Bill Text: NY A05631 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

New York Assembly Bill 5631 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Relates to retaliatory personnel actions by employers.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 22-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to labor [A05631 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A05631-Introduced.html

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          5631
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 14, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  WEINSTEIN, SIMOTAS, DINOWITZ, GLICK, CAHILL,
          COLTON, TAYLOR -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.  BARRON,  CYMBROWITZ,
          D'URSO,  ENGLEBRIGHT,  GALEF,  GOTTFRIED, JAFFEE, LUPARDO, MAGNARELLI,
          NIOU, SIMON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Labor
        AN ACT to amend the labor law,  in  relation  to  retaliatory  personnel
          actions by employers
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 740 of the labor
     2  law, as amended by chapter 442 of the laws of 2006, is amended  to  read
     3  as follows:
     4    (a) discloses, or threatens to disclose to a supervisor or to a public
     5  body  an  activity,  policy or practice of the employer [that] which the
     6  employee reasonably believes is in violation of law, rule or  regulation
     7  [which  violation creates and presents] or which the employee reasonably
     8  believes poses a substantial and specific danger to the public health or
     9  safety, or which constitutes health care fraud;
    10    § 2. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 740 of the  labor  law,
    11  as  added  by  chapter  660  of  the laws of 1984, is amended to read as
    12  follows:
    13    (c) It shall be a defense to  any  action  brought  pursuant  to  this
    14  section that the personnel action was predicated upon grounds other than
    15  the  employee's  exercise  of  any rights protected by this section. [It
    16  shall also be a defense that the individual was an independent  contrac-
    17  tor.]
    18    §  3.  Paragraphs  (d)  and (e) of subdivision 5 of section 740 of the
    19  labor law, as added by chapter 660 of the laws of 1984, are  amended  to
    20  read as follows:
    21    (d)  the compensation for lost wages, benefits and other remuneration;
    22  [and]
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00918-01-9

        A. 5631                             2
     1    (e) the payment by the employer of  reasonable  costs,  disbursements,
     2  and attorney's fees; and
     3    (f)  the payment by the employer of punitive damages, if the violation
     4  was malicious or wanton.
     5    § 4. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
     6  have  become  a  law; provided, however, that effective immediately, the
     7  addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule  or  regulation  necessary
     8  for  the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized
     9  to be made by the commissioner of labor of the state of New York  on  or
    10  before such effective date.