Assemblymember Phil Steck (D-Colonie) announced that legislation he authored to prevent wage theft from foreign Limited Liability Companies (LLC) has passed the Assembly (A.5131). The bill would ensure that LLCs that were formed outside of New York but have employees in the state are held to the same standards as companies that were formed and are based in-state and will ensure that workers receive protections against wages being unpaid.

“Instances of businesses using loopholes to get out of paying their employees are all too common,” said Assemblymember Steck. “Nobody who works to provide for their families should have to worry about their employer not meeting their end of the deal. Every worker deserves the pay they have earned.”

In 2015, Steck passed legislation that imposed liability for unpaid wages on the shareholders with the 10 largest ownership interests of a foreign (either from another state or nation) corporation after a judgment against the corporation for unpaid wages of New York workers (Ch. 421 of 2015). This legislation will ensure LLCs that are set up in other states or nations but do business and have employees in New York will abide by the same law, ensuring New Yorkers get money they’ve earned while eliminating an incentive for companies to set their businesses up in other states or nations to escape paying wages to New York employees.

In the last three years, more than 5,000 workers lost more than $67 million in unpaid wages from out-of-state LLCs, noted Steck.1

“As an attorney who works in labor law, I’ve always stood up for worker’s rights,” added Steck. “I will continue to push for more protections that ensure New Yorkers aren’t treated unfairly by their employers and receive their fair compensation.

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