Legal Aid Society

Employment

The Legal Aid Society provides legal services to low-wage and unemployed workers on issues related to employment.

How To Get Help

The Employment Law Unit assists workers on cases relating to workplace discrimination, unpaid wages or overtime, labor trafficking, unemployment insurance, and family, medical, or sick leave. For assistance with any of the issues outlined above please call our Access to Benefits helpline at 888-663-6880 Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The Worker Justice Project combats discrimination faced by workers with arrest or conviction records living in New York City. If you have been denied a job or a license because of your arrest or conviction record and you live in New York City, email the Worker Justice Project at WorkerJustice@legal-aid.org or call 888-663-6880 Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Important Things To Know

What You Need to Know About Preventing Workplace Discrimination.

Learn More

What You Need to Know About Preventing Wage Theft.

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What You Need to Know About Unemployment Insurance.

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Terms You Might Hear

The justice system can be overwhelming. Get familiar with some legal terms and acronyms you might hear like appeal, adjournment, petition, jurisdiction, deposition, and affidavit.

  • Adjournment – A temporary postponement of a case until a specified future time.
  • Attorney – A person admitted to practice law and authorized to perform criminal and civil legal functions on behalf of clients.
  • Brief – A written document prepared by the lawyers on each side of a dispute that is submitted to the court in support of each side's argument. It includes the points of law which the lawyer wishes to establish, the arguments the lawyer will use, and the legal authorities on which the lawyer rests their conclusions.
  • Certificates of Good Conduct – If you have a criminal record, a Cerificate of Good Conduct can help you reduce legal barriers to employment, voting, and housing.
  • Certificates of Relief from Disabilities – A Certificate of Relief from Disabilities can remove certain consequences of a criminal conviction. Having a CRD can remove bars when applying for jobs, licenses, public housing and more.
  • Clerk – An official or employee of the court who maintains the files of each case, and issues routine documents.
  • Conviction – A criminal proceeding that concludes the defendant is guilty of the charged crime.
  • Delinquency – An offense or misdemeanor; a misdeed; A debt or other financial obligation on which payment is overdue.
  • Dismissal – Termination of a proceeding for a procedurally prescribed reason.
  • Evidence – A form of proof or probative matter legally presented at the trial of an issue by the acts of the parties and through witnesses, records, documents, concrete objects, etc., for the purpose of inducing belief in the minds of the court or the jury.
  • Expunge – To intentionally destroy, obliterate, or strike out records or information in files, computers, and other depositories.
  • Felony – An offense of graver character than a misdemeanor and usu. punished by imprisonment for more than one year.
  • Jurisdiction – The ability for the court to decide the case, based on the type of case.
  • Lawyer – Someone whose job is to give advice to people about the law and speak for them in court.
  • Lien – A claim on specific property for payment of a debt.
  • Minutes – Notes of what happened in the courtroom.
  • Misdemeanor – Lesser crime punishable by a fine and/or county jail time for up to one year. Misdemeanors are distinguished from felonies which can be punished by a state prison term.
  • Monetary Determination – A determination issued to a worker in the form of a written notice which lists the base period employers and wages the claim was based on and the potential benefit amount.
  • Motion – A request to the court, usually in writing, for relief before the trial on the parties' claims, or for different or additional relief after the trial decision.
  • Order of Protection – A court order requiring someone to stay a certain distance from another person, and sometimes, their children, home, pets, school or employment.
  • Party – Person having a direct interest in a legal matter, transaction or proceeding.
  • Petition – In special or summary proceedings, a paper like a document filed in court and delivered to the respondents, stating what the petitioner requests from the court and the respondents.
  • Probation – The condition of being allowed freedom if they commit no more crimes and follow certain rules.
  • Proceeding – A type of lawsuit. For example: In Housing Court, a nonpayment proceeding seeks past-due rent; a holdover proceeding seeks possession of the premises.
  • RAP Sheet – A record kept by law-enforcement authorities of a person's arrests and convictions.
  • TPS – Temporary Protective Status. Offers temporary legal status to certain immigrants in the United States who cannot return to their home country due to ongoing armed conflict, natural disaster, or other extraordinary reasons.
  • Vacate – To cancel or set aside.
  • Waive – To voluntarily give up a right. Examples include not enforcing the terms of a contract, or knowingly giving up a legal right such as a speedy trial.
  • Warrant – An official document approved by an authority (normally a judge) which gives the police permission to do certain things.
  • Witness – A person who testifies to what they have seen, heard, or otherwise observed.