--- name: ny-employment description: > Use when drafting or filing a New York employment action — workplace discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage-and-hour violations, whistleblower, WARN Act, restrictive covenants. Triggers include 'NY Exec Law 296', 'NYS Human Rights Law', 'NYC Human Rights Law', 'NYC Admin Code 8-107', 'Labor Law 740 whistleblower', 'Labor Law 191 frequency of pay', 'Labor Law 198 wage theft', 'EEOC Notice of Right to Sue'. Covers **NY Exec Law § 296** (NYS HRL, broader-than-Title-VII, all-size coverage post-2019); **NYC Admin Code § 8-107** (broadest civil-rights statute; *Williams v. NYC Housing Authority* construed-broadly rule); Labor Law §§ 191/198 wage-theft; Labor Law § 740 whistleblower (post-2022); NYS WARN Act; 2018 Sexual Harassment Act; CROWN Act; EEOC exhaustion; and NY employment SOLs (1 yr DHR, 3 yr judicial HRL, 6 yr wage theft). version: 0.1.2 --- # New York Employment Law > **NOT LEGAL ADVICE.** Employment claims in NY are > deadline-driven and forum-strategy-sensitive. Verify SOLs, > administrative-exhaustion timelines (EEOC + DHR election- > of-remedies), and venue choice before drafting. ## SOL catalog (the most-used) | Claim | SOL | Citation | |---|---|---| | **NYS Human Rights Law (administrative)** | **1 year** from discriminatory act | NY Exec Law § 297(5) | | **NYS Human Rights Law (judicial)** | **3 years** | CPLR 214(2) | | **NYC Human Rights Law (judicial)** | **3 years** | NYC Admin Code § 8-502(d) | | **NYC Human Rights Law (administrative)** | **1 year** | NYC Admin Code § 8-109 | | **Labor Law § 198 wage-theft** | **6 years** | Labor Law § 198(3) | | **Labor Law § 740 whistleblower** | **2 years** (post-2022 amend; was 1 year) | Labor Law § 740(4)(a) | | **NYS WARN Act** | **3 years** | Labor Law § 860-g | | **Common-law wrongful discharge** | varies (3 yr CPLR 214(5) negligence; 6 yr CPLR 213(2) breach of K) | | | **Title VII (federal, in NY)** | **300 days** to EEOC; **90 days** after Right to Sue | 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5 | | **ADA / ADEA (federal, in NY)** | **300 days** to EEOC | | | **FLSA (federal wage-hour)** | **2 years** (3 if willful) | 29 U.S.C. § 255 | ## The three principal NY statutes ### NYS Human Rights Law (NY Exec Law § 296) The **NYS HRL** prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of: - Age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, familial status, marital status, status as victim of domestic violence - Pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions - Reproductive health decision-making - Lawful source of income (in employment contexts) **Coverage**: As of the 2019 Human Rights Law reforms (L 2019, ch 160), the NYS HRL applies to **all employers regardless of size** for harassment claims (was 4+ employees pre-2019). For discrimination claims, the law applies to all employers as well after the 2020 amendments. **Forum**: Plaintiff can elect either: - **Administrative**: file with the **NYS Division of Human Rights (DHR)** within 1 year. DHR investigates and may hold a hearing. Election of administrative remedy generally bars subsequent court action under NY Exec Law § 297(9) — but permitted exceptions exist. - **Judicial**: file directly in Supreme Court (or applicable trial court) within 3 years under CPLR 214(2). No exhaustion requirement for judicial path. The 2019 reforms also **eliminated the "severe or pervasive" standard** for harassment — any discriminatory conduct (with limited exceptions for "petty slights or trivial inconveniences") can support liability. ### NYC Human Rights Law (NYC Admin Code § 8-107) The **NYC HRL** is widely considered the **broadest civil- rights statute in the country**. Key distinguishing features: - **Construed liberally**: NYC Admin Code § 8-130 and the *Williams v. NYC Housing Authority* line of cases require courts to construe the NYC HRL **liberally for the accomplishment of its remedial purposes** even where federal and state law would not afford relief - **No "severe or pervasive" requirement**: harassment liability attaches to conduct that simply treats the plaintiff "less well" because of a protected characteristic - **Broader protected categories**: - All NYS HRL categories above - **Caregiver status** (NYC Local Law 9 of 2016) - **Status as victim of stalking** - **Status as a salary-history-protected individual** (NYC Local Law 67 of 2017 — bans salary-history inquiry) - **Pre-employment marijuana testing** banned (NYC Local Law 28 of 2019) - **Punitive damages available** without the Title VII / ADEA cap - **Mandatory attorney's fees** to prevailing plaintiff under NYC Admin Code § 8-502(g) **Coverage**: 4+ employees for most claims; harassment applies to all employers (the 4-employee threshold removed for harassment in 2019). **Forum**: NYC HRL allows direct judicial action under NYC Admin Code § 8-502 with no exhaustion requirement, or an administrative complaint to the NYC **Commission on Human Rights (NYCCHR)** within 1 year. ### Federal Title VII / ADA / ADEA (in NY context) Federal discrimination claims must be filed with the EEOC within **300 days** of the discriminatory act (NY is a "deferral