On November 17, 2023, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation that affects settlement agreements between employers and employees that resolve claims of discrimination, harassment and retaliation. The law invalidates a release of claims in any future settlement agreement that contains a condition requiring the complainant to pay the employer liquidated damages or to forfeit […]
New York City has passed legislation amending the New York City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”) to prohibit discrimination on the basis of height and weight. The law will become effective November 22, 2023. The new law amends the NYCHRL to include height and weight as protected categories and New York City employers will be prohibited […]
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has signed into law a bill (Intro. 209-A), which will prohibit discrimination on the basis of a person’s height or weight in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The legislation will become effective 180 days from signing, on November 22, 2023. As we previously reported, the new legislation will amend […]
On April 11, 2023, New York State released updated versions of the New York State Sexual Harassment Model Policy and training materials. In addition to a new model policy, the State has updated its Frequently Asked Questions and provided a new toolkit for workers and employers, as well as a new training slide deck and […]
On December 29, 2022, President Bident signed into law the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act in 1978, prohibits sex discrimination, including pregnancy discrimination, but does not require employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees. Relatedly, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) […]
On December 23, 2022, Governor Hochul signed into law New York State Assembly Bill A6328A, amending the New York Executive Law § 292 (the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL)), to prohibit employment discrimination against employees and job applicants based on citizenship and immigration status. This amendment, which became effective immediately upon Governor Hochul’s signature, prohibits […]
On December 13, 2022, President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act. The act specifically repeals the federal Defense of Marriage Act from the 1990s and prohibits states from denying “full faith and credit” to any marriage between two individuals based on sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin. The act includes a section stating that it […]
On December 7, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Speak Out Act, which prevents courts from enforcing certain non-disclosure and non-disparagement clauses related to claims of sexual assault or harassment. The new law was effective immediately. Specifically, the Act bars the enforcement of non-disclosure and non-disparagement clauses with respect to a sexual assault or […]
On October 19, 2022, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) released an updated “Know Your Rights” poster to be prominently displayed in the workplace by all employers with 15 or more employees. The new poster updates and replaces the previous “EEO is the Law” poster. The posters should be placed in a conspicuous location […]
On July 19, 2022, the New York State Division of Human Rights (“NYSDHR”) established a confidential hotline at 1-800-HARASS-3 which allows individuals to report complaints of sexual harassment in the workplace and provide legal assistance to New York employees. Specifically, employees in New York State may now call 1-800-HARASS-3 (1-800-427-2773) for issues relating to workplace […]
On March 16, 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law three amendments to the State’s workplace anti-discrimination and anti-harassment laws, expanding harassment and discrimination protections under the New York State Human Rights Law (“NYSHRL”). Retaliation for Releasing Personnel Files Effective immediately, the NYSHRL’s definition of retaliation was amended to include “disclosing an employee’s […]
On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021. The law took effect immediately. The law allows employees who previously entered into agreements requiring all employment disputes to be arbitrated, would be entitled to elect to litigate sexual assault and sexual harassment claims in […]
