Bill Text: NY S07882 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Provides that intercity rail passenger services and commuter rail services shall be liable for medical costs for injuries to railroad employees caused by passengers, customers or members of the public.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-02-28 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S07882 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S07882-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7882 IN SENATE February 28, 2020 ___________ Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the railroad law, in relation to providing that inter- city rail passenger services and commuter rail services shall be liable for medical costs for injuries to railroad employees caused by passengers, customers or members of the public The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 64 of the railroad law is amended to read as 2 follows: 3 § 64. Injuries to employees. 1. In all actions against a railroad 4 corporation, foreign or domestic, doing business in this state, or 5 against a receiver thereof, for personal injury to, or death resulting 6 from personal injury of any person, while in the employment of such 7 corporation, or receiver, arising from the negligence of such corpo- 8 ration or receiver or of any of its or his officers or employees, every 9 employee, or his legal representatives, shall have the same rights and 10 remedies for an injury, or for death, suffered by him, from the act or 11 omission of such corporation or receiver or of its or his officers or 12 employees, as are now allowed by law, and, in addition to the liability 13 now existing by law, it shall be held in such actions that persons 14 engaged in the service of any railroad corporation, foreign or domestic, 15 doing business in this state, or in the service of a receiver thereof, 16 who are intrusted by such corporation or receiver, with the authority of 17 superintendence, control or command of other persons in the employment 18 of such corporation or receiver, or with the authority to direct or 19 control any other employee in the performance of the duty of such 20 employee, or who have, as a part of their duty, for the time being, 21 physical control or direction of the movement of a signal, switch, loco- 22 motive engine, car, train or telegraph office, are vice-principals of 23 such corporation or receiver, and are not fellow-servants of such 24 injured or deceased employee. 25 2. If an employee, engaged in the service of any such railroad corpo- 26 ration, or of a receiver thereof, shall receive any injury by reason of EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD15141-01-0S. 7882 2 1 any defect in the condition of the ways, works, machinery, plant, tools 2 or implements, or of any car, train, locomotive or attachment thereto 3 belonging, owned or operated, or being run and operated by such corpo- 4 ration or receiver, when such defect could have been discovered by such 5 corporation or receiver, by reasonable and proper care, tests or 6 inspection, such corporation or receiver shall be deemed to have had 7 knowledge of such defect before and at the time such injury is 8 sustained; and when the fact of such defect shall be proved upon the 9 trial of any action in the courts of this state, brought by such employ- 10 ee or his legal representatives, against any such railroad corporation 11 or receiver, on account of such injuries so received, the same shall be 12 prima facie evidence of negligence on the part of such corporation or 13 receiver. [This section shall not affect actions or causes of action14existing on May twenty-ninth, nineteen hundred and six; and no] 15 3. If any employee, engaged in the service of any intercity rail 16 passenger service, as defined by section ninety-seven of this article, 17 or of a commuter rail service, as defined by section ninety-seven-a of 18 this article, shall suffer a physical injury that is caused by a passen- 19 ger, customer or member of the public while the employee is performing 20 an assigned duty, pursuant to subdivision eleven of section 120.05 of 21 the penal law or otherwise, the intercity rail passenger service or 22 commuter rail service shall be held liable for any medical costs attrib- 23 utable to such injury and, in cases where it is determined by his or her 24 medical provider that such injured employee is unable to perform his or 25 her assigned duties due to such injury, such employee shall be compen- 26 sated by the intercity rail passenger service or commuter rail service 27 at an amount not less than the employee would have earned on the assign- 28 ment they would have worked until such time that such employee is desig- 29 nated able to return to work by his or her medical provider. 30 4. No contract, receipt, rule or regulation, between an employee and a 31 railroad corporation or receiver, shall exempt or limit the liability of 32 such corporation or receiver from the provisions of this section, howev- 33 er a collective bargaining agreement may alternatively bargain for bene- 34 fits greater than those provided by this section. 35 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.