Under federal1 and New York state2 law, it is illegal for your employer to retaliate against you for complaining about unlawful pay practices.
Unlawful pay practices include minimum wage3 and overtime violations4 and improper recordkeeping5. Your complaints are protected regardless of how they are made (i.e., verbally or more formally in writing) and to whom they are made (i.e., directly to your employer or to a government agency such as the Department of Labor). And, assuming you had a good faith basis for believing your employer had engaged in unlawful pay practices, it would still be illegal for your employer to retaliate against you for making such a complaint, even if that complaint ultimately turns out to be incorrect.
What does retaliation look like? In the worst cases it can mean termination, but retaliation can take other forms as well, including demotion, stripping of job responsibilities, increased scrutiny from your supervisor, transfer to a less desirable job, negative performance feedback, being put on a performance improvement plan, unreasonable denials of requests for vacation or time off, or threats to report or actually reporting you or your family/household members’ suspected citizenship or immigration status to government authorities (such as the police or immigration agents).6
If you think you have experienced retaliation from your employer for complaining about unlawful pay practices, Bantle & Levy LLP can help you assess your case and determine the best steps for you to take.
1Section 15(a)(3) of the Fair Labor Standards Act states that it is a violation for any person to “discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any employee because such employee has filed any complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to this Act, or has testified or is about to testify in any such proceeding, or has served or is about to serve on an industry committee.” 29 U.S.C. § 215(a)(3).
2The New York Labor Law provides that “[n]o employer or his or her agent, or the officer or agent of any corporation, partnership, or limited liability company, or any other person, shall discharge, threaten, penalize, or in any other manner discriminate or retaliate against any employee (i) because such employee has made a complaint to his or her employer, or to the commissioner or his or her authorized representative, or to the attorney general or any other person, that the employer has engaged in conduct that the employee, reasonably and in good faith, believes violates any provision of this chapter, or any order issued by the commissioner (ii) because such employer or person believes that such employee has made a complaint to his or her employer, or to the commissioner or his or her authorized representative, or to the attorney general, or to any other person that the employer has violated any provision of this chapter, or any order issued by the commissioner (iii) because such employee has caused to be instituted or is about to institute a proceeding under or related to this chapter, or (iv) because such employee has provided information to the commissioner or his or her authorized representative or the attorney general, or (v) because such employee has testified or is about to testify in an investigation or proceeding under this chapter, or (vi) because such employee has otherwise exercised rights protected under this chapter, or (vii) because the employer has received an adverse determination from the commissioner involving the employee, or (viii) because such employee has used any legally protected absence pursuant to federal, local, or state law.” N.Y.L.L. § 215(1)(a).
329 U.S.C. § 206; N.Y.L.L. § 652.
429 U.S.C. § 207; 12 N.Y.C.R.R. § 142-2.2.
529 U.S.C. § 211; N.Y.L.L. § 195.
6See N.Y.L.L. § 215(1)(a).
