register shortages, broken equipment, or uniforms are prohibited. The statute also blocks the workaround of charging the employee through a separate transaction.
If Wages Go Unpaid
A worker who recovers unpaid wages through a lawsuit or Department of Labor complaint gets the amount owed plus liquidated damages of up to 100 percent of the underpayment, unless the employer proves a good-faith belief that it was paying correctly. For willful violations of the state’s equal pay rules, liquidated damages rise to 300 percent of the wages owed.3New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 198 – Penalties Knowingly failing to pay wages is also a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $500 to $20,000 or up to a year in jail, and a second conviction within six years is a felony.11New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 198-A – Criminal Penalties
Paid Sick Leave
New York’s paid sick leave law scales to employer size:
- 100 or more employees: up to 56 hours of paid sick leave per calendar year.
- 5 to 99 employees: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per calendar year.
- 4 or fewer employees with net income over $1 million: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave.
- 4 or fewer employees with net income of $1 million or less: up to 40 hours of unpaid sick leave.
Leave accrues at one hour for every 30 hours worked, starting on the first day of employment.12New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 196-B – Sick Leave Requirements It can be used for the employee’s own illness or to care for a family member with a health condition.13New York State. New York Paid Sick Leave
Paid Family Leave
New York’s Paid Family Leave program offers up to 12 weeks of job-protected, paid time off for bonding with a new child, caring for a close family member with a serious health condition, or handling matters tied to a family member’s military deployment.14New York State Insurance Fund. Paid Family Leave The benefit pays 67 percent of the employee’s average weekly wage, capped at 67 percent of the statewide average weekly wage.15New York State Paid Family Leave. Benefits
Employees scheduled for 20 or more hours per week qualify after 26 consecutive weeks of employment. Part-time workers under 20 hours qualify after 175 days worked. The program is funded through employee payroll deductions, and for 2026 the contribution rate is 0.432 percent of wages, capped at $411.91 for the year.16New York Department of Financial Services. PFL Decision on Premium Rate for 2026 The federal Family and Medical Leave Act also provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave, but only to employees who worked at least 12 months and 1,250 hours for an employer with 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius. Many New Yorkers who fall short of FMLA still qualify for state Paid Family Leave.
At-Will Employment, Termination, and Final Pay
New York is an at-will state. Either side can end the employment relationship at any time, for any reason or none. The limits matter, though. An employer cannot fire someone for a reason that violates anti-discrimination law, and Labor Law Section 215 prohibits retaliation against workers who complain to the Department of Labor or report any Labor Law violation. Section 201-d also protects workers from being fired over lawful off-duty activities, including political activity, recreational pursuits, and legal use of consumable products outside of work.17New York State Department of Labor. Wages and Hours Frequently Asked Questions
When employment ends, final wages are due no later than the regular payday for that pay period. On request, the employer must mail the check to the address the worker provides.7New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 191 – Frequency of Payments Labor Law Section 195 also requires the employer to notify terminated employees in writing of the exact date of termination and the exact date benefits like health insurance will end, within five working days of the termination.18New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 195 – Notice and Record-Keeping Requirements
Discrimination and Harassment
The New York State Human Rights Law, in Executive Law Article 15, bars employment discrimination on broader grounds than federal law.19Justia Law. New York Executive Law Article 15 – Human Rights Law It recognizes 19 protected characteristics: race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, creed or religion, marital status, familial status, military status, arrest and conviction record, citizenship or immigration status, pregnancy-related conditions, predisposing genetic characteristics, lawful source of income, and status as a victim of domestic violence.20Division of Human Rights. Protected Characteristics Unlike Title VII, which applies only to employers with 15 or more workers, the state law covers every employer in New York regardless of size.
A worker who believes they were discriminated against can file with the New York State Division of Human Rights or with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOC deadline is normally 180 days from the act, but because New York has its own enforcement agency, workers here get 300 days.21U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Time Limits for Filing a Charge
On sexual harassment, every employer in New York, down to a household employing a single nanny, must adopt a written sexual harassment prevention policy and give it to all employees at hire.22New York State. Combating Sexual Harassment in the Workplace – Employers Workers must also complete interactive sexual harassment prevention training every year.23New York State. Combating Sexual Harassment in the Workplace The state publishes a free model policy and training module that meet both state and New York City requirements.
Child Labor
Hour limits for minors depend on age and whether school is in session:
- Ages 14–15 during school weeks: up to 3 hours on school days, 8 hours on non-school days, 18 hours per week, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
- Ages 14–15 when school is out: up to 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week in supervised work-study programs, between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m.
- Ages 16–17 during school weeks: up to 4 hours on school days, 8 hours on the day before a non-school day, 28 hours per week, between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. Working past 10 p.m. before a school day requires parental and school consent.
- Ages 16–17 when school is out: up to 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week, between 6 a.m. and midnight.
Minors in every age group are capped at six days of work per week, and employers must obtain working papers before hiring anyone under 18.24New York State Education Department. Working Papers Hours for Minors
Mass Layoff Notice
The New York WARN Act applies to private employers with 50 or more full-time employees, or 50 or more total employees working at least 2,000 hours per week in the aggregate.25New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 860-A – Definitions Covered employers must give 90 days of advance written notice before a plant closing affecting 25 or more workers, or a mass layoff affecting at least 25 employees who make up 33 percent or more of the workforce at the site.26New York State Department of Labor. WARN for Businesses Frequently Asked Questions The state’s 90-day period is longer than the 60 days required under the federal WARN Act, and employers must follow whichever law imposes the greater obligation.