Last verified: April 25, 2026
If your boss shorted your check, paid you under the minimum wage, refused to pay overtime, or fired you for taking a sick day, New York gives you teeth. Two separate enforcement systems handle these complaints — the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) for wage theft, and the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) for paid safe and sick leave. Both are free to use. Neither requires a lawyer. This guide walks through the exact dollar amounts, forms, deadlines, and phone numbers you need to recover what you are owed.
What counts as wage theft in New York
Wage theft is not just being skipped on payday. Under New York Labor Law, it includes any of the following:
- Being paid less than the minimum wage for your region.
- Not receiving 1.5x your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek.
- Illegal deductions from your paycheck (uniform fees, cash register shortages, broken equipment).
- Tip theft — managers or owners taking a share of tips.
- Withheld final paychecks after you quit or were fired.
- Unpaid spread-of-hours pay (an extra hour at minimum wage when your workday spans more than 10 hours).
- Misclassification as an independent contractor to dodge minimum wage and overtime.
2026 minimum wage rates in New York
Effective January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026:
- New York City, Nassau County, Suffolk County, and Westchester County: $17.00 per hour
- Remainder of New York State: $16.00 per hour
If you were paid less than this for any hour worked in 2026, that is wage theft. Tipped food service workers have a separate cash wage of $11.35/hour in NYC/LI/Westchester (with $5.65 tip credit) and $10.65/hour upstate (with $5.35 tip credit) — but if your tips do not bring you up to full minimum wage, your employer must make up the difference.
How to file a wage theft claim with NYSDOL
The form you need is called the Labor Standards Complaint Form, LS 223. It is the entry point for almost every wage complaint in New York State, and you can file it whether you are still working at the job or have left.
Where to get the form: dol.ny.gov/wage-theft-hub or dol.ny.gov/file-labor-standards-wage-theft-claim. Print, fill out, sign, and mail it to the Division of Labor Standards.
What to include:
- Your name, address, phone number, and email.
- The employer’s full legal business name (check your pay stub or W-2), address, and phone number.
- The dates of employment and the dates wages were not paid.
- Your hourly rate, salary, or commission structure.
- Total hours worked per week during the period in question.
- Amount you believe you are owed.
- Copies of pay stubs, time records, schedules, text messages, emails — anything that documents what you worked and what you were paid.
Phone help: Call 1-888-469-7365 (1-888-4-NYSDOL) for assistance completing the form. Translation services are available in multiple languages at no charge.
Confidentiality: NYSDOL will not disclose your identity to your employer without your permission, except where legally required. You can also file anonymously, though that limits the remedies available to you personally.
What happens after you file
Within 25 to 30 business days of filing, NYSDOL will mail you a letter with your case number. Hold onto that letter — every future call or email needs to reference it. From there, an investigator is assigned. The investigator will request payroll records from the employer, interview you, and may interview coworkers. If the employer ignores the request, NYSDOL can subpoena the records.
If the investigation finds wage theft, NYSDOL issues an Order to Comply. The employer can pay, request a hearing, or appeal. If they do not pay, recent law gives NYSDOL more force than it used to have. Under Governor Hochul’s Fiscal Year 2025-2026 enacted budget, NYSDOL can now place liens on employer property, issue warrants, seize financial assets, and issue stop-work orders against employers who refuse to satisfy wage theft judgments.
What you can recover
New York Labor Law is one of the most worker-friendly statutes in the country on the back end of a wage case:
- Unpaid wages: 100% of what was withheld.
- Liquidated damages: An additional 100% of unpaid wages, on top of the wages themselves. So if you were shorted $4,000, you can recover $8,000.
- Interest: 9% per year from the date the wages were due.
- Attorney’s fees and costs: If you go to court privately and win.
- Continuous or egregious violations: Penalties up to double the total wages owed.
Statute of limitations: Six years from when the wages should have been paid. The clock pauses (tolls) the moment you file your complaint with NYSDOL or the moment NYSDOL begins an investigation, whichever comes first.
Retaliation is illegal and expensive for the employer
If your employer fires you, cuts your hours, demotes you, or threatens you because you filed a wage complaint, that is retaliation under New York Labor Law Section 215. Penalties for retaliation:
- Up to $20,000 in fines against the employer.
- An additional $20,000 in liquidated damages paid to you.
- Reinstatement to your old job with back pay.
- Compensation for lost wages and benefits.
If retaliation happens, file a separate retaliation complaint immediately with NYSDOL. Document the timeline — when you complained, when the adverse action happened, what was said. Texts and emails are gold.
NYC paid safe and sick leave — what you are owed in 2026
The Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (ESSTA) is enforced by the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), not NYSDOL. If you work more than 80 hours in a calendar year for an employer in NYC, you are covered — full-time, part-time, seasonal, temp, and undocumented workers are all included.
How much paid leave you accrue:
- Employers with 100+ employees: Up to 56 hours of paid safe/sick leave per calendar year.
- Employers with 5-99 employees: Up to 40 hours of paid safe/sick leave per calendar year.
- Employers with 4 or fewer employees and net income of $1 million or more: Up to 40 hours paid.
