Restaurant workers in NYC are protected by labor laws to ensure fair wages, safe working conditions, and proper treatment. Knowing these rights helps maintain a lawful workplace.
From burns to slip and falls, in NYC, the risk of injury is high in restaurant jobs. Filing a workers’ compensation claim for restaurant work injuries ensures medical benefits and wage replacement. This helps injured workers recover without financial strain.
Here’s what restaurant workers should know about their rights in NYC.
Minimum Wage and Tipped Workers
If you work in the food service industry, an employer can pay you as low as $11.00 per hour in direct wages as long as your tips bring you up to that amount. They can take a $5.50 per hour tip credit toward your total pay.
If your tips don’t bring you up to $16.50 an hour, your employer must make up the difference in pay. It’s important to note that if tips do not bring a worker’s earnings to the standard minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Overtime Pay
Every week an employee works over 40 hours. All non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime pay at 1.5 times their regular hourly rate. This does not include employees who are paid on an hourly basis, salaried, or on a per-shift basis. Employers cannot require or allow employees to waive their right to overtime compensation.
Predictable Scheduling
New York City’s Fair Workweek Law mandates that employers provide workers with regular schedules that remain consistent week-to-week and deliver work schedules at least 14 days in advance.
Employers must also pay premiums for schedule changes or “clopenings” (when an employee works closing and opening shifts back-to-back) and offer current employees the opportunity to work additional regular hours before hiring new staff.
Furthermore, employers cannot terminate or reduce a worker’s hours by more than 15% without just cause or a legitimate business reason.
Payment Frequency
Restaurant workers who spend more than 25% of their time performing physical labor are classified as manual workers under the New York Labor Law. These employees are entitled to receive their wages on a weekly basis. Failure to provide weekly payments can result in legal consequences for employers.
Safe and Healthy Workplace
Employers are obligated to provide their employees with a safe and healthy work environment. This also means providing necessary safety equipment, proper training, and ensuring that the workplace is free from any recognized hazards, which may cause injury or illness.
Protection Against Retaliation
Workers have the right to voice workplace condition issues, report the violation of any rules, and engage in union activities. Any adverse action made by an employer due to these activities is against state and federal laws.
Meal Breaks
Under New York Labor Law, employees who work a shift of more than six hours starting before 11 AM and continuing until 2 PM are entitled to a 30-minute meal break between 11 AM and 2 PM.
For shifts starting before 11 AM and lasting more than six hours, or starting between 1 PM and 6 AM and lasting more than six hours, employees are entitled to a 45-minute meal break at the midpoint of their shift.
Reporting Time Pay
New York Labor Law requires employers to provide an additional hour of pay at the minimum wage rate. This is known as “spread of hours” pay and applies regardless of the employee’s regular rate of pay.
