Unpaid Wages & Overtime Attorneys

When you were not paid what you earned

If you worked it, you should be paid for it

Wage theft is common, and it rarely looks dramatic. It is the overtime that never shows up on the check, the flat weekly amount that stays the same no matter how many hours you work, the tips a manager keeps, or the last paycheck that never arrives. Federal law and the laws of New York, New Jersey and Florida give workers the right to recover what they are owed, and often more.

Usher Law Group represents workers in wage and hour cases in state and federal court. Wages are owed no matter your immigration status, and your employer is not allowed to punish you for asking about your pay.

Common wage and hour violations

• Unpaid overtime. Most hourly workers must be paid one and a half times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek.
• Flat pay for long weeks. A fixed weekly amount does not cover overtime unless the job is truly exempt.
• Misclassification. Calling a worker an "independent contractor" or a "manager" does not make it so. The law looks at the real job.
• Off-the-clock work. Work before clocking in, after clocking out or during unpaid breaks still counts.
• Tip violations. Owners and managers may not keep workers' tips, and tip credits are only allowed when the rules are followed.
• Illegal deductions. Charges for uniforms, shortages, breakage or equipment are often unlawful.
• Late or missing final pay. Leaving a job does not end your right to your last check.

Minimum wage in 2026

For overtime, being paid a salary is not enough. An employer that claims an exemption must show that both the salary and the actual duties meet the test, and the U.S. Supreme Court held in E.M.D. Sales, Inc. v. Carrera (2025) that the employer must prove it by the ordinary preponderance standard. New York's salary thresholds for exempt workers are well above the federal figure of $684 a week.

Deadlines and what you can recover

Because the time limits run from each paycheck, waiting can cost you money. Older pay periods drop out as time passes.

Are you an employee or an independent contractor?

Many workers are paid as contractors when the law treats them as employees. New Jersey uses the strict "ABC test," which presumes that a person paid for services is an employee. Federal law looks at the economic reality of the relationship, and New York applies a control-based test with special presumptions for construction and commercial goods transportation. If you are misclassified, you may be owed overtime, minimum wage and other protections.

What to save

• Pay stubs, checks, envelopes and bank deposits
• Your own notes of the days and hours you worked
• Texts, schedules and group chats about shifts
• Any pay notice you received when you were hired
• Names of coworkers who saw your hours

ProperWage.com has a printable checklist and a time-limit clock to help you organize.

How we help

We review your pay records and hours, calculate what you are owed under every law that applies, send a demand, and file in court or with the labor department when that is the better path. Wage claims can be brought by one worker or by a group of coworkers together. Settlements of federal wage claims in New York generally need a court's or the Labor Department's approval, which protects workers from signing away their rights for too little.

Learn more about New York Labor Law claims, New Jersey wage and hour claims, Florida wage claims and retaliation.

Frequently asked questions