100% liquidated. 6-year lookback. 9% interest. Attorney fees.
New York has the most aggressive wage damages framework in the U.S. for most violations: 100% liquidated damages, 9% statutory interest, mandatory attorney fee shifting, and a six-year statute of limitations. A simple unpaid OT claim from 5 years ago compounds dramatically: the underlying wages, plus 100% liquidated, plus 9% per year for 5 years, plus the attorney's billable hours. Six-year exposure is also why technical compliance matters — small problems accumulate into very large numbers.
Damages Exposure Tracking
Tracks wage compliance with rolling 6-year visibility. Surfaces accumulated exposure under § 198 (100% liquidated) and § 218 (up to 200% civil penalty). Models damages on detected violations to inform remediation priority.
What the rule does as exposure infrastructure.
This isn't a substantive rule but the damages framework that gives every other NY rule its teeth. Visibility into accumulated exposure drives remediation priority.
When detected wage violations (per category, per worker, per period) accumulate to a threshold of exposure (configurable, e.g., $50K + 5 affected workers), Teambridge surfaces a Critical alert. Triage workflow opens: cure path, remediation, settlement modeling.
All wage data — rates, hours, premiums, deductions — retained for 6 years per § 195(4)/§ 661. Audit-defensible against NYSDOL inquiries and private discovery requests.
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Damages framework. 6-year horizon. Aggressive enforcement.
Three statutes combine to create NY's damages environment: § 198 (private actions, 100% liquidated), § 218 (NYSDOL civil penalties, up to 200%), and § 663 (overtime-specific damages mirroring FLSA but with 6-year statute).
100% liquidated damages = doubling
When a wage violation is established (court or NYSDOL), the employer owes the unpaid wages PLUS another 100% as liquidated damages. So $50,000 in unpaid OT becomes a $100,000 obligation before interest, fees, and penalties. The 'good faith' defense can defeat liquidated damages but is narrowly construed.
9% statutory interest, not federal rate
NY statutory interest under CPLR § 5004 is 9% per year, much higher than the federal rate or the post-judgment Treasury rate. A 5-year-old wage claim accumulates substantial interest before resolution. The 2026 budget added a 15% surcharge on unpaid wage judgments — pushing total interest exposure even higher.
Teambridge maintains the rolling 6-year window with exposure visibility.
Damages exposure isn't theoretical — it's a function of detected violations × workers × time × statutory multipliers. Visibility into accumulated exposure drives remediation priority.
Per § 195(4) and § 661.
All wage data retained for 6 years: rates, hours, premiums, deductions, payroll runs, wage statements. Aligned with the wage claim statute. Defensible against NYSDOL and private discovery.
Per category, per worker, per period.
When the system detects a violation (e.g., OT calculation missed spread-of-hours, vacation withheld without policy, late final paycheck), the violation is logged with the underlying facts.
Underlying + 100% + 9% × years + fees.
For each detected violation, exposure modeled: underlying wage amount + 100% liquidated + 9% statutory interest × years since violation + estimated attorney fees. Aggregate exposure surfaced at the employer level.
By exposure, not chronology.
Remediation prioritized by accumulated exposure, not when issues happened. A small old issue affecting many workers may dwarf a recent issue affecting one. Triage workflow guides cure or settlement.
Still evaluating? Get a free New York compliance audit.
Send us your existing New York scheduling and pay configuration. Our compliance team returns a written audit within 5 business days — every New York-specific exposure ranked by risk and back-pay liability.