state"). Plaintiff receives a Right-to-Sue letter and must file the federal action within **90 days**. **Strategy note**: NYS HRL and NYC HRL provide broader substantive protections than Title VII/ADA/ADEA, and have longer SOLs and lower bars to proof. Many NY employment lawyers file dual federal + state/city claims, removing the federal action to district court only if substantial federal issues compel. ## Labor Law — wage and hour ### Frequency of pay (Labor Law § 191) Workers in NY must be paid on a specified schedule: - **Manual workers** — weekly (§ 191(1)(a)) - **Railroad workers** — bi-weekly - **Commission salespersons** — at least once per month - **Clerical and other workers** — at least semi-monthly Misclassification of a manual worker as a clerical worker (triggering bi-weekly instead of weekly pay) is a frequent litigation theme. The 2020 *Vega v. CM & Associates Construction Management LLC* decision opened a high-impact litigation path — even when wages were paid in full but late, the employee can recover liquidated damages equal to the underpayment. ### Wage theft (Labor Law §§ 193, 195, 198) Labor Law § 193 bars unauthorized deductions; § 195 imposes notice requirements (the "Wage Theft Prevention Act" annual notice + new-hire notice); § 198 provides civil remedies: - **Underpayment recovery** — 100% of wages owed - **Liquidated damages** — 100% of wages (200% in some cases) - **Pre-judgment interest** — 9% (CPLR 5004) - **Attorney's fees** — mandatory - **6-year SOL** — Labor Law § 198(3) ### NYS Sexual Harassment Act (2018, amended 2019, 2022) The 2018 / 2019 reforms — applicable to **all employers regardless of size** — require: - Annual sexual harassment prevention training (Labor Law § 201-g) - Posting of complaint mechanism + reporting procedures - Prohibition on mandatory arbitration of harassment claims (Labor Law § 7515) - Prohibition on non-disclosure agreements that conceal workplace harassment unless requested by the plaintiff ### Labor Law § 740 — Whistleblower (post-2022 amendments) The 2022 amendments (L 2021, ch 270) substantially expanded § 740: - **Coverage**: now protects employees who report violations of any law, rule, or regulation (was previously limited to "substantial and specific danger" to health or safety) - **SOL**: 2 years (was 1 year) - **Remedies**: reinstatement + back pay + front pay + compensatory damages + civil penalty + attorney's fees ### NYS WARN Act (Labor Law Article 25-A) Larger than the federal WARN Act: - **Coverage**: 50+ employees (federal threshold is 100+) - **Notice**: **90 days** advance notice (federal is 60) - **Triggering event**: layoff of 25+ employees constituting 33%+ of workforce, or 250+ employees regardless - **Remedies**: back pay for the notice-period shortfall + benefits + civil penalty ### CROWN Act (NY Exec Law § 292(38)) Race discrimination definition includes traits historically associated with race, including **hair texture and protective hairstyles** (braids, locs, twists). NY adopted the CROWN Act in 2019; NYC HRL has equivalent protection. ## Restrictive covenants — narrow enforceability NY courts apply the **"reasonableness"** test from *Reed, Roberts Associates v. Strauman*, 40 N.Y.2d 303 (1976): - Reasonable in time + geography + scope - Protects legitimate employer interest (trade secrets, unique services, goodwill) - Not unreasonably burdensome on employee - Not injurious to public The 2024 BSC § 5-3320 reforms (L 2023, ch 540) tightened non-compete enforceability for lower-wage workers and added notice requirements; a proposed full ban passed both chambers in 2023 but was vetoed by the Governor. ## Composition with other ny- skills - `ny-statewide-format` — caption + format baseline - `ny-discovery` — CPLR Article 31 disclosure (employment cases typically aggressive on employer documents) - `ny-first-30-days` — Answer + affirmative defenses - `ny-deadlines` — SOL + EEOC + DHR arithmetic - `ny-nyco` / `ny-kings` etc. — venue routing (employment cases route to Supreme Court when over $25,000; SDNY / EDNY for federal-claim removal) - `ny-fact-check` — citation patterns (*Williams v. NYC Housing Authority*; *Vega v. CM & Associates*) ## High-yield employment checks 1. **Forum strategy**: state HRL vs. NYC HRL vs. Title VII election; election-of-remedies bar under § 297(9)? 2. **Administrative exhaustion**: EEOC charge filed within 300 days? 3. **SOL on each claim**: 1 yr DHR / 3 yr judicial HRL / 6 yr Labor Law / 2 yr LL § 740? 4. **Coverage thresholds**: 4-employee for some NYS HRL sections, all-size for harassment + NYC HRL? 5. **Severance / NDA carve-outs**: harassment-NDA ban under Labor Law § 7515? 6. **Mandatory arbitration**: harassment claim escape under Labor Law § 7515? 7. **Frequency of pay**: manual-worker misclassification under § 191(1)(a)? ## Pro-se resources - **NYS Division of Human Rights** — `dhr.ny.gov`; intake hotline 1-888-392-3644 - **NYC Commission on Human Rights** — `nyc.gov/cchr`; intake 311 - **NYS Department of Labor** — wage and hour complaint intake - **EEOC New York District Office** — federal exhaustion charges - **Pro bono employment-law clinics** — Outten & Golden pro bono program; NYC Bar pro bono panel