Responsibilities of New York Employers
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Disclaimer
This guide addresses some of the responsibilities of employers in New York State and New York City. It does not include every responsibility and there are many more resources on the topics listed. This guide does not cover all the related laws and regulations. This guide was last updated on October 10, 2026, and some of the information may have since changed. The information in this guide does not create an attorney-client relationship, it is not legal advice and is not intended to be relied upon as legal advice. If you have a legal issue, you should not rely on this information and instead speak to an attorney.
This guide includes links to third-party websites for access to information and resources. We do not control these websites. We have not reviewed all the content that appears on these websites, and are not responsible for the legality, accuracy, or appropriateness of their content. Content on these websites may change at any time, including after we decide to share their links on this site. For legal advice about your specific situation, you should consult with a qualified attorney.
Introduction
Employers in New York must be aware of many federal, state, and local laws and regulations. It’s important to understand these rules and the responsibilities they establish. Establishing clear policies and procedures, and updating them regularly, can make legal compliance easier and more efficient. Consulting an experienced advisor when establishing your policies and procedures is strongly encouraged.
EMPLOYEE v. INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR
The determination of whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor of a business can have significant implications for legal risk and liability, civil rights, taxes, benefits such as unemployment insurance, and other obligations. Some of the attributes of the relationship to consider are whether the individual performs their work without direction or control from the business (in the contract and in reality), performs the services in their own name or the business’s name, regularly offers services to the public or business community, and pays for their own licenses, supplies, and administrative expenses.
Business owners are encouraged to speak with an experienced attorney to assess whether individuals should be treated as employees or independent contractors.
Also, check out our guide, Independent Contractor vs. Employee in NY for more information.
WAGES AND BENEFITS
Wages
As of January 1, 2026, employers in New York State are required to pay most employees the state minimum wage (currently $16.00) or more. Most workers on Long Island and in Westchester are entitled to $17.00. The Living Wage Rate in New York City is $17.00, and the Health Benefit Supplement is $2.25 (it will be $2.25 starting April 1, 2026).
Overtime, Breaks, Rest, Etc.
Eligible employees who work more than 40 hours in a workweek are entitled to 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for overtime hours. Most employees are eligible for overtime. The New York Attorney General provides information about overtime, rest time, and more here. The New York Department of Labor has information about paid breaks for expression of breast milk here.
Interns
An intern is exempt from minimum wage rules if the intern is not an employee. To learn more about how to determine if an intern qualifies as an employee, see the New York State Department of Labor’s guide, Wage Requirements for Interns in For-Profit Businesses.
Taxes
Employers must deduct and pay the correct amount of income taxes from their employees’ wages, calculate and pay the employer’s share of taxes, and file timely returns with the IRS, the New York Department of Taxation and Finance, and their local tax agency.
Employers must report information about each newly hired or rehired employee who will work in New York State within 20 days from their first day of work to New York DTF.
Employers are required to withhold and deposit an employee’s payroll taxes, including FICA (for Social Security and Medicare), federal, state, and local employment taxes - depending on the specific employee’s earnings. You can learn more about tax withholdings in New York on the New York Department of Taxation and Finance’s website here.
Employers have certain employment tax responsibilities, including the Federal Unemployment Tax discussed further below. They may also have responsibilities based on their location, for instance the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Mobility Tax (MCTMT) for employers in New York City and the counties of Rockland, Nassau, Suffolk, Orange, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester. You can learn more on the IRS’s website here.
Health Insurance
Under the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA), employers with 50 or more full-time employees, including full-time equivalent employees, must offer health coverage that is affordable and meets minimum standards to their full-time employees and their children up to age 26. Employers that don’t may owe a penalty. Employers aren’t required to offer coverage to spouses.
Separately, New York’s small group market is a way of buying insurance, not an employer mandate. Under New York law it generally covers employers with 1 to 100 employees, so an employer with 51 to 100 employees can be subject to the ACA requirement above and still buy coverage in the small group market. Employers with 100 or fewer employees can shop through the NY State of Health Small Business Marketplace.
Employers with fewer than 50 full-time employees are not required to offer coverage. They can choose to offer it through the small group market or through health reimbursement arrangements.
