In April 2011, the NYSDOL put in place rigid requirements for notifying employees of pay changes, known as the Wage Theft Prevention Act (WTPA.) Then in 2015 after many employers voiced their concerns about the value and burden of these regulations, they loosened the notification requirements to essentially say that notification must be given upon hire and in the event of a pay decrease. Great news, right?

Not so fast. There is the law of unintended consequences to deal with. While not the intention of the NYSDOL, we have seen these notices play an important supporting role in a few different places. For instance, in worker’s comp cases it may be important to prove that employees knew exactly what they were paid, both on prevailing wage hours and on private hours. And don’t forget about The Bureau of Public Works. We’ve used these notices as crucial pieces of documentation when annualization questions arise.

An employee’s signature on a WTPA notice detailing their pay rates can be a key piece of supporting documentation helping to defend you in many ways, so consider reviewing what you have on file today and when you reissue the notices.

Located in Rochester, NY, for over 25 years GMR has specialized in the development, placement, administration, and support of successful prevailing wage benefit plans meeting the compliance needs of the merit shop construction community. This year our clients will contribute tens of millions of prevailing wage fringe supplements to the Employee Benefit Trust and retirement plans, saving payroll burden on each of those dollars and making bids more competitive. Our current clients do prevailing wage work regulated by the NYSDOL, the USDOL, the MTA, and approximately 10 other states. Let us help you.