Bill Text: NY A05776 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Prohibits agreements between employers that directly restrict the current or future employment of any employee and allows for a cause of action against employers who engage in such agreements.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 20-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-27 - amended on third reading 5776c [A05776 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A05776-Amended.html
Bill Title: Prohibits agreements between employers that directly restrict the current or future employment of any employee and allows for a cause of action against employers who engage in such agreements.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 20-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-27 - amended on third reading 5776c [A05776 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A05776-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5776--B Cal. No. 252 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 19, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, REYES, SAYEGH, GOTTFRIED, GALEF, D'URSO, STIRPE, ARROYO, SIMON, STECK, CRUZ, GLICK, ZEBROWSKI, ORTIZ, WEPRIN, FERNANDEZ -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, DenDEKKER, ENGLEBRIGHT, GRIFFIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary -- reported and referred to the Committee on Codes -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- reported from committee, advanced to a third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place on the order of third reading AN ACT to amend the general obligations law, in relation to prohibiting agreements between employers that directly restrict the current or future employment of any employee The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "End 2 Employer Collusion Act". 3 § 2. The general obligations law is amended by adding a new section 4 5-337 to read as follows: 5 § 5-337. Agreements between certain employers restricting the current 6 or future employment of an employee void. (a) For the purposes of this 7 section, the following term "restrictive employment agreement" shall 8 mean any agreement that: 9 (i) is included in a franchise agreement; and 10 (ii) prohibits or restricts one or more franchisees from soliciting or 11 hiring the employees or former employees of the franchisor or another 12 franchisee. 13 (b) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, no franchisor or 14 person acting on its behalf may enter into or renew a restrictive 15 employment agreement, enforce a restrictive employment agreement, or 16 threaten to enforce a restrictive employment agreement and any restric- 17 tive employment agreement is hereby void. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04740-05-9A. 5776--B 2 1 (c) Every person who was denied employment due to a restrictive 2 employment agreement or was otherwise damaged due to a violation of 3 subdivision (b) of this section may maintain an action for damages equal 4 to the sum of (i) any actual damages sustained by the individual as a 5 result of such violation, (ii) such amount of punitive damages as the 6 court may allow, and (iii) in the case of any successful action to 7 enforce any liability under this section, the costs of the action 8 together with reasonable attorney's fees as determined by the court. 9 (d) Whenever the attorney general believes that there has been a 10 violation of this section, he or she may proceed as provided in subdivi- 11 sion twelve of section sixty-three of the executive law. 12 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.