New York City has recognized that ordinary practices at construction sites (such as shared tools, huddled shift meetings, and packed schedules with various trade contractors) can present unique dangers at construction sites and has issued guidance to construction workers on best practices to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Articles Discussing General Topics In New York Labor & Employment Law.
New York Enacts Legislation Related to Board Diversity
New York recently enacted the “Women on Corporate Boards Study” law (S. 4278), joining a growing number of states requiring organizations to report their board composition. The new law applies to domestic and foreign corporations “authorized to do business” in the state. Given the expanse of companies doing business in
New York City Commission on Human Rights Proposes Rules Addressing Exceptions to Prohibition on Pre-Employment Marijuana Screening
On March 10, 2020, the New York City Commission on Human Rights (the “Commission”) proposed rules addressing exceptions recognized under the city’s ordinance generally prohibiting pre-employment testing for marijuana and tetrahydrocannabinols (THC)–the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. The ban on pre-employment testing for marijuana and THC is slated to take effect on May 10, 2020. The Commission announced a notice of public hearing and opportunity to comment on the proposed rules. All comments must be submitted by April 16, 2020.
New York’s New Quarantine Leave Law
With federal and state legislation constantly evolving, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office issuing multiple executive orders, New York employers are struggling to understand their coronavirus (COVID-19) paid leave obligations. The key provisions of the state’s new Quarantine Leave Law, which went into effect immediately upon signing on March 18, are discussed below.
New York State Enacts Emergency Paid Sick Leave Law and Orders Employers to Reduce 100% of In-Person Nonessential Workers
On March 18, 2020, New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed a bill that guarantees emergency paid sick leave and job protections for individuals who have been quarantined as a result of the Coronavirus, or COVID-19. It does not include permanent paid sick leave, which the draft had included. The revised bill is effective immediately, making it critical that all employers are aware of its provisions and their obligations under the bill.
New York State Mandates Total Reduction of Onsite Workforces for Non-Essential Businesses, Guarantees Job Protection and Pay for Quarantined Workers
At a press conference on March 20, Gov. Andrew Cuomo indicated he will be issuing an order directing non-essential businesses to reduce in-person employees 100 percent
New York Legislation Provides New Leave Time for Employees Subject to COVID-19 Quarantine, Effective Immediately
New York State adopted new legislation on March 18, 2020, in response to the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) across New York. The legislation provides employees, who are subject to a COVID-19 mandatory or precautionary quarantine or isolation order, with immediate paid or unpaid time off specific to the current crisis.
New York City Commission On Human Rights Proposes Exceptions To Prohibitions On Pre-Employment Marijuana Testing
The New York City Commission on Human Rights announced a notice of public hearing and opportunity to comment on a proposed rule providing exceptions to the prohibition on pre-employment marijuana testing that will take effect in the City on May 10, 2020. Comments on the proposed rule may be submitted
New York Governor Announces Agreement on Coronavirus Job Protection and Paid Sick Leave
On March 17, 2020, New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced an agreement with the state legislature on a bill guaranteeing unpaid and paid sick leave and job protection for individuals who have been quarantined as a result of the Coronavirus, or COVID-19.
Striking Workers in New York State Can Now Collect Unemployment Benefits After Only Two Weeks
Effective February 6, 2020, New York employees who are out of work due to a labor dispute, such as a strike, are eligible to collect unemployment benefits after a waiting period of only 14 days. Under existing law, which will not change, employees who are out of work as a result of a lockout or who are permanently replaced may be entitled to collect unemployment benefits even earlier.
New York’s Farm Wage Board Begins Meetings on Overtime Threshold for Agricultural Laborers
New York’s Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act went into effect on January 1, 2020, drastically altering the employment relationship between agricultural employees and their employers. Until now, workplace protections for farm laborers lagged far behind those in other industries.
New York Adopts New Data Security and Privacy Regulations for Schools and Their Vendors
We observed in a post on this blog that government agencies, businesses, hospitals, universities and school districts are frequent targets of data breaches that can affect millions of individuals. Cyberattacks on school districts continue to appear in the news. In January, students in the Pittsburg Unified School District (California) were left without internet access as a result of a ransomware attack, which compromised the schools’ servers and email. The Richmond Community Schools in Michigan suffered a similar cyber attack when threat actors infiltrated and locked down the schools’ servers and demanded a $10,000 ransom to return control of those servers.
New York and New Jersey Join Growing Ranks of States Penalizing Call Center Relocation
In response to growing public concerns over outsourcing and offshoring, state legislators across the country have recently introduced a spate of bills intended to crack down on businesses that move call center operations out of state. Many of these bills require employers to provide advance notice to the state of impending relocations and impose significant penalties for failure to comply. The proposals also typically obligate state officials to create and publish a list of employers transferring jobs out of state and render those employers ineligible for tax or other incentives for several years. Some bills also authorize government agencies to recoup incentives previously given to employers that relocate call center jobs.
New York City Issues Guidance Clarifying New Independent Contractor Protections under Human Rights Law
The New York City Commission on Human Rights (NYCCHR) has released a factsheet providing guidance on its view of the scope of the anti-discrimination protections provided to individuals performing services as independent contractors and freelancers under the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) that went into effect January 11, 2020.
Is the Gig Economy on Life Support? New York Proposes Process for Sweeping Changes to Worker Classification
In his 2020 budget proposal, Governor Andrew Cuomo proposed creating a 9-member marketplace worker classification task force to address seismic changes to the way independent contractors and other gig economy workers are classified. This task force will have until May 1, 2020 to propose legislation that addresses: wages; health and safety protections; specific categories of benefits; worker classification; criteria to determine if a worker is an employee; collective bargaining; anti-discrimination; opportunity; and privacy concerns. If the task force fails to make significant legislative proposals by May 1, 2020, the New York State Department of Labor will be authorized to promulgate regulations addressing these issues.