Bill Text: NY S01027 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Provides that an employee shall not be required to request reinstatement in order to file a discrimination claim regarding paid family medical leave benefits; permits a private right of action for certain violations as an alternative to a workers' compensation claim; provides for attorneys' fees and costs.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Engrossed) 2024-03-12 - referred to labor [S01027 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S01027-Amended.html
Bill Title: Provides that an employee shall not be required to request reinstatement in order to file a discrimination claim regarding paid family medical leave benefits; permits a private right of action for certain violations as an alternative to a workers' compensation claim; provides for attorneys' fees and costs.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Engrossed) 2024-03-12 - referred to labor [S01027 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S01027-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1027--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 9, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sens. GOUNARDES, HOYLMAN-SIGAL, MYRIE, PARKER, SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to paid fami- ly medical leave The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 120 of the workers' compensation law, as amended by 2 chapter 61 of the laws of 1989, the section heading as amended by 3 section 31 of part SS of chapter 54 of the laws of 2016, the opening 4 paragraph as amended by chapter 105 of the laws of 2019, is amended to 5 read as follows: 6 § 120. Discrimination against employees. 1. It shall be unlawful for 7 any employer or his or her duly authorized agent to discharge or fail to 8 reinstate pursuant to section two hundred three-b of this chapter, or in 9 any other manner discriminate against an employee as to his or her 10 employment because such employee has claimed or attempted to claim 11 compensation from such employer, requested a claim form for injuries 12 received in the course of employment, or claimed or attempted to claim 13 any benefits provided under this chapter or because he or she has testi- 14 fied or is about to testify in a proceeding under this chapter and no 15 other valid reason is shown to exist for such action by the employer. 16 2. Any complaint alleging such an unlawful discriminatory practice 17 must be filed within two years of the commission of such practice. Upon 18 finding that an employer has violated this section, the board shall make 19 an order that any employee so discriminated against shall be restored to 20 employment or otherwise restored to the position or privileges he or she 21 would have had but for the discrimination, if such reinstatement is 22 requested by such employee, and shall be compensated by his or her 23 employer for any loss of compensation arising out of such discrimination EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03171-02-3S. 1027--A 2 1 together with such fees or allowances for services rendered by an attor- 2 ney or licensed representative as fixed by the board. Any employer who 3 violates this section shall be liable to a penalty of not less than one 4 hundred dollars or more than five hundred dollars, as may be determined 5 by the board. All such penalties shall be paid into the state treasury. 6 All penalties, compensation and fees or allowances shall be paid solely 7 by the employer. The employer alone and not his or her carrier shall be 8 liable for such penalties and payments. Any provision in an insurance 9 policy undertaking to relieve the employer from liability for such 10 penalties and payments shall be void. 11 3. An employer found to be in violation of this section and the 12 aggrieved employee must report to the board as to the manner of the 13 employer's compliance within thirty days of receipt of a final determi- 14 nation. In case of failure to report on compliance, or failure to comply 15 with an order or penalty of the board within thirty days after the order 16 or notice of penalty is served, except where timely application to the 17 board for a modification, rescission or review of such order or penalty 18 has been filed under section twenty-three of this chapter, the chair in 19 any such case or, on the chair's consent, any party may enforce the 20 order or penalty in a like manner as an award of compensation. 21 4. Pursuant with the provisions of section two hundred three-b of this 22 chapter, an employee shall not be required to request reinstatement to 23 such employee's former position of employment before filing a complaint 24 of unlawful discriminatory practice as described in this section. 25 § 2. Section 203-a of the workers' compensation law is amended by 26 adding a new subdivision 3 to read as follows: 27 3. An action may be brought against any covered employer, as described 28 in section two hundred two of this article, who violates the provisions 29 of section one hundred twenty or two hundred three-b of this chapter, by 30 or on behalf of an employee, as that term is defined in subdivision five 31 of section two hundred one of this article, who has claimed or attempted 32 to claim paid family leave benefits. A plaintiff who prevails on a claim 33 alleging a violation of section one hundred twenty or two hundred 34 three-b of this chapter with regards to paid family leave shall be enti- 35 tled to compensatory, actual, and punitive damages, injunctive relief, 36 reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, and other such remedies as a court 37 may deem appropriate. 38 § 3. Section 203-b of the workers' compensation law, as added by 39 section 4 of part SS of chapter 54 of the laws of 2016, is amended to 40 read as follows: 41 § 203-b. Reinstatement following family leave. Any eligible employee 42 of a covered employer who takes leave under this article shall be enti- 43 tled, on return from such leave, to be restored by the employer to the 44 position of employment held by the employee when the leave commenced, or 45 to be restored to a comparable position with comparable employment bene- 46 fits, pay and other terms and conditions of employment, provided, howev- 47 er, that such eligible employee shall not be required to request rein- 48 statement to any such position. The taking of family leave shall not 49 result in the loss of any employment benefit accrued prior to the date 50 on which the leave commenced. Nothing in this section shall be construed 51 to entitle any restored employee to the accrual of any seniority or 52 employment benefits during any period of leave, or any right, benefit or 53 position to which the employee would have been entitled had the employee 54 not taken the leave. Furthermore, nothing in this section shall be 55 construed to require an employee to request reinstatement to his or her 56 former position of employment, or to a comparable position with compara-S. 1027--A 3 1 ble employment benefits, pay, and other terms and conditions of employ- 2 ment, before initiating a complaint against a covered employer pursuant 3 to the provisions of section one hundred twenty of this chapter. 4 § 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 5 it shall have become a law.
