Provides a performance of duty presumption for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis for paid members of a fire department in a city with a population of one million or more.
Provides that an employee shall not be required to request reinstatement in order to file a discrimination claim regarding paid family medical leave benefits; permits a private right of action for certain violations as an alternative to a workers' compensation claim; provides for attorneys' fees and costs.
This bill amends New York's law to explicitly include veterans in the legal definition of "military status." It expands the current definition - which already covers active military service - to protect veterans who have completed their service from unlawful discrimination. The key change adds the phrase "a person's participation in the military service... if such person has been released from such service" to the existing definition. This means veterans will now be covered under the same anti-discrimination protections that apply to active-duty military personnel. The change applies to all areas governed by this law, including employment and housing.
Relates to death benefits for members of the uniformed force of the New York city department of sanitation and members of the uniformed force of the New York city department of correction; establishes that the beneficiaries of a member who would have been entitled to a service retirement benefit at the time of such member's death may elect to receive, in a lump sum, an amount payable which shall be equal to the pension reserve that would have been established had the member retired on the date of such member's death, or the value of the death benefit and the reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay, if any, whichever is greater.
Provides that for New York city police/fire members, uniformed correction/sanitation revised plan and investigator revised plan members of the New York city employees' retirement system, the service retirement benefit shall not be reduced by the primary social security retirement benefit commencing at age sixty-two.
S 6639 increases the percentage of overtime pay excluded from retirement benefit calculations for public employees from 15% to 30% of their regular wages. It directly affects state and local government workers covered by retirement systems using "final average salary" calculations. The bill changes the threshold so more overtime pay will now be included in determining retirement benefits, rather than excluded.
Relates to primary social security retirement benefits for certain members; provides that in the computation of the normal service retirement benefit of members of the New York city fire department pension fund, there shall be no reduction for the primary social security retirement benefit.
Relates to the statute of limitations for actions based on discriminatory practices in employment; establishes action must be commenced within six years.
Provides that the court shall not reduce jury awards as excessive in employment discrimination actions unless the court finds exceptional circumstances which compel the conclusion that the jury was influenced by partiality, prejudice, mistake or corruption.
This bill requires employers with 20+ full-time permanent employees to create a written workplace violence prevention program that includes specific training to address abusive conduct and bullying. The program must identify workplace risks (like working alone or public-facing roles) and detail prevention methods, such as conflict resolution training and reporting systems for aggressive behavior. Employees must receive annual training on recognizing and reporting bullying, understanding workplace risks, and using safety measures like emergency procedures and security devices. The law applies to all covered employers statewide and takes effect 180 days after enactment.
