STAFF CONTACT :
BILL
SUBJECT
DATE
This bill would expand the existing requirement that employers provide notification of pay rates and pay days to employees by requiring it in writing and requiring an employer to obtain a written acknowledgement from each employee upon receipt. The Business Council opposes enactment of this legislation.
Unnecessary Duplication
Section 195 of the labor law already requires employers:
- to notify employees of pay rates and pay days at the time of hiring;
- to notify employees of any pay day changes prior to making the change; and
- to furnish each employee with a statement with every payment of wages, listing gross wages, deductions and net wages, and upon the request of an employee furnish an explanation of how such wages were computed
This proposal is unnecessary duplication since most methods of communicating pay rates are already in writing through hiring letters, paycheck stubs and collective bargaining agreements while pay days are usually found in handbooks and bulletin board postings.
The statement in support of this bill states that many employees paid on a weekly basis have difficulty discerning their overtime rate. Since a paycheck stub is already required to be given to every employee by the employer, the means is already provided to the employee for such a calculation. Also, as noted above, if an employee has a question about pay, the employer is required to furnish an explanation under section 195.
Finally, employers and collective bargaining representatives assist employees every day in matters of payroll and benefit issues.
There is no simply justification for this new mandate.
Administration
- While obtaining a written acknowledgement from an employee sounds simple, there is no obligation that the employee provides it. Chasing employees around trying to secure a signature on a form is a waste of time for both the employer and the employee.
New York State's business environment
For the third year in a row, New York was ranked as the second-worst state to do business in, according to Chief Executive Magazine. Only California ranked worse.
The Beacon Hill Institute's 2007 State Competitiveness Index, which gives significant weight to high-tech areas in which New York has strengths, nonetheless rated New York 38th overall.
The American Legislative Exchange Council's 2007 State Economic Competitiveness Index ranked New York's overall competitiveness 49th.
This is the kind of legislation that contributes to New York's reputation as reflected in these surveys. The nickeling and diming of business in this state is astounding.
For these reasons, The Business Council opposes this legislation and respectfully urges that it not be enacted by the New York State Legislature.