Relates to decreasing the length of the suspension period applicable to certain individuals who lose their jobs due to a labor dispute, such as a strike, and who seek to obtain unemployment insurance benefits; decreases the suspension period from two consecutive weeks to one week; permits the waiting period to be served during a suspension period.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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4402
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 8, 2023
___________
Introduced by Sen. KENNEDY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor
AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to decreasing the length of
the suspension period applicable to certain striking workers who seek
to obtain unemployment insurance benefits
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 592 of the labor law, as
2 amended by chapter 20 of the laws of 2020, are amended to read as
3 follows:
4 1. Industrial controversy. (a) The accumulation of benefit rights by a
5 claimant shall be suspended during a period of [two consecutive weeks]
6 one week beginning with the day after such claimant lost his or her
7 employment because of a strike or other industrial controversy except
8 for lockouts, including concerted activity not authorized or sanctioned
9 by the recognized or certified bargaining agent of the claimant, and
10 other concerted activity conducted in violation of any existing collec-
11 tive bargaining agreement, in the establishment in which he or she was
12 employed, except that benefit rights may be accumulated before the expi-
13 ration of such [two] one week period beginning with the day after such
14 strike or other industrial controversy was terminated.
15 (b) Benefits shall not be suspended under this section if:
16 (i) The employer hires a permanent replacement worker for the employ-
17 ee's position. A replacement worker shall be presumed to be permanent
18 unless the employer certifies in writing that the employee will be able
19 to return to his or her prior position upon conclusion of the strike, in
20 the event the strike terminates prior to the conclusion of the employ-
21 ee's eligibility for benefit rights under this chapter. In the event the
22 employer does not permit such return after such certification, the
23 employee shall be entitled to recover any benefits lost as a result of
24 the [two] one week suspension of benefits, and the department may impose
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01295-01-3
S. 4402 2
1 a penalty upon the employer of up to seven hundred fifty dollars per
2 employee per week of benefits lost. The penalty collected shall be paid
3 into the unemployment insurance control fund established pursuant to
4 section five hundred fifty-two-b of this article; or
5 (ii) The commissioner determines that the claimant:
6 (A) is not employed by an employer that is involved in the industrial
7 controversy that caused his or her unemployment and is not participating
8 in the industrial controversy; or
9 (B) is not in a bargaining unit involved in the industrial controversy
10 that caused his or her unemployment and is not participating in the
11 industrial controversy.
12 3. Terms of suspension. [No] The waiting period may be served during a
13 suspension period.
14 The suspension of accumulation of benefit rights shall not be termi-
15 nated by subsequent employment of the claimant irrespective of when the
16 claim is filed except as provided in subdivision one and shall not be
17 confined to a single benefit year.
18 A "week" as used in subdivision one of this section means any seven
19 consecutive calendar days.
20 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
