ALBANY (AP) -- Gov. David Paterson on Monday signed into law tougher penalties for bosses who illegally withhold workers' pay, though opponents said the measure will make it harder to do business in New York.
The new law allows a court or the Labor Department to force employers to pay back wages plus an equal amount in damages, up from 25 percent currently. It expands some existing statutes, including provisions dealing with employer retaliation against workers who file complaints about them.
Violations often go unreported, Paterson said. "If you speak up, you're likely to get fired," he said.
The law won't affect employers this holiday season; it takes effect in April.
It permits third-party complaints and adds threats to the list of illegal retaliatory measures by employers or others. It adds officers of limited-liability companies and partnerships to the list of employers who can be punished. Violations can result in public notices posted at businesses for 90 days.
Before the Assembly passed the bill 82-40 two weeks ago, some Republican lawmakers said it was anti-business.
Rick Sampson, president of the New York State Restaurant Association, said his group wrote to Paterson opposing the bill. The additional reporting requirements are "very burdensome," especially to small businesses, "and it's a substantial increase in fines levied against employers," he said.
Initial worker notices will be required in writing at the time of hire - in English or the worker's primary language - describing the pay basis, whether hourly, daily, weekly, by piece, commission or salary; allowances such as tips, meals or lodging; and the company's main office address and any other business names it uses.
Paterson was joined at the signing by legislative sponsors and representatives of nonprofit advocacy groups and unions, including the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, which has been trying to keep non-union Wal-Mart out of New York City.
The National Employment Law Project, in a sampling of New York City low-wage workers, found that 21 percent were paid less than the legally required minimum wage in the previous week. Seventy-seven percent of those who worked more than 40 hours the previous week said they weren't paid proper overtime, and 55 percent didn't receive required documentation of their earnings and deductions the previous week.
The group estimated New York City employers shortchange more than 300,000 workers about $18 million weekly.
The state Labor Department reported recovering and disbursing a record $28.8 million to nearly 18,000 people whose wages were illegally underpaid last year.
"It is a major problem, not just in New York City but statewide," state Labor Commissioner Colleen Gardner said. "We found a lot of violations in car washes, restaurants, grocery store delivery folks. We also see it still in manufacturing; especially in low-wage industries we see a lot of problems."
Gardner said officials don't ask about workers' immigration status in these cases. Anyone who works in the state is covered by New York's labor law, she said. "We don't ask about immigration status."
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