NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A4272
SPONSOR: Gunther (MS)
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the executive law, in relation to
reasonable accommodation
 
PURPOSE: This bill would enact part of the New York Women's Agenda,
which would break down barriers that perpetuate discrimination and
inequality based on gender. New York State has a proud history and
tradition of leading the nation in progressive ideals and reforms This
is especially so with respect to women's rights in 1843, the women's
suffrage movement was born at the first Women's Rights Convention in
Seneca Falls, New York. From that moment in time and continuing through
today, the state has been the home of female leaders and visionaries,
from Elizabeth Cady Stanton who initiated the first organized women's
rights and women's suffrage movements, to Audre Lorde, a leading Afri-
can-American poet and essayist who gave voice to women's issues, and
Gloria Steinem, the journalist, author and activist. These New Yorkers
have served as role models for not only their generation but for every
generation to come.
Over the years, New York has fallen behind in its role as a progressive
leader on women's rights. Today, statistics clearly show that women in
New York State are not treated equally to men. Study after study shows
gender inequality in our communities where women face discrimination in
the workplace based on pregnancy.
The New York Women's Agenda will break down barriers that perpetuate
discrimination and inequality based on gender. New York has served as a
model for equality and fairness on several issues including women's
rights. The New York Women's Agenda will return the State to its right-
ful place as a leader on women's equality.
 
SUMMARY OF BILL: This bill would amend Exec. L. § 296 to clarify that
employers must perform a reasonable accommodation analysis for employees
with pregnancy-related conditions. A pregnancy-related condition would
be defined as a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth. A
reasonable accommodation would not have to be granted if it imposed an
undue hardship on an employer. A pregnancy-related condition would be
treated as a temporary disability for the purposes of current Division
of Human Rights regulations regarding reasonable accommodations. Addi-
tionally, it would codify in law a requirement currently in regulation
that an employee must cooperate in providing medical or other informa-
tion to verify the existence of a disability or pregnancy-related condi-
tion.
 
EXISTING LAW: This bill would impact existing protections that are
available under the Executive Law.
 
STATEMENT IN SUPPORT: * Stopping Pregnancy Discrimination Once and
For All
Conditions related to childbirth and pregnancy can result in impairment
requiring accommodation. Some pregnant workers require modest adjust-
ments on the job for conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth in
order to stay healthy and keep working. Employees may require a stool to
sit on, extra restroom breaks, transfer away from hazardous duties, a
temporary reprieve from heavy lifting, or a reasonable time for child-
birth recovery. In order to adequately protect the rights of pregnant
workers, it is necessary to create a specific protection in the Human
Rights Law requiring employers to provide a reasonable accommodation for
pregnancy-related conditions, unless doing so would create an undue
hardship. While the Division of Human Rights has long interpreted the
sex and disability protections of the Human Rights Law to encompass
pregnancy-related conditions, recent Court decisions have contributed to
the already considerable confusion as to the availability and extent of
this protection. The purpose of this bill is to codify the Division's
existing interpretation of-the law while not depriving women of any of
their existing protections under the disability and sex discrimination
provisions of the law.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2013-14: A1264A referred to Governmental
Operations/S5880 passed Senate
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: This bill has no budget implications for the
State.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE: This bill would take effect 90 days after enactment.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4272
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 30, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, JAFFEE, LIFTON, ENGLEBRIGHT, STECK,
SCARBOROUGH, RIVERA, ABINANTI, HOOPER, COLTON, MAYER, SIMOTAS, GALEF,
ROSENTHAL, CLARK, PEOPLES-STOKES, FAHY, STIRPE, LUPARDO, BARRETT,
WALTER -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. ARROYO, MONTESANO, MOSLEY,
O'DONNELL, ROZIC, SKARTADOS -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to reasonable accommo-
dation
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 21-e of section 292 of the executive law, as
2 added by chapter 269 of the laws of 1997, is amended and a new subdivi-
3 sion 21-f is added to read as follows:
4 21-e. The term "reasonable accommodation" means actions taken which
5 permit an employee, prospective employee or member with a disability, or
6 a pregnancy-related condition, to perform in a reasonable manner the
7 activities involved in the job or occupation sought or held and include,
8 but are not limited to, provision of an accessible worksite, acquisition
9 or modification of equipment, support services for persons with impaired
10 hearing or vision, job restructuring and modified work schedules;
11 provided, however, that such actions do not impose an undue hardship on
12 the business, program or enterprise of the entity from which action is
13 requested.
14 21-f. The term "pregnancy-related condition" means a medical condition
15 related to pregnancy or childbirth that inhibits the exercise of a
16 normal bodily function or is demonstrable by medically accepted clinical
17 or laboratory diagnostic techniques; provided, however, that in all
18 provisions of this article dealing with employment, the term shall be
19 limited to conditions which, upon the provision of reasonable accommo-
20 dations, do not prevent the complainant from performing in a reasonable
21 manner the activities involved in the job or occupation sought or held;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01025-01-5
A. 4272 2
1 and provided further, however, that pregnancy-related conditions shall
2 be treated as temporary disabilities for the purposes of this article.
3 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 296 of the executive
4 law, as added by chapter 269 of the laws of 1997, is amended and a new
5 paragraph (c) is added to read as follows:
6 (a) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employer,
7 licensing agency, employment agency or labor organization to refuse to
8 provide reasonable accommodations to the known disabilities, or pregnan-
9 cy-related conditions, of an employee, prospective employee or member in
10 connection with a job or occupation sought or held or participation in a
11 training program.
12 (c) The employee must cooperate in providing medical or other informa-
13 tion that is necessary to verify the existence of the disability or
14 pregnancy-related condition, or that is necessary for consideration of
15 the accommodation. The employee has a right to have such medical infor-
16 mation kept confidential.
17 § 3. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
18 sion, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by a court of compe-
19 tent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair
20 or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its opera-
21 tion to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part
22 thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment
23 shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the
24 legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such invalid
25 provisions had not been included herein.
26 § 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
27 have become a law.