New York Employment Beat

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On November 16, 2024, the New York Clean Slate Act went into effect. The Act provides for the automatic sealing of a broad swath of criminal convictions after a certain period of time and requires employers to comply with new disclosure obligations when obtaining criminal history information in connection with employment actions.

Sealed convictions

The Act requires the New York State Unified Court System to seal certain criminal convictions no later than November 16, 2027. These include misdemeanor and felony convictions under New York penal law (not federal law), which must be sealed three years and eight years, respectively, after a defendant’s release from incarceration or imposition of sentencing, whichever is later. 

Automatic sealing does not apply to any convictions for sex offenses or non-drug related Class A felony offenses. In addition, records cannot be sealed where a defendant has a subsequent criminal charge pending in New York or any other jurisdiction (with limited exceptions to out-of-state pending charges), or where the defendant is on parole or probation.Continue Reading New York Clean Slate Act and sealed convictions: what employers should know

As we previously reported, effective January 1, 2025, New York employers will be required to provide employees with 20 hours of paid prenatal leave. Employees will be able to take such leave for prenatal healthcare service appointments during their pregnancy or related to their pregnancy.

New York State recently issued FAQ guidance explaining certain aspects of the new law. The guidance, among other things, clarifies that:Continue Reading New York issues FAQ guidance on upcoming paid prenatal leave

On October 23, 2024, legislation was introduced in the New York City Council that would amend the New York City Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (ESSTA) to allow employees to use sick leave to care for pets and service animals.

Currently, ESSTA provides employees with sick leave to care for their own mental or physical health, to care for a family member’s health, and to care for a child whose school or childcare provider has been closed because of a public health emergency. Continue Reading New York City considers extending paid sick leave to pet care

On January 1, 2025, an amendment to New York Labor Law section 196-b, the state’s paid sick leave law, will go into effect. The amendment requires New York employers to provide employees with 20 hours of paid prenatal leave during any 52-week period.

The amendment provides that paid prenatal leave may be taken for “health care services received by an employee during their pregnancy or related to such pregnancy, including physical examinations, medical procedures, monitoring and testing, and discussions with a health care provider related to the pregnancy.”Continue Reading New York paid prenatal leave to go into effect on January 1, 2025

On August 28, 2024, New York State’s new law governing workplace-related contracts with freelancer workers – known as the Freelance Isn’t Free Act (FIFA) – will take effect. FIFA is designed to protect freelancers, i.e., independent contractors, from non-payment, late payment, and retaliation by hiring parties. It also imposes new requirements on hiring parties to provide written contracts, timely payment, and recordkeeping for freelance workers.

Background

In 2016, New York City enacted its own Freelance Isn’t Free Act, which was one of the first laws in the country to provide protections and remedies for freelance workers (and which we detailed here). The state law largely mirrors the city law, but with some key differences. For example, the state law excludes certain categories of workers from its coverages, including sales representatives, attorneys, licensed medical professionals, and construction contractors.Continue Reading How to prepare for New York State’s Freelance Isn’t Free Act

“Under an amendment to the state labor law that took effect June 19, 2024, New York employers must now provide up to 30 minutes of paid lactation break time “each time such employee has reasonable need to express breast milk.” The amended law – which previously only required business to provide reasonable unpaid break time for such purpose – does not cap the amount of paid lactation breaks to which an employee is entitled and guidance issued by the New York State Department of Labor suggests that employees may be entitled to multiple paid lactation breaks in a given day, so long as the employee “reasonably need[s]” the break. Employers must also allow employees to use existing paid break or meal time for breast milk expression in excess of 30 minutes.Continue Reading Changes to New York employment law: Paid lactation breaks now in effect

As of March 12, 2024, New York employers are prohibited from requesting or obtaining access to the personal social media accounts of employees and applicants. Specifically, employers are not permitted to require employees or applicants to: (i) disclose their user names, passwords, or log-in information, (ii) access personal accounts in the presence of the employer; or (iii) reproduce any posts, including photos and videos, from personal accounts. In addition, employers may not discharge, discipline, or otherwise penalize an employee or applicant because of their refusal to disclose such information. Continue Reading New York places limitations on employer access to employee social media

In the dynamic arena of labor laws and regulations, New York City is once again leading the charge with proposed changes that could have profound workplace implications. On February 28, 2024, the New York City Council introduced a trio of bills aimed at significantly curtailing the use of noncompete agreements in the Big Apple. Though these bills are currently pending, and it remains to be seen whether they will ultimately be enacted, employers should nevertheless take note of the bills given that they are part of a broader movement to rein in noncompete agreements across the U.S.:Continue Reading NYC legislators propose three bills to curtail noncompete agreements

Employment legislation and litigation are often about trends. In the mid-to-late 2010’s, for instance, lawmakers across the U.S. enacted numerous bills concerning paid time off for employees, such as for sick and family leave. A more recent trend involves regulatory and legislative attempts to limit or even outright ban non-compete agreements.

In New York State, the unquestionable employment litigation trend over the past several years has revolved around frequency of pay claims under Section 191 of the New York Labor Law (NYLL). This trend was born out of a radical 2019 appellate court decision that broke from more than a century of judicial precedent.

As more fully discussed below, however, two recent developments – one legislative and one judicial – suggest that the flood of frequency of pay lawsuits may soon be a thing of the past.Continue Reading Are frequency of pay lawsuits in New York soon to be a thing of the past?

Last week, Governor Hochul announced a suite of proposed measures aimed at addressing rising maternal and infant mortality rates. As is relevant to New York employers, this includes a proposed expansion of New York State Paid Family Leave to include 40 hours of paid leave to attend prenatal medical appointments. If signed into law, this would make…