- Employers with 4 or fewer employees and net income under $1 million: Up to 40 hours unpaid (but job-protected).
Accrual rate: 1 hour of leave for every 30 hours worked. Leave begins accruing your first day of work and you can start using it on your 30th day.
What changed February 22, 2026
Major ESSTA amendments took effect February 22, 2026. Two big changes you should know:
1. Additional 32 hours of unpaid safe/sick leave. On top of your paid balance, every covered employee now gets a minimum of 32 additional hours of unpaid safe/sick leave, available immediately on your hire date and reset on January 1 each year. You do not have to accrue these hours — they are available from day one and are job-protected.
2. Workplace violence is now covered. Safe time can now be used when you or a family member is the victim of workplace violence, expanded from the prior coverage of domestic violence, family offense matters, sexual offenses, stalking, and human trafficking.
What “safe and sick” leave actually covers
You can use ESSTA hours for:
- Your own physical or mental illness, injury, or health condition.
- Preventive medical care (annual exams, vaccinations, screenings).
- Care for a covered family member who is sick, injured, or needs preventive care.
- Closure of your workplace or your child’s school due to a public health emergency.
- Time off related to domestic violence, sexual offenses, stalking, human trafficking, or — as of February 22, 2026 — workplace violence affecting you or a family member. This includes time to seek medical care, counseling, legal services, relocation, or to attend court proceedings.
Covered family members include children, spouses, domestic partners, parents, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, and any individual whose close association with you is the equivalent of a family relationship.
How to file an ESSTA complaint with DCWP
If your employer denies you sick leave, retaliates against you for taking it, or refuses to pay you for leave you used, file a workplace complaint with DCWP.
How to file: Go to nyc.gov/dca and click “Workers” > “File Workplace Complaint.” You can also call 311 and ask for “DCWP workplace complaint.”
What to include:
- Your name and contact information.
- Employer’s legal name and address.
- Dates of employment.
- The specific violation (denied leave, retaliation, no notice posted, etc.).
- Pay stubs, time records, and any communications about the leave request.
DCWP keeps complaints confidential and does not disclose worker identity without permission.
ESSTA penalties — what employers pay
For violations under the 2026 amendments, DCWP can order:
- Restoration of leave hours wrongfully denied.
- Payment for any unpaid leave used.
- $500 per employee per calendar year during which the violating policy or practice was in effect.
- Specific to prenatal leave violations: 20 hours of paid prenatal leave restored plus the $500 penalty.
- Civil penalties payable to the City for repeated or willful violations.
Free legal help if you need it
You do not need to navigate this alone. Several organizations provide free legal assistance to wage theft and sick leave victims in New York:
- Make the Road New York: Workers’ rights legal clinics in Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Staten Island, and Long Island. Call 718-565-8500.
- Legal Aid Society — Employment Law Unit: Free representation for low-income workers. Call 212-577-3300.
- Brooklyn Legal Services Corp A: 718-487-1300.
- NMC Asian Americans for Equality: Multilingual support. Call 212-979-8988.
- NY State Worker Protection Hotline: 1-877-466-9757.
The NYSDOL also funds the FARE Grant program, which provides free assistance with filing labor standards complaints in multiple languages.
The deadlines that matter most
- Wage theft (NYSDOL): 6 years from when wages were due. File ASAP — the earlier you file, the better the records.
- ESSTA paid sick leave (DCWP): 2 years from the date of violation.
- Retaliation: 2 years from the retaliatory act under Section 215.
- Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (separate option): 2 years generally, 3 years if willful.
Documents to start saving today
Whether you are about to file or just hedging your bets, start preserving these:
- Every pay stub you receive.
- Your written work schedule (screenshots if it lives in an app).
- Any clock-in/clock-out records you can access.
- Texts or emails about hours, pay, or sick days.
- Your offer letter or hiring paperwork.
- Your wage notice — New York employers must give you a written notice at hire stating your rate of pay, pay schedule, and employer information.
- Photos of any time clock or schedule posted at the job.
Save copies somewhere your employer cannot access — a personal email, a cloud account, or with a trusted family member.
Quick reference
Wage theft complaints: NYSDOL Form LS 223 — dol.ny.gov/wage-theft-hub — 1-888-469-7365
NYC sick leave complaints: DCWP — nyc.gov/dca > Workers > File Workplace Complaint — 311
2026 NY minimum wage: $17.00 (NYC/LI/Westchester) and $16.00 (rest of state)
Wage theft recovery: Unpaid wages + 100% liquidated damages + 9% interest
Retaliation penalty: Up to $40,000 ($20,000 fine + $20,000 to you) plus reinstatement
ESSTA accrual: 1 hour per 30 worked, up to 40 or 56 hours paid + new 32 hours unpaid (effective Feb 22, 2026)
ESSTA penalty per worker: $500 per calendar year of violation
Last verified: April 25, 2026. Wage rates and penalties confirmed against ny.gov, dol.ny.gov, and nyc.gov/dca primary sources. Statute changes after this date may affect specific procedures — re-verify before filing if more than 30 days have passed.
