Articles Discussing The New York Human Rights Law.

The New York City Commission on Human Rights issued a written reminder on May 8, 2020 that the law prohibiting pre-employment marijuana testing is effective on May 10, 2020.   In addition, the Commission stated that it is finalizing rules that will expand the list of exceptions to the law.  The

In recent years both New York State and New York City have actively amended their anti-discrimination laws to expand worker protections. For example, both the state and city have passed laws requiring most employers to distribute anti-sexual harassment policies and to provide anti-harassment training to their workforces.

On April 9, 2019, the New York City Council passed a first-of-its-kind bill that prohibits pre-employment drug testing for the presence of marijuana or tetrahydrocannabinols. Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to sign the bill into law, which would take effect one year after enactment.1 Significantly, the law would not prohibit employer drug-testing programs that test existing employees for marijuana.

As we have previously reported,1 New York State and New York City both enacted legislation in 2018 that require New York employers to train their employees in workplace sexual harassment prevention. The state training legislation went into effect on October 9, 2018, and the city training legislation went into effect on April 1, 2019. Together, the laws require employers to train their New York-based workforce annually and to cover certain topics during the training such as the definition of sexual harassment, a manager’s role in preventing sexual harassment, retaliation, and bystander intervention, among other topics.

The New York City Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) has released model policies for the City’s lactation room law, effective March 18, 2019.

Protections for transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming employees in New York have been given a boost. Significant changes to the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) will expand the scope of prohibited discriminatory conduct. Additionally, New York State has enacted the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), which went into effect on February 25, 2019.

New York and California are often characterized as two of the most employee-friendly states in the country. In continuation of that perception, New York City and California are announcing new employee leave initiatives.

Effective March 18, 2019, New York City employers with at least four workers must provide lactation rooms for employees and maintain a written policy for distribution to employees upon hire.

As previously reported, this year both the State of New York and the City of New York enacted legislation requiring employers to distribute sexual harassment prevention policies and to train their workforce about the prevention of workplace sexual harassment and available legal remedies. On October 31, 2018, the New York City Council introduced related legislation targeting the City’s nightlife establishments and the issue of patron harassment.

The New York City Commission on Human Rights has released Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) as guidance on the “Stop Sexual Harassment in NYC Act.”

Enacted this past January, New York City’s “Temporary Schedule Change” law becomes effective on July 18, 2018.1 The law provides employees with the right to request two temporary schedule changes per calendar year for “personal events,” and employers must ensure that they are prepared to respond to their employees’ requests for changes in work schedules and understand what types of personal events qualify for leave.

Executive Summary: In November, the New York City Council passed a law amending the Earned Sick Time Act, changing the name to the Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (ESSTA), and allowing employees to use paid time off under ESSTA if they or their family members are victims of domestic violence and other family offenses. The changes came into effect on May 5, 2018. Employers need to immediately update their sick time policies to reflect the change and distribute the new “Notice of Employee Rights” to all their employees by June 4, 2018.

Mandatory annual sexual harassment training for employees in New York City is one feature of a package of legislation targeting sexual harassment in the workplace signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio on May 9, 2018. Most private employers in New York City will be required to conduct annual sexual harassment training for employees beginning April 1, 2019.

Amendments to the New York City “Earned Safe and Sick Time Act” (ESTA) went into effect on May 5, 2018. Eligible employees under the ESTA will be able to use paid time off for circumstances resulting from the employee or a covered family member of the employee being the victim of family offense matters, sexual offenses, stalking, or human trafficking.

Executive Summary: On April 11, 2018, the New York City Council passed a package of bills intended to prevent sexual harassment. Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to sign the bills into law. The New York City Commission on Human Rights (NYCCHR) is charged with enforcing the new laws.