Businesses with New York employees are breathing a sigh of relief now that the state has finally addressed a hot button (and expensive) issue that has plagued them for nearly six years. A state court first ruled in 2019 that...more
The legal landscape for “frequency of pay” claims involving manual workers in New York has recently been bubbling with activity. The state law at issue regulates the frequency in which “manual workers” must receive their...more
If you’ve been tracking litigation related to New York’s “frequency of pay” requirement for manual workers, last week’s highly anticipated decision Grant v. Global Aircraft Dispatch brings welcome news to employers. The state...more
A recently signed state law will soon protect New York freelance and contract workers from wage theft and delayed payments – and require businesses to put certain terms in writing. Businesses across the state will need to...more
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr. recently announced a new prosecutorial branch tasked with investigating and prosecuting wage theft and other forms of worker harassment and exploitation throughout the borough. The...more
New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently delivered her second State of the State address – her first as an elected governor – and managed to provide insight on a few key areas of workplace law that will affect New York...more
1/20/2023
/ Diversity ,
Employee Training ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Minimum Wage ,
New York ,
Staffing Agencies ,
State of the State ,
Temporary Employees ,
Wage and Hour
It is looking increasingly likely that fast food employers in New York City will have to deal with troubling new workplace regulations in the near future, including the prospect of increased penalties for violations,...more
New York City workplace regulators just finalized rules for New York City’s Fair Workweek and just cause laws for fast food workers – and there are some changes from the initial proposals that may come as a surprise to...more
New York City regulators recently proposed new rules that will further burden fast food employers, revealing a mixed bag of employer-unfriendly interpretations of existing city law while introducing potentially immense...more
2/2/2022
/ Consent ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Workweek ,
Fast-Food Industry ,
Food Service Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Just Cause ,
Layoffs ,
Notice Requirements ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Public Hearing ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Schedules
The federal appeals court that has jurisdiction over New York employers recently issued a decision holding that a plaintiff must plausibly allege “willfulness” to secure the benefit of the longer three-year limitations period...more
New York State recently granted both private and public employees up to four hours of paid leave per injection to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. While the basics of the leave were outlined in newly added New York Labor Law...more
New York employees are likely to soon receive paid leave to take their COVID-19 vaccination. One month after the New York State Assembly passed the bill, the New York State Senate unanimously voted 62-0 on March 1 to grant...more
With January 1, 2021 quickly approaching, it’s crunch time for New York employers to prepare to comply with the new statewide sick leave law. New York employers have been grappling with questions surrounding the New York Paid...more
Coming on the heels of the U.S. Department of Labor recently issuing its final regulations clarifying the fluctuating workweek (FWW) method of overtime compensation under the FLSA, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals just issued...more
6/22/2020
/ Appeals ,
Collective Actions ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Fluctuating Workweek ,
Over-Time ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Salaried Employees ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Schedules
As New York continues to be hard hit by the effects of COVID-19, Governor Cuomo announced a three-way agreement on March 17 between his office and both houses of the New York State Legislature on a bill guaranteeing job...more
3/19/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability Benefits ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Leave ,
Quarantine ,
Sick Leave ,
Unpaid Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
After a busy 2019 of expanding workplace protections in New York, Governor Cuomo just issued his 2020 State of the State to lay out his priorities for the coming year. And it should come as no surprise that several of the...more
1/13/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Employment Policies ,
Gig Economy ,
Governor Cuomo ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Leave ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
A federal appeals court just ruled that workers don’t need to clear a heightened legal standard in order to pursue pay equity claims, setting the stage for a possible increase in the number of lawsuits seeking recovery for...more
On the heels of the NYC Council passing (and the mayor signing into law) a bill requiring minimum payments for ride-sharing drivers and a one-year freeze on the number of ride-sharing vehicle licenses issued, the NYC Council...more
Westchester County has just enacted an Earned Sick Leave Law which will soon require Westchester employers to provide sick leave to its employees. All Westchester employees—both full-time and part-time—who work more than 80...more
10/23/2018
/ Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Local Ordinance ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Private Right of Action ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour
On the heels of the Supreme Court’s decision earlier this year in Epic Systems Corporation v. Lewis, which held that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) does not bar class or collective action waivers in arbitration...more
10/3/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Back Pay ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Independent Contractors ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Misclassification ,
Motion to Compel ,
NLRA ,
Savings Clause ,
Wage and Hour
It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law. While the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace, there have been an unprecedented number of changes for the past few years—and this past month...more
9/17/2018
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Background Checks ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Class Action ,
Collective Action Waivers ,
Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies Act (CCRAA) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Failed Legislation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Gig Economy ,
Governor Baker ,
Governor Brown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) ,
Licenses ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
OFCCP ,
Opinion Letter ,
Opioid ,
Over-Time ,
Pay Gap ,
Pending Legislation ,
Portable Benefits ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Ridesharing ,
Right to Work ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Labor Laws ,
Union Dues ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Injury
On the heels of the Supreme Court's decision in Epic Systems Corporation v. Lewis, which held that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) does not bar class or collective action waivers in arbitration agreements, the 6th...more
8/23/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Back Pay ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Collective Action Waivers ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Former Employee ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Motion to Compel ,
NLRA ,
Reversal ,
Savings Clause ,
Wage and Hour
One of the key provisions of New York City’s Fair Workweek Law was just put on hold while a federal judge sorts out a constitutional challenge brought by two restaurant advocacy organizations. The “Deductions Law” portion of...more
1/26/2018
/ Constitutional Challenges ,
Donations ,
Employees ,
Fair Workweek ,
Fast-Food Industry ,
First Amendment ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) ,
NLRA ,
Nonprofits ,
Pending Legislation ,
Restaurant Industry ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Deductions
As pay equity litigation heats up across the country, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals issued a January 26 decision that should help employers in New York, Connecticut, and Vermont combat claims brought under the federal Pay...more
2/17/2017
/ Achieve Pay Equity Act (APEA) ,
Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Evidence ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Equity ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Equity Act (PEA) ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages
To ring in the New Year, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the creation of a 200-member multi-agency Minimum Wage Enforcement and Outreach Unit on January 2, 2017. The Unit’s goal is to ensure that all minimum wage workers in...more