Bill Text: NY A01006 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Eliminates provisions exempting employees with disabilities from the minimum wage law; provides that laws or minimum wage orders that authorize an employer to pay a wage that is less than the minimum wage are valid provided that under such laws or orders an employee with a disability is paid the same wage as an employee in a comparable position that does not have a disability.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 25-5)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-08 - referred to labor [A01006 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-A01006-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1006

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       (Prefiled)

                                     January 8, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. STECK, BURDICK, R. CARROLL, CRUZ, COOK, DeSTEFA-
          NO,  HYNDMAN,  JACOBSON,  LUPARDO,   PAULIN,   RIVERA,   SANTABARBARA,
          SEAWRIGHT,  SIMON,  STERN,  STIRPE,  WEPRIN, REYES, BRABENEC, MIKULIN,
          BENDETT, DAVILA, GANDOLFO, RAGA --  read  once  and  referred  to  the
          Committee on Labor

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  labor  law, in relation to the minimum wage for
          employees with disabilities

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  The  opening paragraph of subdivision 5 of section 651 of
     2  the labor law, as amended by chapter 391 of the laws of 2024, is amended
     3  to read as follows:
     4    "Employee" includes any individual employed or permitted to work by an
     5  employer in any occupation, but shall not include any individual who  is
     6  employed  or  permitted  to  work: (a) on a casual basis in service as a
     7  part time baby sitter in the home of the employer; (b) in  a  bona  fide
     8  executive,  administrative,  or professional capacity; (c) as an outside
     9  [salesman] salesperson; (d) as a driver engaged in operating a  taxicab;
    10  (e)  as  a volunteer, learner or apprentice by a corporation, unincorpo-
    11  rated association, community chest, fund  or  foundation  organized  and
    12  operated  exclusively for religious, charitable or educational purposes,
    13  no part of the net earnings of  which  inures  to  the  benefit  of  any
    14  private shareholder or individual; (f) as a member of a religious order,
    15  or  as  a  duly  ordained,  commissioned or licensed minister, priest or
    16  rabbi, or as a sexton, or as a christian science reader; (g) in  or  for
    17  such  a religious or charitable institution, which work is incidental to
    18  or in return for charitable aid conferred upon such individual  and  not
    19  under  any  express  contract  of  hire; (h) in or for such a religious,
    20  educational or charitable institution if such individual is  a  student;
    21  (i)  [in  or for such a religious, educational or charitable institution

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00052-02-5
        A. 1006                             2

     1  if the earning capacity of such individual is  impaired  by  age  or  by
     2  physical or mental deficiency or injury; (j)] in or for a summer camp or
     3  conference  of  such  a religious, educational or charitable institution
     4  for  not more than three months annually; [(k)] (j) as a staff counselor
     5  in a children's camp; [(l)] (k)  in  or  for  a  college  or  university
     6  fraternity,  sorority,  student  association  or faculty association, no
     7  part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of  any  private
     8  shareholder  or  individual,  and which is recognized by such college or
     9  university, if such individual is a student; [(m)]  (l)  by  a  federal,
    10  state  or  municipal  government or political subdivision thereof; [(n)]
    11  (m) as a volunteer at a recreational or amusement event run by  a  busi-
    12  ness that operates such events, provided that no single such event lasts
    13  longer  than  eight  consecutive  days  and  no more than one such event
    14  concerning substantially the same subject matter occurs in any  calendar
    15  year,  where  (1) any such volunteer shall be at least eighteen years of
    16  age, (2) a business seeking coverage under this paragraph  shall  notify
    17  every  volunteer in writing, in language acceptable to the commissioner,
    18  that by volunteering [his or her]  their  services,  such  volunteer  is
    19  waiving [his or her] their right to receive the minimum wage pursuant to
    20  this  article, and (3) such notice shall be signed and dated by a repre-
    21  sentative of the business and the volunteer and  kept  on  file  by  the
    22  business  for thirty-six months; [(o)] (n) in the delivery of newspapers
    23  or shopping news to the consumer by  a  person  who  is  not  performing
    24  commercial  goods  transportation services for a commercial goods trans-
    25  portation contractor within the meaning of article twenty-five-C of this
    26  chapter; or [(p)] (o) having entered into a contract to play baseball at
    27  the minor league level and who is compensated pursuant to the terms of a
    28  collective bargaining agreement that expressly provides for  the  wages,
    29  hours  of work, and working conditions of employees. The exclusions from
    30  the term "employee" contained in this subdivision shall be as defined by
    31  regulations of the commissioner.
    32    § 2. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 5 of section 655 of the  labor  law,
    33  as  amended  by  chapter  747 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as
    34  follows:
    35    (c) The wage board may also recommend,  to  the  extent  necessary  in
    36  order  to  prevent  curtailment  of  opportunities for employment, regu-
    37  lations for (1)  the  employment  of  learners  and  apprentices,  under
    38  special  certificates  issued  by  the commissioner, at such wages lower
    39  than the minimum wage established by this article and  subject  to  such
    40  limitations  as  to  time,  number,  proportion and length of service as
    41  shall be prescribed in such regulation, (2) [the employment of  individ-
    42  uals  whose  earning capacity is affected or impaired by youth or age or
    43  by physical or mental deficiency or injury, under  special  certificates
    44  issued  by  the  commissioner, at such wages lower than the minimum wage
    45  established by this article and for such period as shall  be  prescribed
    46  in  such  regulation,  (3)]  the establishment of a period not extending
    47  beyond seventeen consecutive weeks during which a resort hotel  or  camp
    48  may employ students under special certificates issued by the commission-
    49  er,  at such wages lower than the minimum wage established by this arti-
    50  cle as shall be prescribed in such regulation, and [(4)] (3) the employ-
    51  ment  of  residential  employees  in  a  non-profit  making   religious,
    52  charitable or educational organization or in a non-profit making college
    53  or  university  sorority or fraternity under special certificates issued
    54  by the commissioner at such weekly wage as shall be prescribed  in  such
    55  regulation.
        A. 1006                             3

     1    §  3.  This act shall take effect on the thirty-first of December next
     2  succeeding the date upon which it shall have  become  a  law.  Effective
     3  immediately,  the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regu-
     4  lation by the department of labor necessary for  the  implementation  of
     5  this  act  on  its effective date are authorized to be made on or before
     6  such effective date.