Amd §296, Exec L; add §201-j, Lab L; add §267-c, Pub Health L
Relates to preventing discrimination and increasing awareness about menopause and perimenopause; requires employers to provide employees with an informational pamphlet on any regulations relating to the rights of employees for menstrual-related and menopausal-related conditions.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5436
SPONSOR: Rosenthal TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the executive law, the labor law and the public health
law, in relation to preventing discrimination and increasing awareness
of menopause and perimenopause
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the executive law, the labor law and the public health
law, in relation to preventing discrimination and increasing awareness
of menopause and perimenopause
PURPOSE:
This bill requires that employers provide reasonable accommodations for
people with menstrual or menopausal-related conditions in the workplace,
ensures that employees are aware of their rights for reasonable accommo-
dations and increases public awareness on menopause and perimenopause
and their symptoms.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one amends paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 296 of the
executive law.
Section two adds a new section 201-j to the labor law.
Section three adds a new section 267-c to the public health law.
Section four establishes the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Approximately two million women living in the United States experience
menopause each year, with 17% of women in the workforce transitioning
from perimenopause to menopause. However, despite these numbers, employ-
ers are often unaware and uneducated on how this biological function
impacts their employees. Many women experience intense headaches, memory
lapses, severe stiffness, panic attacks, debilitating episodes of anxie-
ty, as well as other mental and physical symptoms, during menopause.
This glaring gap in knowledge and understanding of women's health leads
to discrimination against menopausal employees.
According to a recent study conducted by Biote, 65% of women said their
workplace did not offer reasonable accommodations for those experiencing
menopause. Although federal law prohibits discrimination against people
based on sex, age and disability, the law does not specifically protect
against discrimination based on menstruation and menopause, which has
allowed many menopausal claims to fall through the judicial cracks. In
September 2024, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a series of
recommendations that employers could implement at work to better support
and retain menopausal employees, such as providing employees with infor-
mation about menopause and their rights under current law, as well as
strengthening existing policies to better support menopausal workers.
With 28% of the workforce either leaving or considering leaving their
jobs because of menopausal symptoms and treatment, New York must do more
to protect women from workplace discrimination.
This legislation would strengthen New York's labor laws to explicitly
bar employers from discriminating against menopausal or menstruating
employees. The bill would also provide employees with a menopausal and
menstrual bill of rights, as well as require the New York State Depart-
ment of Health to create and distribute educational pamphlets on the
symptoms of menopause.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Undetermined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