Protected Time Off (Sick and Safe Leave)
New York State
New York’s paid sick leave law applies to private-sector employers, with the amount of leave depending on size and net income:
100 or more employees: up to 56 hours of paid sick leave per year.
5 to 99 employees: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per year.
4 or fewer employees: up to 40 hours per year, paid if net income is greater than $1 million and unpaid if net income is $1 million or less.
Employees accrue leave at a rate of at least 1 hour for every 30 hours worked. You can find more information on New York State’s Paid Sick Leave page.
New York City
Employers in New York City must provide both sick leave and safe leave under the Earned Safe and Sick Time Act.
Sick leave is for the care and treatment of an employee or a family member’s illness, injury, or health condition, including preventive care.
Safe leave is for an employee or family member who is or may be the victim of domestic violence, unwanted sexual contact, stalking, or human trafficking, including time to seek legal or social services help or take other safety measures.
Employers must give employees written notice of their safe and sick leave rights when they begin employment or when their rights change.
Additional unpaid leave (effective February 22, 2026)
All New York City employers, regardless of size or net income, must also provide employees with an additional bank of 32 hours of unpaid safe and sick time. It must be available immediately at hire and renewed at the start of each calendar year. This is in addition to the paid leave described above. If an employer has 4 or fewer employees, and its net income of $1 million or less, they must provide 1 hour of unpaid sick leave for every 30 hours of work (up to 40 hours) to each employee each year. If their net income is greater than $1 million, they must provide up to 40 hours of paid sick leave. If the employer has 5 to 99 employees, they must provide each employee 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours of work (up to 40 hours) each year. You can find more information on New York State’s Paid Sick Leave Overview page.
Paid Prenatal Leave
“Starting January 1, 2025, the New York State Paid Prenatal Leave Law (NYS Labor Law Section 196-b) requires all private-sector employers in New York State to provide their employees with 20 hours of Paid Prenatal Leave each year.” An employee is entitled to 20 hours beginning on the date they first utilize the leave and ending 52 weeks later.
Employees can take such leave for "health care services received by an employee during their pregnancy or related to such pregnancy, including physical examinations, medical procedures, monitoring and testing, and discussions with a health care provider related to the medical care, end of pregnancy care and fertility treatment.”
Paid Family Leave
New York employers must provide up to 12 weeks of Paid Family Leave to eligible employees to bond with a newly born, adopted, or fostered child, care for a family member with a serious health condition, or assist loved ones when a family member is deployed abroad on active military service.
New York State Paid Family Leave is insurance that may be funded by employees through payroll deductions.
More guidance for employers can be found in New York State’s “Employer Resources: Model Language for Employee Materials.”
Retirement Plans
Employers with 10 or more employees (full or part-time) in New York in the prior calendar year that have been in business for at least two years must either offer a qualified retirement plan or register for the New York State Secure Choice Savings Program. The program, which began its rollout in 2026, sets up payroll deductions into Roth IRAs for eligible employees. Registration deadlines were staggered by size: March 18, 2026 (30 or more employees), May 15, 2026 (15 to 29), and July 15, 2026 (10 to 14). Employers that already offer a qualified plan don’t enroll but must certify their exemption.
A small business is generally not required to offer retirement benefits. The federal Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act), along with SECURE 2.0, makes it easier and less costly for small businesses to offer 401(k) and other retirement options. Eligible employers may be able to claim a tax credit of up to $5,000 per year for the first three years for the ordinary and necessary costs of starting a SEP, SIMPLE IRA, or qualified plan (like a 401(k) plan).
You can learn more about 401(k) plans for small businesses on the Department of Labor’s page here and about the SECURE Act on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s page here.
Notices to Employees and Postings
New York State employers must provide written notice to employees concerning their policies on vacation, sick leave, personal leave, holidays, and hours of work, as well as regular, overtime and bonus rates of pay.
Employers must also post or provide notice to employees about a variety of other legal protections and rights.
All NYC employers must provide current and newly hired employees with a physical or electronic copy of the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) Workers’ Bill of Rights beginning July 1, 2024 and, if they have a physical location, post the “Know Your Rights at Work Poster” in the workplace.
NYC law requires that job postings include a good faith salary range.
The DCWP maintains a list of workplace laws for employers.
