October Tip of the Month: Preparing for New York’s 2026 Minimum Wage and Overtime Exemption Updates
Effective January 1, 2026, the state of New York will implement increases to both the minimum wage and overtime exemption salary thresholds.
The minimum wage will increase to $17.00 per hour for employees located in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County (Downstate Employees) and $16.00 per hour for employees in the remainder of New York state. In addition, the annual salary threshold for certain overtime exemptions will increase to $66,300 for Downstate Employees and $62,353.20 for employees in the rest of the state. Employers should promptly begin preparing to implement these forthcoming changes, including by reviewing employees’ exemption status and compensation structure and assessing overtime practices.
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Notice
Before proceeding, please note: If you are not a current client of Perkins Coie, please do not include any information in this e-mail that you or someone else considers to be of a confidential or secret nature. Perkins Coie has no duty to keep confidential any of the information you provide. Neither the transmission nor receipt of your information is considered a request for legal advice, securing or retaining a lawyer. An attorney-client relationship with Perkins Coie or any lawyer at Perkins Coie is not established until and unless Perkins Coie agrees to such a relationship as memorialized in a separate writing.