New York — Termination

New York follows the at-will employment doctrine. Absent a constitutional violation, statutory prohibition, or express contractual limitation, an employer may terminate an employee at any time and for any reason—or no reason at all—without prior notice. Employees likewise may resign at any time without giving a reason. However, an employer cannot fire an employee for an illegal reason, including discrimination based on protected characteristics or retaliation for whistleblowing or other protected activities.

Source: Murphy v. American Home Products Corp., 58 N.Y.2d 293, 448 N.E.2d 86 (1983) | NY Attorney General — Job Termination

New York Labor Law § 191(3) requires employers to pay all wages earned through the date of termination no later than the regular payday for the pay period during which the termination occurred. This timing rule applies uniformly regardless of whether the employment ended through employer-initiated termination, layoff, or voluntary resignation by the employee.

The "regular payday" is determined by the employee's classification under § 191(1). Manual workers must ordinarily be paid weekly (not later than seven calendar days after the end of the workweek); clerical and other workers must be paid at least semi-monthly on regular paydays designated in advance by the employer; railroad workers on or before Thursday of each week for wages earned through the prior Tuesday; and commission salespersons in accordance with agreed terms but not less frequently than once per month. The final-paycheck obligation under § 191(3) incorporates these classification-specific regular paydays. An employer who pays clerical employees bi-weekly on Fridays, for example, must pay a departing clerical employee's final wages on the next scheduled Friday following termination, even if termination occurred early in that pay period.

Employee's right to request mailing. Section 191(3) provides that "[i]f requested by the employee, such wages shall be paid by mail." The statute does not impose any formality requirement for the request; an employee may request mailing orally or in writing. Employers must ensure that a mailed final check is sent in time for the employee to receive it by the statutory deadline—the regular payday itself. Courts construe the timing requirement strictly; a check mailed on the regular payday that arrives later does not satisfy § 191(3) if the employee requested mailing and the check could not reasonably have arrived by the payday.

Wages subject to final-paycheck timing. The § 191(3) obligation extends to "wages," which under New York law encompasses regular hourly or salary pay, accrued overtime, earned commissions (governed by the commission agreement and § 191(1)(c) timing rules), and earned bonuses. The statute does not itself mandate payout of unused vacation, paid time off, or sick leave; treatment of accrued leave on termination is governed by the employer's written policy or an applicable collective bargaining agreement. However, once an employer's policy or agreement treats unused leave as "wages earned," the amounts become subject to § 191(3)'s regular-payday timing requirement.

Practical interaction with pay-frequency rules. Employers with manual workers face a tighter final-paycheck window than those employing only clerical staff. A manual worker terminated mid-week must receive final wages by the following week's regular payday (typically within 7–10 days of termination). A clerical employee terminated mid-period in a bi-weekly cycle may not receive final wages for up to two weeks after termination—but no longer. Employers processing multi-state terminations should note that New York's "regular payday" standard is more employee-favorable than states permitting longer final-pay delays.

Civil penalties for late payment — current DOL practice. Employers who fail to pay final wages by the § 191(3) deadline face civil penalties. Statutorily, N.Y. Labor Law § 197 provides for a penalty of up to $500 per violation. However, in practice, the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) enforces higher penalties under its LS-255 guidance: up to $1,000 for a first violation, $2,000 for a second violation, and $3,000 for a third or subsequent violation, depending on factors such as history and gravity of the offense. Liquidated damages and attorneys' fees may also apply under § 198(1-a) and (4). The DOL's Division of Labor Standards is the primary enforcement arm for these provisions and may issue orders to pay, assess penalties, and pursue criminal misdemeanor charges for willful violations under § 198(2).

Source: N.Y. Lab. Law § 191 | N.Y. Lab. Law § 197 | NYS DOL LS-255 Penalty Guidelines

New York — enforceability of vacation/PTO forfeiture at termination (policy requirements)

New York does not require employers to offer paid vacation or paid time off (PTO). However, when an employer chooses to provide such benefits, the rules for whether accrued but unused vacation or PTO is paid out at termination depend entirely on the employer’s written policy or a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), if one applies.

Written, explicit policy is required. Under N.Y. Lab. Law § 195.5, every employer must notify employees in writing or by public posting of their policies on vacation, sick leave, personal leave, and holidays. New York’s Industrial Appeals Board (IAB) has held that if an employer’s written policy unambiguously states that accrued vacation/PTO is forfeited at separation, that policy controls, and no payout is required. If the policy is silent or ambiguous, the IAB resolves disputes in favor of the employee and requires payout of accrued leave. In Marc Hochlerin and Ace Audio Video, Inc., the IAB explained: “If the employer intends that earned vacation not be paid at termination, the policy must so state in clear and unambiguous terms.”

No statute-mandated acknowledgment or specific notice timing. The law does not require individual written acknowledgment by employees nor does it require individualized advance delivery of the policy. Employer compliance is met by making the written policy (with any forfeiture provision) available to employees in the handbook, posting, or other accessible written format.