INSURANCES
Unemployment Insurance
The federal-state unemployment insurance program provides benefits to eligible individuals who have lost their job. Employers must contribute to the fund at a rate set by the U.S. Department of Labor each March.
The federal-state unemployment insurance program provides benefits to eligible individuals who have lost their job. Employers fund the program through contributions to the state unemployment insurance fund. In New York, an employer’s contribution rate is determined under the State’s unemployment insurance system. It depends on factors such as the employer’s own unemployment experience and the condition of the fund (the “size-of-fund index”), and NYSDOL issues each employer’s rate, generally by mail starting in mid-February.
The New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) determines whether a business must pay for unemployment insurance, and most employers must pay. Employers can call the NYSDOL Employer Hotline at 888-899-8810 with questions about liability and registering for unemployment insurance.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Workers’ compensation coverage is required for most New York employers. Individuals treated as contractors may also be considered employees for workers’ compensation purposes, depending on the degree of direction and control.
Workers’ compensation insurance covers on-the-job injuries and illnesses. The New York State Workers’ Compensation Board’s Employer’s Guide to Workers’ Compensation explains that people under your direct control are likely employees regardless of their tax status. The term generally includes day laborers, leased and borrowed employees, part-time employees, unpaid volunteers, and most subcontractors.
The Board’s Identifying an Independent Contractor guide explains how it classifies independent contractors. The construction and commercial transportation industries have their own tests, so most other businesses should scroll to “All Other Industries.”
Employers can obtain workers’ compensation insurance from a private insurance carrier, the New York State Insurance Fund, or through self-insurance approved by the Board (individual or group). The Board also shares tips for reducing the cost of coverage. Workers’ Compensation insurance covers on-the-job injuries and is required for almost all employers and those who have direct control over contractors in New York.
State Disability Insurance
Disability insurance covers off-the-job injuries and illnesses and is required for virtually all New York employers. An employer becomes covered once it has had one or more employees working in New York on at least 30 days in a calendar year (the days don’t need to be consecutive). Coverage must be in place four weeks after the 30th day. Certain employers, such as sole proprietors, partnerships, and LLCs with no employees, are not required to carry it.
Employers can obtain disability insurance from a private insurance carrier, the New York State Insurance Fund, or through self-insurance approved by the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board.
Other Business Insurance
Managing risk is important, so employers should research the different types of insurance available. Some insurance policies are required for particular permits or licenses, while others protect against losses, fines, or lawsuits
ADDITIONAL LEGAL REQUIREMENTS
Reporting Requirements
Employers must verify the identity and employment eligibility of employees, have employees complete a W-4, and report information about new hires to the State.
Sexual Harassment Policies and Trainings
The New York State Human Rights Law protects employees and others against sexual harassment in the workplace. Every employer in New York State must adopt a sexual harassment prevention policy that meets or exceeds the law’s minimum standards. Employers with one or more employees must also provide sexual harassment prevention training to all employees each year. You can find more information on New York State’s Combating Sexual Harassment in the Workplace page.
New York City also has training requirements for all employers. The New York City Commission on Human Rights has developed an online training that satisfies both the New York State and New York City sexual harassment prevention training requirements that is available here.
Discrimination
Federal, state, and local laws protect most workers from discrimination, bias, and harassment based on certain protected characteristics. New York State law protects most workers against discrimination or harassment based on race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, age, marital status, status as a victim of domestic violence, and arrest or conviction record.
New York City law protects the same characteristics and adds protections based on immigration or citizenship status, height and weight, caregiver status, credit history, pre-employment marijuana testing, unemployment status, and sexual and reproductive health decisions, salary history, and status as a victim of stalking or sex offenses.
Reasonable Accommodations
Federal, state, and local laws require most employers to provide certain reasonable accommodations to allow employees to perform their job, including pregnant and postpartum workers.
Health and Safety in the Workplace
Federal, state, and local laws requires employers to provide employees with a safe workplace. The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has information about their requirements on their website here and in their Small Business Safety and Health Handbook.
In New York, the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and local health departments have additional requirements for workplace safety. You can find more information on their websites here: Department of Labor and Department of Health (includes links to local health departments).
Consult a Small Business Attorney
An experienced attorney can determine your business’s specific responsibilities and advise you about how to efficiently meet them. Contact Pepitone Law for a consultation.
