Help Wanted: How to hunt down unpaid salary

"If the funds were never deposited or cashed, the employer would still be obligated to pay the wages under labor law. However, as it is unlikely that a bank would still honor such dated checks, she should probably go back to the company to request replacement checks.

"She could also check with the employer to see if these funds have already been turned over to the state comptroller as abandoned property funds. She could also access the comptroller's website to see if her name appears on their list."

So keep pressuring the company to issue you new checks. But if your employer continues to drag its feet and the funds don't turn up on the comptroller's list, call the Labor Department at 516-794-8195 or 212-775-3880.

"You can't get an increase on benefits you're not receiving," Social Security said.

But here's some good news for you. Since your full retirement age is 66 and you delayed your benefits to age 67, you are entitled to an 8 percent delayed-retirement credit, Social Security said. So if Social Security calculated your benefits at, say, $1,000 a month, that 8 percent credit would take that monthly amount up to $1,080. And if you are on the rolls when the next COLA increase takes effect, your raise will be calculated on that amount.

And it's legal for the company not to pay your daughter when it closes for holidays because employers have to pay hourly employees only for the hours they work. This may seem unfair, but it's legal.