NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5777A
SPONSOR: Dinowitz TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general obligations law, in relation to prohibiting
employers from requiring certain conditions or preconditions of employ-
ment
PURPOSE OF BILL:
This bill would prohibit an employer from requiring an employee or
person seeking employment to waiver, arbitrate, or otherwise diminish
any existing or future claim, right, or benefit to which the employee or
person seeking employment would otherwise be entitled to under any
provision of New York State or federal law.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS OF BILL:
Section 1 of the bill amends the general obligations law by adding a new
section 5-337 which would prohibit any employer from requiring an
employee or person seeking employment to waiver, arbitrate, or otherwise
diminish any existing or future claim, right, or benefit to which the
employee or person seeking employment would otherwise be entitled to
under any provision of New York State or federal law. This section
further exempts any contracts or agreements negotiated with any labor
union through collective bargaining.
Section 2 sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
In the fall of 2018, the Kentucky Supreme Court outlawed mandatory arbi-
tration agreements that require applicants or employees to sign if they
want to be hired or remain employed* (Northern Kentucky Area Development
Dist. V Snyder). The decision was based off of existing Kentucky law and
this legislation would codify that law into New York State Law.
Restrictive or coercive employment contracts such as those requiring a
current or future employee to waiver, arbitrate, or otherwise diminish
any existing or future claim, right, or benefit to which the employee or
person seeking employment would otherwise be entitled to under any
provision of New York State or federal law, are not in line with fair
and equitable hiring practices. This legislation seeks to address these
unjust contract provisions from being imposed on employees in New York.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a New Bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law. https://www.fisherphillips.com/resources-alerts-kentucky-
becomes- first-state-to-prohibit-mandatory
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5777--A
Cal. No. 221
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 19, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, REYES, SAYEGH, GOTTFRIED, GALEF, SIMON,
D'URSO, STIRPE, ARROYO, BLAKE, STECK, GLICK, ZEBROWSKI, ORTIZ, WEPRIN,
CRUZ, FERNANDEZ -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, DenDEKKER,
ENGLEBRIGHT, GRIFFIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on
Judiciary -- ordered 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
employers from requiring certain conditions or preconditions of
employment
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general obligations law is amended by adding a new
2 section 5-338 to read as follows:
3 § 5-338. Conditions and preconditions of employment. 1. As used in
4 this section the following terms shall have the following meanings:
5 (a) "Employer" means any person, either individual, corporation, part-
6 nership, agency, or firm, that employs an employee and includes any
7 person, either individual, corporation, partnership, agency, or firm,
8 acting directly or indirectly in the interest of an employer in relation
9 to an employee; and
10 (b) "Employee" means any person employed by or suffered or permitted
11 to work for an employer.
12 2. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no employer
13 shall require as a condition or precondition of employment that any
14 employee or person seeking employment waive, arbitrate, or otherwise
15 diminish any existing or future claim, right, or benefit to which the
16 employee or person seeking employment would otherwise be entitled under
17 any provision of any New York state or federal law.
18 3. The provisions of this section shall not apply to contracts or
19 agreements negotiated with any labor union through collective bargain-
20 ing.
21 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
22 have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06224-02-0
