Permits tip sharing and tip pooling; requires any restaurant or hospitality business that chooses to permit tip sharing and tip pooling to inform their employees of such policy through a conspicuously posted notice or other effective means of disclosure with as much advance notice as possible; makes related provisions.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7479
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 26, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CAHILL -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Labor
AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to the tipping and hourly
wages of food service workers and back-of-the-house employees
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 651 of the labor law is amended by adding three new
2 subdivisions 10, 11 and 12 to read as follows:
3 10. "Back-of-the-house employee" means an employee primarily engaged
4 in the preparing of food or beverages or work directly related to the
5 functionality of a kitchen or food and beverage preparation area whereby
6 the employee does not interact with patrons or customers a majority of
7 the time. This shall include, but not be limited to, employees in the
8 hotel or restaurant industries who serve as chefs, pantry or prep cooks,
9 line cooks, short order cooks, expediters, kitchen hands and dishwashers
10 who are prohibited from receiving tips from guests, patrons or custom-
11 ers.
12 11. "Tip sharing" is the practice by which a directly tipped employee
13 gives a portion of his or her tips to another service employee or food
14 service worker who participated in providing service to customers and
15 keeps the balance.
16 12. "Tip pooling" is the practice by which the tip earnings of direct-
17 ly tipped employees are intermingled in a common pool and then redis-
18 tributed among directly and indirectly tipped employees.
19 § 2. The labor law is amended by adding a new section 652-a to read as
20 follows:
21 § 652-a. Tip sharing and tip pooling. 1. Restaurants and hospitality
22 businesses may permit tip sharing and tip pooling as defined in subdivi-
23 sions eleven and twelve of section six hundred fifty-one of this article
24 among back-of-the-house employees provided that such businesses pay food
25 service workers and back-of-the-house employees not less than the mini-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11164-01-7
A. 7479 2
1 mum wage established pursuant to subdivision one of section six hundred
2 fifty-two of this article.
3 2. (a) Any restaurant or hospitality business that chooses to permit
4 tip sharing and tip pooling as authorized in this section is required to
5 inform their employees of such policy through a conspicuously posted
6 notice or other effective means of disclosure with as much advance
7 notice as possible.
8 (b) If at any time such business that was previously permitting tip
9 sharing and tip pooling as authorized in this section ceases to do so,
10 that business is required to inform their employees of such action
11 through a conspicuously posted notice or other effective means of
12 disclosure at least seven days prior to implementing such a policy or
13 with as much advance notice as possible.
14 § 3. The commissioner of labor shall promulgate such rules and regu-
15 lations necessary for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of
16 this act.
17 § 4. This act shall take effect January 1, 2018.
