Quick Tips:

Document everything. Keep records of emails, pay stubs, performance reviews, texts, anything.

Act fast. Most agencies have strict deadlines (some as short as 180 days from the incident).

Legal help: Some violations warrant calling a lawyer. Legal Aid, unions, or nonprofit orgs can help too.

Federal

U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

Issues: Wage theft, unpaid overtime, family and medical leave, child labor, misclassification

Division to contact: Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

www.dol.gov

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Issues: Unsafe or unhealthy working conditions, workplace hazards

www.osha.gov

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

Issues: Discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age (40+), disability, genetic info

www.eeoc.gov

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)

Issues: Right to unionize, employer retaliation for organizing, unfair labor practices

www.nlrb.gov

Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)

Issues: Discrimination by federal contractors

www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp 

Whistleblower Protection Programs (via OSHA or Office of Special Counsel)

Issues: Retaliation for reporting violations (fraud, safety, ethics, etc.)

www.whistleblowers.gov

New York State

New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL)

Issues: Wage complaints, unemployment insurance, paid family leave, retaliation

dol.ny.gov

New York State Division of Human Rights

Issues: Workplace discrimination (mirrors EEOC but for state-level claims)

dhr.ny.gov

New York City Commission on Human Rights

Issues: Local NYC enforcement of anti-discrimination laws

www.nyc.gov/humanrights

Attorney General’s Labor Bureau

Issues: Employer retaliation, wage theft, large-scale labor abuses

ag.ny.gov/bureau/labor-bureau

Workers’ Compensation Board

Issues: Work-related injuries, employer retaliation for filing claims

www.wcb.ny.gov

New York Paid Family Leave

Issues: Time off to care for family, bond with a child, or handle military exigencies

paidfamilyleave.ny.gov

Federal

U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)

What they offer: Loans, grants, business counseling, federal contracting help, disaster recovery

Programs:

Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs)

Women’s Business Centers (WBCs)

8(a) Business Development Program (for disadvantaged businesses)

www.sba.gov

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) – Small Business & Self-Employed Tax Center

What they offer: Guides on how to file taxes, deduct expenses, hire employees

www.irs.gov/businesses

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

What they offer: Protect your brand, logo, invention, or idea

www.uspto.gov

Grants.gov

What they offer: Search tool for federal grant opportunities (not common for startups, but good for nonprofits, research-based ventures, and underrepresented founders)

www.grants.gov

New York State and Local

NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS)

What they offer: Licensing help, courses, financing assistance, MWBE certification, commercial lease support

https://www.nyc.gov/site/sbs/businesses/businesses.page

Empire State Development (ESD)

What they offer: Grants, loans, state contracts, tax credits (e.g., Excelsior Jobs Program), MWBE resources

esd.ny.gov

Business Express NY

What they offer: One-stop portal for forming a business, permits, tax registrations, and more

www.businessexpress.ny.gov

New York Public Library – Business Centers

What they offer: Free market research, workshops, 1:1 business help, competitive intel databases like IBISWorld and Statista

https://www.nypl.org/locations/snfl/yoseloff-business

Nonprofit and Community Support

SCORE Mentors

What they offer: Free business mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs, live webinars, and templates

www.score.org

National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE)

What they offer: Grants, business tools, health insurance help

www.nase.org

Kauffman Foundation

What they offer: Research, education, and policy support for entrepreneurs

www.kauffman.org

Hello Alice

What they offer: Grants, funding, learning resources—especially for women, veterans, and BIPOC entrepreneurs

www.helloalice.com

Local Chambers of Commerce & Minority Chambers

What they offer: Business networking, policy advocacy, access to contracts, and community-based support

https://chamber.nyc/

Coursera (Free Courses)

Ivy League and top university courses

Business, data science, leadership, entrepreneurship

—> Tip: Select “Audit” to take courses for free without a certificate

www.coursera.org

edX

Harvard, MIT, Columbia, and other major universities

Free to audit (pay only for a certificate)

—> Great for business strategy, computer science, and marketing

www.edx.org

Khan Academy

Completely free, nonprofit platform

Finance, economics, entrepreneurship, math, computer programming

www.khanacademy.org  

LinkedIn Learning (Free via Library Card)

Premium skill-building courses (tech, business, leadership)

www.linkedin.com/learning or your local library

—> NY Public Library FREE LinkedIn Learning (Lynda)

https://libguides.nypl.org/career_change_and_occupational_information/lynda

Grow with Google NYC

Local training, bootcamps, and digital skills programs

grow.google

SBA Learning Platform

U.S. Small Business Administration's free courses

Business planning, funding, marketing, legal basics

learn.sba.gov

Google Digital Garage

Free certificates in digital marketing, e-commerce, analytics

—> Highly recommended for solopreneurs and startups

learndigital.withgoogle.com

Microsoft

Free Microsoft office training

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/training

HubSpot Academy

Digital marketing, content strategy, sales funnels, CRMs

Free certifications, especially good for startups

academy.hubspot.com

Facebook Blueprint / Meta Learn

Ads, business pages, Instagram marketing, audience growth

www.facebook.com/business/learn

freeCodeCamp

Learn HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python, APIs, data science

Full developer curriculum—100% free, no catches

www.freecodecamp.org

MIT OpenCourseWare

Free MIT courses—deep dives into entrepreneurship, computer science, and systems thinking

ocw.mit.edu

Codeacademy (Free Plan)

Interactive coding lessons in multiple languages

www.codecademy.com

The Odin Project

Full-stack web dev training—frontend to backend, Git, and deployment

www.theodinproject.com

Alison

Career development, soft skills, finance, operations, customer service

Free diplomas and certificates available

www.alison.com

TED-Ed & TED Talks

Short, sharp videos to spark ideas, communication skills, leadership, innovation

ed.ted.com  & www.ted.com/talks

NY Public Library Discount and Free Resources:

https://www.nypl.org/get-help/community-resources

Meditations
- Marcus Aurelius

Leadership in Turbulent Times
- Doris Kearns Goodwin

Poor Charlie’s Almanac
- Charles T Munger

The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and The Great Age of American Innovation
- Jon Gertner

Neuromancer
- William Gibson

The Snowball Warren Buffett and the Business of Life
- Alice Schroeder

Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology
- Chris Miller

The Anxious Generation
- Jonathan Haidt

The Power of Now
- Eckhart Tolle

Positive Intelligence
- Shirzad Chamine

The Secret
- Rhonda Byrne

Good to Great
- Jim Collins

How to Win Friends and Influence People
- Dale Carnegie

Think Like a Monk
- Jay Shettyption