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.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1006
SPONSOR: Steck TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the labor law, in relation to the minimum wage for
employees with disabilities
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Relates to the minimum wage for employees with disabilities.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends subdivision 5 of section 651 of the labor law to
define who is considered an "employee".
Sections 2-5: Amends the labor laws to increase the wages for employees
with a disability as defined in subdivision twenty-one of section two
hundred ninety-two of the executive law.
Section 6: Effective Date.
JUSTIFICATION:
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 made it illegal for the
first time for employers to discriminate against workers with disabili-
ties. Although this was a significant win for the disability community
there are still many instances of unequal access and treatment of Ameri-
cans with disabilities. Currently, many disability providers employ
people at "workshops" that pay far below the minimum wage. This bill
seeks to follow the lead of Alaska, Maryland and New Hampshire that have
prohibited this practice.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021/22: A3103 referred to labor
2019/20: A7077 referred to labor, reported; referred to codes
2018: A11290 referred to Labor
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the state
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the thirty-first of December next succeed-
ing the date upon which it shall have become a law.
