Seyfarth Synopsis: The Adams administration has announced that the private-sector employee vaccination mandate will become optional as of November 1, 2022. ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On May 31, 2022, New York updated its guidance for individuals to avoid the need for quarantine when exposed to COVID-19. New York now aligns with the CDC’s recently-revised recommendations, under which a...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The New York Commissioner of Health has declined to extend the designation of COVID-19 as a highly contagious communicable disease under the NY HERO Act. Employers are no longer required to activate their...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The New York Commissioner of Health once again extended the designation of COVID-19 as highly contagious, thereby requiring employers to keep their HERO Act safety plans activated through at least March 17,...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Yesterday, Governor Hochul announced that she will lift the mask-or-vaccinate mandate for nearly all public places of business on February 10, 2022. The New York Department of Labor has now revised its...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Governor Hochul announced that she will lift the mask-or-vaccinate mandate for all public places of business on February 10, 2022. However, employees must continue to mask under the New York HERO Act...more
The New York Commissioner of Health once again extended the designation of COVID-19 as highly contagious, thereby requiring employers to keep their HERO Act safety plans activated through at least February 15, 2022. The...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In one of his first official acts as New York City’s new Mayor, Eric Adams signed an executive order extending the private worker vaccine mandate implemented in December by the outgoing de Blasio...more
Soon before the ball drops in Times Square for the New Year: (i) the City of New York amended its guidance regarding the mandate that private workers receive the COVID vaccine, as well as confirmed verbally the answers to...more
The New York Commissioner of Health once again extended the designation of COVID-19 as highly contagious, thereby requiring employers to keep their HERO Act safety plans activated through at least January 15, 2022....more
On December 6, 2021, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that, effective December 27, all private sector employers in New York City will be required to ensure that their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19. The Mayor called...more
The New York Commissioner of Health once again extended the designation of COVID-19 as highly contagious, thereby requiring employers to keep their safety plans activated through at least December 15, 2021....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: With little fanfare and no public reporting, the New York Commissioner of Health extended the designation of COVID-19 as highly contagious, thereby requiring employers to keep their safety plans activated...more
The New York Department of Labor published a revised Model Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plan, which provides that workforces that are fully vaccinated need not mask under the HERO Act....more
The New York Health Commissioner has stated that the emergency designation of COVID-19 expires -- for now -- on September 30. And the Department of Labor issued Frequently Asked Questions to guide employers in activating...more
New York State has designated COVID-19 as a highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health, which means that employers must now activate their workplace safety plans under the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The deadline for employers to distribute their airborne disease prevention safety plan and post the plan in the workplace is approaching. ...more
The New York Department of Labor quietly published a general model and industry-specific airborne disease prevention protocols under the NY HERO Act. Businesses should consult the model protocols and consider whether to...more
The amendments to the NY HERO Act have been officially enacted and are now part of the statute. Those amendments clarify various deadlines and modify certain obligations to facilitate compliance by employers....more
The New York Legislature is considering amendments to the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (“NY HERO Act”) that would address some concerns raised by the business community. The proposals would clarify the timelines...more
On May 5, 2021, Governor Cuomo signed the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (“NY HERO Act”), a first-of-its kind law designed to protect against the spread of airborne infectious diseases in the workplace. But his...more
The New York State Legislature is keeping busy with new employment legislation as the local and national economies continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Governor Cuomo has announced agreement on a law requiring New York employers to provide sick leave to eligible employees, as well as various forms of paid and unpaid leave for employees affected by...more