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Q: I heard New York State recently enacted another sick leave law. I thought New York already enacted a COVID-19 sick leave law back in March. How is this new one different?

A: Effective September 30, 2020, New York will have two separate sick leave laws: one specific to COVID-19 (NY COVID-19 Sick Leave Law), and one that is general (New York Sick Leave Law). The covered reasons for leave are more expansive under the New York Sick Leave Law. In addition, unlike the NY COVID-19 Sick Leave Law, which is expected to expire at the end of the pandemic, the New York Sick Leave Law is expected to be permanent.

While employees start accruing New York Sick Leave on September 30, 2020, they may not use the sick leave until January 1, 2021.
Continue Reading New York Sick Leave Goes Into Effect on September 30, 2020

Q: I heard New York is changing its rules around tip credits for some types of employees. What do I need to know?

A:  A tip credit is a concept permitted under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and many state laws.  A tip credit allows employers to pay employees a cash wage of less than the minimum wage and take a tip credit up to a set amount.  For example, under the FLSA, employers can pay tipped employees a minimum cash wage of $2.13 per hour, and take a tip credit of $5.12 per hour.  If employees receive less than $5.12 an hour in tips, the employer must pay the employee the difference so that an employee always earns at least $7.25 (the minimum wage) per hour.  Regardless of whether an employer takes a tip credit, all tips are the property of the employee.  So, if an employer takes a tip credit and the employee makes more than $5.12 per hour in tips, the additional amount belongs to the tipped employee.
Continue Reading New York State To Eliminate Tip Credit For Many Employees Beginning June 2020

Q: I heard New York prohibits employers from discriminating based on hairstyle. What does that mean?

A: In July 2019, New York State passed legislation that amended the definition of race under the New York State Human Rights Law (“NYSHRL”) to include “traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture and…

Q.  Is my company allowed to inquire about an applicant’s salary history when considering him or her for employment?

A.   The growing trend to eliminate inquiries into a job applicant’s salary history continues. In July, New York and New Jersey became the latest states to enact legislation that will restrict employers from obtaining and utilizing…

Q: I am a New York employer. What are the key parts of the new amendments to the New York Human Rights law and when do they go into effect?

A.  As we detailed in an earlier post, New York state recently passed a bill that makes numerous changes to the New York Human Rights Act (“NYHRL”). Governor Cuomo signed the bill on August 12, 2019, and most of the amendments go into effect on October 11, 2019.
Continue Reading New York Human Rights Law Amendments Effective October 12, 2019

Q: I am a New York employer. What should I know about the recent amendments to the New York Human Rights Law?

A: In June 2019, New York State approved a bill that makes numerous changes to the New York Human Rights Law (“NYHRL”), governing discrimination and harassment.  Governor Cuomo has not yet signed the bill, but is expected to shortly.

As explained in more detail below, the legislation significantly increases the NYHRL’s coverage by expanding the definitions of “harassment” and “employer.” The legislation also prohibits non-disclosure clauses in any settlement agreement involving discrimination allegations. Finally, the legislation expands employers’ sexual harassment training obligations, and extends the statute of limitations for filing sexual harassment claims with the New York State Division on Human Rights to three years.
Continue Reading New York Enacts Broad Changes to New York Human Rights Law

Q.  Now that medical marijuana is legal in New Jersey, does the Law Against Discrimination require employers to provide an accommodation for medical marijuana use?

A.  While New Jersey employers are not required to accommodate the use of medical marijuana in the workplace, they may be required to accommodate an employee’s off-duty use of medical marijuana outside of the workplace, according to a recent decision. On March 27, 2019, the New Jersey Appellate Division reversed a lower court’s ruling that state law does not provide employment protections for medical marijuana users. Although the court affirmed that employers are not required to accommodate an employee’s use of medical marijuana in the workplace, the court found that failure to accommodate off-duty use of medical marijuana outside the workplace could give rise to liability under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD).
Continue Reading New Jersey Employers May Be Required to Accommodate an Employee’s Use of Medical Marijuana Outside the Workplace

Q: I heard New York City is banning employers from doing pre-employment drug testing for marijuana. What do I need to know?

A: Effective May 10, 2020, New York City employers are prohibited from testing prospective employees for marijuana or tetrahydrocannabinols (the active ingredient in marijuana) as a condition of employment.  The law applies to all prospective employees in New York City, regardless of whether the employer is located in New York City.
Continue Reading New York City Passes Law Prohibiting Pre-Employment Marijuana Testing

Q: I am an employer in Westchester County.  What do I need to know about the new paid sick leave law?  If I have employees in both Westchester County and New York City, can I have one paid sick leave policy that covers everyone?

A: Westchester County recently enacted its Earned Sick Leave Law (“ESLL”), which goes into effect on April 10, 2019.  While the law is similar in many aspects to New York City’s Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (“ESSTA”), there are some important differences.  Employers who want one policy to cover employees in both locations (referred to below as a “dual policy”) can opt to offer the more generous benefit.  Alternatively, employers can create a policy with carve-outs that are applicable to subsets of employees (referred to below as a “carve-out policy”).  As explained below, the key differences between the laws are whether the law covers safe time as a permissible use of sick leave, and the definition of family member.
Continue Reading Westchester County Paid Sick Leave Law Effective April 10, 2019

Q: I am a New York employer.  How do the upcoming New York State and New York City sexual harassment requirements affect me?  When is the deadline to comply?

A: New York State and New York City have new sexual harassment policy and training requirements for employers.  The New York State requirements go into effect on October 9, 2018 (policy must be adopted by October 9, 2018 and training must be completed by January 1, 2019).  The New York City requirements (training only) go into effect April 1, 2019.  The New York State requirements apply to all employers, and the New York City requirements apply to employers with 15 or more employees in New York City.
Continue Reading New York Employers Must Comply with New Sexual Harassment Requirements, Beginning October 2018