New York's wage laws are among the most worker-friendly in the country, and most of the people they protect never use them. Labor Law § 198 adds 100% liquidated damages on every unpaid dollar, plus your attorney fees, with a six-year lookback. The Freelance Isn't Free Act doubles an unpaid freelance invoice statewide. Labor Law § 191-c doubles unpaid sales commissions. Illegal paycheck deductions under § 193 are wage claims with the same doubling.
For a large claim, an employment lawyer on contingency or a free Department of Labor complaint may be the better route, and the intake says so honestly when that's true. For a clear, modest claim where you want speed and a direct demand from counsel, these letters are the tool: flat fee, signed by a New York attorney, certified mail within 48 hours.
For most claims under a few thousand dollars, a signed attorney demand letter citing the liquidated-damages statute gets the conversation that a complaint from an employee doesn't. If your claim is large, involves many workers, or includes discrimination, full representation is the right tool, the intake routes those matters to the firm instead of selling you a letter.
Retaliation for asserting wage rights is itself unlawful under Labor Law § 215, and the letter is drafted with your continued employment in mind where that applies.
If you are a genuine independent contractor, the Freelance Isn't Free Act letter applies to unpaid invoices. If you were labeled 1099 but controlled like an employee, New York looks at the reality, not the label, read the misclassification guide below.