Stop Sexual Assault and Harassment in Transportation Act Passes the House

The Stop Sexual Assault and Harassment in Transportation Act passed the House on March 30, 2022 and now makes its way to the senate. 

If passed, the Act will require airlines, railroads, vessels, buses, and transit entities (e.g., Uber / Lyft) to establish "a formal policy with respect to transportation sexual assault or harassment incidents" together with appropriate trainings. 

It is specifically designed to notice, warn, prevent, and combat sexual assault and harassment by the public and staff making transportation safe for all involved. 

The Act establishes civil penalties against harassers starting at $35,000. 

Shouldn't it be safe to travel and shouldn't it be safe to work in transit?

NYC Salary Transparency in Job Advertisements FAQ Published

The NYC Commission on Human Rights published its FAQ that needs to be reviewed and adhered to by any employer advertising positions that may be performed in NYC starting on May 15, 2022.  

If you are an employer who is seeking an employee whose job may be performed, in whole or in part, in NYC, you will need to comply with Local Law 32 of 2022, which requires salary transparency. 

To comply, employers' advertisements "must state the minimum and maximum salary they in good faith believe at the time of the posting." 

Be sure to do this correctly because the FAQ reminds employers that "[e]mployers and employment agencies who are found to have violated the NYCHRL may have to pay monetary damages to affected employees and civil penalties of up to $250,000."

Construction Workers' Wage & Hour Claims are about to Blow-Up

On March 18, 2022, a new NYS law provides that a General Contractor will now have 10 business days from receipt of notice of unpaid wages by a subcontractor's employee to pay such subcontractor's employee earned wages, benefits, and/or wage supplements earned, or such General Contractors can be sued for the wages for the previous 3 years. 

General Contractors must implement hour tracking for their subcontractors' employees immediately because they are liable for time and a half for overtime. 

Plus, General Contractors should act swiftly if they receive the new statutory 10 business day notice because if the subcontractors' employee sues, they will be liable for statutory penalties (liquidated damages) plus attorneys' fees in a court case.

Ketanji Brown Jackson's Supreme Court Confirmation Hearing. Analysis with Andrew Lieb on NBC LX

More Attorneys' Fees Available under NYS Human Rights Law for Discrimination Cases

On March 18, 2022, Governor Hochul signed S7733 into law and clarified that "the awarding of attorney's fees in credit discrimination cases is not limited to only those discrimination cases alleging sex-based discrimination."

This law is particularly important for race discrimination, which is highly prevalent in the credit discrimination arena. 

Regardless, whenever a victim can recover his / her / its legal fees incident to overcoming discrimination, that's a good thing and this clarification is helpful for discrimination victims throughout NYS.