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NYS Sick Leave Law Is In Effect

Summary of New York State Paid Sick Leave Law

(this law applies to all non-unionized employees)

On April 3, 2020 Governor Cuomo signed into law a new state budget that includes a new statewide paid sick leave requirement.

Regulations and guidance have not yet been published by the Department of Labor. The information below is based on the best information currently available.

Key Dates:

September 30, 2020 - Employees begin to start accruing paid sick leave

January 1, 2021 - Employees have the right to start taking paid sick leave

*Collective Bargaining Agreements:*

The WCC is of the opinion that the new Paid Sick Leave law does not impact current union agreements.

Non-Represented Employees:

The amount of sick leave to be provided varies based on business size. It is our understanding that business size will be calculated based total number of employees, including represented employees, from the previous calendar year. Please keep in mind that state guidance has not yet been issued and this may change.

Business Size # Hours Leave

1-4 employees and Net Income less than $1M 40 Hours of Unpaid Leave

1-4 employees and Net Income over $1M 40 Hours of Paid Leave

5-99 employees 40 Hours of Paid Leave

100 or more employees 56 Hours of Paid Leave

Sick Leave Accrual Rate:

1 hour for every 30 hours worked starting September 30, 2020

Employees can carry over unused time HOWEVER employers are not required to allow the use of additional sick leave annually.

Use of Sick Leave:

Employees can use sick leave in 4-hour increments beginning January 1, 2021

Sick leave can be used for:

Mental or physical illness, injury or health condition of the employee or employee’s family member regardless of whether the condition has been diagnosed or requires medical care.
Diagnosis, care, treatment, or preventive care of a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition or need for medical diagnosis for the employee or employee’s family member.
Employee or member of the employee’s family is a victim of domestic violence, a family offense, sexual offense, stalking or human trafficking (the law specifies that the person committing the offense is not eligible)

A covered family member is defined as an employee’s child, spouse, domestic partner, parent, sibling, grandchild, or grandparent, and the child or parent of an employee’s spouse or domestic partner.

Parent is defined as biological, foster, step, or adoptive, or legal guardian of an employee, or a person who stood “in loco parentis” when the employee was a minor child.

Child is defined as a biological, adopted, or foster child, a legal ward or a child of an employee standing in loco parentis.

Employers are NOT required to pay out unused sick leave on termination of employment.

Employers are prohibited from discriminating against or taking retaliatory action against an employee exercising their rights under the Paid Sick Leave law.

New York City Paid Sick Leave Requirements

The City Council recently passed legislation to align the City’s Paid Sick Leave requirements with the State’s Paid Sick Leave.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact.

Mark A. Rosen mrosen@mdmc-law.com 973.425.8753

New York Sexual Harassment Sensitivity Training Guidelines

All of this information was obtained from ny.gov

https://www.ny.gov/programs/combating-sexual-harassment-workplace

NYS Sexual Harassment Law Starts to Take Effect in October

To be compliant with New York State's updated sexual harassment laws, ALL Employers must have a sexual harassment policy in place for your company by October 2018 and training for all staff by

October 2019.

The policy must:

prohibit sexual harassment consistent with guidance issued by the Department of Labor in consultation with the Division of Human Rights
provide examples of prohibited conduct that would constitute unlawful sexual harassment
include information concerning the federal and state statutory provisions concerning sexual harassment, remedies available to victims of sexual harassment, and a statement that there may be applicable local laws
include a complaint form
include a procedure for the timely and confidential investigation of complaints that ensures due process for all parties
inform employees of their rights of redress and all available forums for adjudicating sexual harassment complaints administratively and judicially
clearly state that sexual harassment is considered a form of employee misconduct and that sanctions will be enforced against individuals engaging in sexual harassment and against supervisory and managerial personnel who knowingly allow such behavior to continue
clearly state that retaliation against individuals who complain of sexual harassment or who testify or assist in any investigation or proceeding involving sexual harassment is unlawful

The training must:

be interactive
include an explanation of sexual harassment consistent with guidance issued by the Department of Labor in consultation with the Division of Human Rights
include examples of conduct that would constitute unlawful sexual harassment
include information concerning the federal and state statutory provisions concerning sexual harassment and remedies available to victims of sexual harassment
include information concerning employees' rights of redress and all available forums for adjudicating complaints
include information addressing conduct by supervisors and any additional responsibilities for such supervisors
Each employee must receive training on an annual basis.

For All State Contractors

Beginning in January 2019, all state contractors must submit an affirmation that they have a sexual harassment policy and that they have trained all of their employees. The new law ensures that nondisclosure agreements can only be used when the condition of confidentiality is the explicit preference of the victim.

The state's website has additional information, including model policy language and model training programs:

ny.gov/programs/combating-sexual-harassment-workplace