Practical pointer. Forfeiture of accrued vacation or PTO at termination is enforceable in New York only if:

• The forfeiture provision is explicit, unambiguous, and in writing.
• The written policy or CBA was available to the employee during employment.

When a policy is not clear, or is altogether silent on forfeiture, the IAB will favor the employee’s claim to payout of accrued leave.

Source: N.Y. Lab. Law § 195.5 | Industrial Appeals Board, Marc Hochlerin and Ace Audio Video, Inc. (2014)

New York’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (NY WARN) Act, Article 25-A of the Labor Law, requires certain employers to provide written notice at least 90 calendar days before a mass layoff, plant closing, or relocation of business operations. Notice requirements, triggers, exceptions, and penalties are defined in §§ 860-A to 860-H.

Who is covered? The NY WARN Act applies to any private employer with 50 or more full-time employees in New York State (see § 860-A(1)). The law triggers if, within a 30-day period:

• Plant closing: A permanent or temporary shutdown results in an "employment loss" for 25 or more full-time employees at a single site (§ 860-A(2), § 860-B(1)(a)),
• Mass layoff: Either (i) at least 25 full-time employees comprising at least 33% of employees at one site, or (ii) 250 or more full-time employees (regardless of site percentage) experience an "employment loss" (§ 860-A(3), § 860-B(1)(b)),
• Relocation: All or substantially all operations are moved to a location at least 50 miles away, affecting 25 or more full-time employees (§ 860-A(5), § 860-B(1)(c)).

Notice recipients and content: Notice must be provided to:

• Each affected employee (and, if applicable, their union representatives) (§ 860-B(1)),
• The New York State Department of Labor (§ 860-B(1)),
• The local workforce investment board (§ 860-B(1)),
• The chief elected official of the unit of local government and school district(s) where the site is located (§ 860-B(1)),
• Each locality providing emergency services to the site (§ 860-B(1)).

Notice must be in writing and include all information prescribed by statute.

Penalties for noncompliance: Employers who fail to provide timely notice are liable for:

• Up to 60 days’ back pay and benefits to each affected employee (paid at the higher of the average regular rate over the last 3 years or the final rate), as per § 860-G(1), and
• A civil penalty of up to $500 per day for each day of violation (aggregate, not per employee), per § 860-G(2). The commissioner may reduce the penalty if the employer demonstrates good faith or meets other mitigating criteria set out in the statute.

Exceptions: Only notice reductions related to a "physical calamity, natural or man-made disaster, act of terrorism, or act of war" are recognized by § 860-C. Economic hardship—including faltering company or actively seeking capital (which are exceptions under federal WARN, 29 U.S.C. § 2102(b))—do NOT excuse timely notice under NY law (§ 860-C(1)).

Federal vs. NY WARN: Compliance with the federal WARN Act (29 U.S.C. §§ 2101–2109) does NOT excuse or substitute for compliance with NY WARN’s requirements (§ 860-H).

Source: N.Y. Lab. Law § 860-A | N.Y. Lab. Law § 860-B | N.Y. Lab. Law § 860-C | N.Y. Lab. Law § 860-G | N.Y. Lab. Law § 860-H

When a commission salesperson (one paid at least in part by commission) is terminated, New York law gives them a distinct and much faster final-pay rule compared to other categories of employees. Under N.Y. Labor Law § 191-c(1): “When a contract between a principal and a sales representative is terminated, all earned commissions shall be paid within five business days after termination or within five business days after they become due in the case of earned commissions not due when the contract is terminated.” Unlike the general final-pay rule (N.Y. Lab. Law § 191(3)), which allows payment on the regular payday, § 191-c requires that commission earnings be paid no later than five business days from termination or the date due, whichever is later. That means commission salespersons are statutorily entitled to much faster access to their earnings at the end of employment than most other employees—an intentional "fast track" under New York law.

If an employer fails to pay all commissions owed under § 191-c, the New York State Department of Labor has authority under N.Y. Labor Law § 218 to impose civil penalties, including up to 200% of the unpaid wage amount as a penalty where the violation is willful or egregious. These remedies may be sought in addition to any recovery of the commissions themselves. The Industrial Appeals Board has affirmed the application of these penalty provisions to commission wage claims, including cases where a principal failed to pay earned commissions after a contract with a sales representative ended.

No primary-source authority from a .gov-hosted statute or regulation was located that confirms the right to recover attorney’s fees or costs specifically for § 191-c violations, so practitioners should be aware that such claims remain unconfirmed as of 2026-07-08.

Source: N.Y. Labor Law § 191-c(1) | N.Y. Labor Law § 191(3) | N.Y. Labor Law § 218 | In the Matter of the claim of John E. Tripp/Interiors by JW, Inc., IAB Case No. PR 08-117