minimum wage

Subscribe to minimum wage

In New York, a large number of wage and hour requirements are statutorily codified in the Labor Law. Many others requirements, however, are set forth in regulations known as wage orders, which are issued and updated from time-to-time by the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL).  The NYSDOL publishes wage orders covering the hospitality,…

Los Angeles’ Minimum Wage Ordinance, passed last summer, begins its steady increase to the city’s minimum wage on July 1.  The minimum wage will eventually increase to $15.00 by the year 2020 for large employers.  Smaller employers will enjoy a one-year reprieve.  With an estimated 800,000 people currently earning the minimum wage in Los Angeles, this legislation will have very real and practical ramifications on employers throughout the city.
Continue Reading Los Angeles City Minimum Wage Increase Set to Take Effect July 1, 2016

For any New York employer who thought that the state’s workplace rules and regulations were too easy to comply with, I have good news for you. Empire State lawmakers recently announced an agreement on the 2016-2017 state budget that includes both a complicated, location-specific minimum wage increase, and a comprehensive paid family leave scheme that will take effect in 2018.

Minimum Wage Increase

The new minimum wage increase announced by Governor Andrew Cuomo presents perhaps the most complex wage scheme the state has ever seen. It accounts for regional differences and staggers implementation over as many as five years in parts of the state. Specifically:

  • For workers in New York City employed by large businesses (those with at least 11 employees), the minimum wage would rise to $11/hour at the end of 2016, then another $2 each year after that, eventually reaching $15 on December 31, 2018.
  • For workers in New York City employed by small businesses (those with 10 employees or fewer), the minimum wage would rise to $10.50/hour by the end of 2016, then another $1.50 each year after that, eventually reaching $15 on December 31, 2019.
  • For workers in Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties, the minimum wage would increase to $10/hour at the end of 2016, then $1 each year after that, reaching $15 on December 31, 2021.
  • For workers in the rest of the state, the minimum wage would increase to $9.70/hour at the end of 2016, then another $0.70 each year after until reaching $12.50 on December 31, 2020, after which it would continue to increase to $15 on an indexed schedule to be set by the director of the Division of Budget (DOB) in consultation with the state Department of Labor.
  • The minimum cash wage for food service workers receiving tips would be two-thirds of the minimum wage rates listed above, depending on the location where the employee works.
  • Finally, beginning in 2019, the DOB would review the economy in each region to determine whether a temporary suspension of the scheduled minimum wage increases is appropriate under the circumstances.

Continue Reading New York Announces Minimum Wage Increase and Paid Family Leave Program

As we are now in the final quarter of 2015, New York State employers should begin preparing for the many impending minimum wage increases – yes, there will be multiple increases – all of which take effect December 31, 2015. The details of each are discussed below.

General Increase for Non-Exempt and Exempt Workers

The change impacting the broadest range of New York employers will be the jump in the minimum wage rate for almost all non-exempt (i.e., hourly) employees, from $8.75/hour to $9.00/hour. This raise marks a near 25 percent increase over the past two years in the statewide minimum wage. In addition, the minimum salary for certain exempt employees – those who meet the executive and administrative overtime exemptions – will increase from $656.25/week to $675.00/week.
Continue Reading Reminder for N.Y. Employers: Multiple Minimum Wage Hikes Take Effect at Year’s End

Developments in wage and hour law made major waves for employers this summer. They include: (1) proposed new overtime regulations from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL); (2) an announced crackdown by the DOL on employers who engage independent contractors; (3) new federal court standards for assessing whether unpaid interns should be paid like traditional employees; and (4) a minimum wage hike for certain New York employees. For those who may have missed any of our prior reports this summer, here is a recap, with links to more in-depth analysis.

1. DOL Proposes Regulations that Dramatically Expand FLSA Overtime Eligibility

On June 30, the DOL released its highly anticipated proposed revisions to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) overtime exemption regulations, representing the first major proposed change to federal overtime law in more than a decade.

The DOL’s proposal would more than double the minimum salary an employee must earn to even be eligible for exemption from the FLSA’s overtime pay requirements – from just under $24,000/year ($455/week) to $50,440/year ($970/week). This new salary threshold corresponds to the 40th percentile of earnings for all full-time U.S. salaried workers. In addition, the proposed regulations would allow the DOL to automatically raise the salary threshold annually, without the need for any further, formal rulemaking procedures, thereby enabling the DOL to keep pace with 40th percentile statistics as they may change going forward. The only welcome surprise for employers in the DOL’s proposal is that it does not seek to modify the “duties” tests associated with the FLSA “white collar” overtime exemption categories, although some speculate that the DOL may roll out revamped “duties” tests at a later date.

Before the DOL’s proposed regulations become final, they are subject to a public comment period (open now) and finalization. Whatever iteration of the regulations ultimately is adopted, the final regulations are not likely to take effect before mid-2016.

Continue Reading Miss Any of the Major Wage & Hour Law News this Summer? We’ve Got You Covered

This post was written by Cindy S. Minniti and Mark S. Goldstein.

Today’s New York employment law landscape is increasingly dynamic, with a constant stream of newly issued legislation and judicial opinions. To keep our readers current on the latest developments, we will share regular summaries of recent developments affecting Empire State employers. Here’s what happened in March and April 2015:

Minimum Wage Hike Suffers a Setback

New York lawmakers recently dealt a significant, but not necessarily fatal, blow to Gov. Cuomo’s plan to raise the minimum wage to $10.50 per hour (and to $11.50 in NYC). In late March, state legislators surprisingly omitted the proposed wage hike from the state’s upcoming annual budget. The debate over whether to yet again raise the state’s minimum wage – which is already slated to increase to $9.00/hour on December 31, 2015 – is now left to unfold in the State Assembly and Senate over the next six weeks, until the 2015 legislative session ends on June 17.

State Assembly Passes “Family Care” Leave Bill

On March 17, the State Assembly passed a bill that would provide up to 12 weeks of partially paid “family care” leave to employees statewide. Under the bill, employees would be able to take a leave of absence, and receive up to one-half of their regular wages: (i) to participate in providing care for a family member’s serious health condition; (ii) to bond with a newly born or newly adopted child; or (iii) because of any qualifying exigency, as interpreted under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), arising out of the active duty of certain family members. Like FMLA leave, the proposed state family care leave law would allow employees to take family care leave on an intermittent or reduced schedule basis.

The family care leave bill is now under consideration by the Republican-controlled Senate, which earlier this year recommended its own family leave law. That proposal would have provided employees with up to six weeks of leave, with partial pay, for certain qualifying exigencies, but would have required the state to fund the program, at least in the first year. Passage of a family care leave bill – in any form – is hardly a certainty and will likely take a backseat to other initiatives that Gov. Cuomo is supporting, such as the minimum wage increase and the Women’s Equality Act.Continue Reading New York Employment Roundup: March & April 2015