Requires sexual harassment training for hotel and motel employees; requires operators to certify to the department that they have conducted sexual harassment training; provides such training every two years for employees; requires "know your rights" brochure and employee bill of rights.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1547
SPONSOR: Rosenthal L TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the labor law, in relation to requiring sexual harass-
ment training for hotel and motel employees
PURPOSE:
This bill seeks to educate and empower hotel and motel employees by
educating them about their rights under law against sexual harassment.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one amends the labor law by adding a new section 202-n.
Section two sets forth the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
It has become apparent, due to a recent series of sexual assaults on
hotel employees in the City of New York and beyond, that comprehensive
education about sexual harassment and greater protective protocols for
these employees must be established. It has also become clear that safe,
non-hostile working environments in which employees are certain of their
rights, that allow employees to feel secure in reporting incidents of
sexual harassment, and that codify the means of reporting and responding
to these incidents, must be established.
To ensure employee safety, and unhindered reporting, this legislation
would authorize the creation and distribution of a "Know Your Rights"
brochure to be given to all hotel and motel employees, in addition to
formal training provided by employers on how to recognize, report and
cope with sexual harassment: A "no retaliation" clause is included to
ensure that employees are protected when they report incidences of sexu-
al harassment without the threat of retaliation by employers or those
accused.
Small family-owned and operated hotels, motels and bed and breakfast
facilities will not be required to adhere to certain provisions within
this bill.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2019-20: A.1258 - Referred to Labor
2017-18: A.2179 Referred to Labor
2015-16: A.429 - Referred to Labor
2013-14: A.834 - Referred to Labor
2011-12: A.8195-A - Referred to Labor
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Undetermined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This bill shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be made
and completed on or before such effective date.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1547
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2021
___________
Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL, DINOWITZ, SIMON -- Multi-Sponsored
by -- M. of A. GLICK, GOTTFRIED -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Labor
AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to requiring sexual harass-
ment training for hotel and motel employees
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The labor law is amended by adding a new section 202-n to
2 read as follows:
3 § 202-n. Sexual harassment training for hotel and motel employees. 1.
4 On or after the ninetieth day after the effective date of this section,
5 hotels and motels shall provide sexual harassment training to its
6 employees via a classroom or other effective interactive training and
7 shall include, but not be limited to, the following topics:
8 (a) Information and practical guidance regarding federal, state and
9 local statutory laws about sexual harassment;
10 (b) Information about the correction of sexual harassment and the
11 remedies available to victims of sexual harassment;
12 (c) Practical examples aimed at instructing supervisors in the
13 prevention of sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation.
14 2. Hotels and motels shall have two months from the hiring date of any
15 new employee to provide sexual harassment training for such employee.
16 3. Employees shall receive training every two years following their
17 initial training.
18 4. On or before April first following the training required pursuant
19 to subdivision one of this section, and every year thereafter, operators
20 of such hotel or motel shall certify to the department that they have
21 conducted sexual harassment training and shall include an electronic
22 list of the employees who participated in the training. The department
23 will issue a hotel or motel a certificate of compliance upon receiving
24 such list.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00775-01-1
A. 1547 2
1 5. Immediately upon commencement of employment and prior to their
2 sexual harassment training, employees shall be provided with a "know
3 your rights" brochure detailing the rights and remedies available under
4 federal, state and local law. The brochure shall be produced by the
5 department, in plain English, and shall be made available in other
6 languages, including but not limited to Spanish, Haitian French, Chinese
7 and Russian. Employees shall sign a statement on a document to be
8 produced by the department, certifying that they have received the "know
9 your rights" brochure required pursuant to this section.
10 6. Employers shall conspicuously post an employee's bill of rights to
11 be promulgated by the department. The bill of rights shall be written in
12 plain English, and shall be made available in other languages, including
13 but not limited to Spanish, Haitian French, Chinese and Russian.
14 7. The department shall establish protocol for sexual harassment
15 training which shall be available online to hotels and motels subject to
16 the provisions of this section.
17 8. Under the supervision of the department, all employers shall create
18 and implement a comprehensive and confidential incident reporting
19 system, and shall put clear procedures in place to guide employees and
20 managers in the reporting of sexual harassment incidents.
21 9. Failure to comply with the provisions of this section shall result
22 in a penalty of five hundred dollars for the first violation, and for
23 the second and each subsequent violation, the penalty shall be one thou-
24 sand dollars.
25 10. (a) Failure to provide the training and education required by this
26 section may be considered as a factor in determining whether an employer
27 may be held liable for a claim of sexual harassment or hostile work
28 environment under applicable law, but liability may not be predicated
29 solely upon such failure. An employer's compliance with this section
30 shall not constitute a defense in any judicial or administrative
31 proceeding where a claim of sexual harassment or hostile work environ-
32 ment has been brought.
33 (b) Employers shall be prohibited from retaliating against any employ-
34 ee who exercises their rights under this section, or any employee
35 reporting a complaint to management or the authorities that they have
36 not received training pursuant to this section or a complaint of sexual
37 harassment.
38 11. The training and education required by this section is intended to
39 establish a minimum threshold and should not discourage, or relieve any
40 employer from providing for longer, more frequent, or more elaborate
41 training and education regarding workplace harassment or other forms of
42 unlawful discrimination in order to meet its obligations to take all
43 reasonable steps necessary to prevent and correct harassment and
44 discrimination.
45 12. For purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the
46 following meanings:
47 (a) "Hotel" and/or "motel" shall mean establishments distinguished as
48 hotels, motels, bungalow colonies, or any other establishment comparable
49 or equivalent to any of those previously mentioned. The term shall not
50 include those places or facilities not having the general character-
51 istics of a hotel or motel as that term is generally understood and the
52 commissioner of health shall have the power to except from this article
53 and the sanitary code a place or facility that is not within the intent
54 of this definition of a motel or hotel. The term shall not include
55 small family owned and operated hotels, motels or bed and breakfasts.
A. 1547 3
1 (b) "Employee" shall mean any person employed for hire including sub-
2 contractors who works twenty hours or more per week.
3 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
4 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
5 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
6 this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be made
7 and completed on or before such effective date.
