What's happening
The New York State Fair Pay Act prohibits wage discrimination based on sex, race, or national origin and establishes enforcement mechanisms.
Why it matters
Expands the definition of wage discrimination. by requiring equal pay for “equivalent jobs,” not just identical jobs—meaning jobs that may be different, but require similar skills, effort, responsibility, and working conditions must be paid the same if dominated by different sexes, races, or national origins.
Targets occupational segregation and systemic bias. by addressing pay disparities not only within the same job title but also across different jobs that have been historically undervalued because they are predominantly held by women or minorities.
Strengthens employee rights and protections. by empowering workers to discuss wages without fear of retaliation, and by protecting those who challenge pay discrimination or participate in related investigations.
Creates robust enforcement and remedies. allowing both state authorities and employees to take legal action, with the potential for back pay, compensatory and punitive damages, injunctive relief, and recovery of attorney and expert witness fees—raising the stakes for employers who violate the law.
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Women and minority workers
The bill would prohibit discriminatory pay differences for equivalent jobs, including dissimilar jobs with equivalent skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions, and allow workers to seek back pay and damages.
Private employers with four or more employees and state and local governments
The bill would require compliance with its equivalent-job pay standards and prohibit retaliation against employees who discuss wages or enforce their rights.
Labor unions
The bill would prohibit unions from causing discriminatory pay practices while preserving rights and benefits under bona fide collective bargaining agreements.
New York State Department of Labor
The bill would require the department to establish job-comparison rules, investigate complaints and attempt resolutions, with authority to bring enforcement actions in court.
Headline styles
End Pay Discrimination
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Referred to labor
- Referred to labor
Full text
5 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1454
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 15, 2019
Introduced by Sens. SANDERS, HOYLMAN, KENNEDY, KRUEGER, PARKER, RIVERA, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor
AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to enacting the "New York state fair pay act"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The labor law is amended by adding a new article 21 to read as follows:
ARTICLE 21
NEW YORK STATE FAIR PAY ACT Section 750. Short title.
751. Findings and statement of purpose.
752. Definitions.
753. Prohibition against discrimination in wages.
754. Other prohibited acts.
755. Remedies and enforcement.
756. Regulations.
§ 750. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "New York state fair pay act".
§ 751. Findings and statement of purpose. (a) The legislature finds the following:
(1) Despite federal and state laws banning discrimination in employment and pay, in both the private and public sector, wage differentials persist between women and men and between minorities and non-minorities in the same jobs and in jobs that are dissimilar but that require equivalent composites of skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions;
(2) The existence of such wage differentials:
(A) depresses wages and living standards for employees necessary for their health and efficiency;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05881-01-9
S. 1454 2
(B) reduces family incomes and contributes to the higher poverty rates among female-headed and minority households;
(C) prevents the maximum utilization of the available labor resources;
(D) tends to cause labor disputes, thereby burdening, affecting, and obstructing commerce;
(E) constitutes an unfair method of competition; and
(F) violates the state's public policy against discrimination;
(3) Discrimination in wage-setting practices has played a role in depressing wages for women and minorities generally;
(4) Many individuals work in occupations that are dominated by individuals of their same sex, race, and/or national origin, and discrimination in hiring, job assignment and promotion has played a role in establishing and maintaining segregated work forces;
(5) Eliminating discrimination in compensation based on sex, race and national origin would have positive effects, including:
(A) providing a solution to problems in the economy created by discriminatory wage differentials;
(B) reducing the number of working women and people of color earning low wages, thereby lowering their incidence of poverty during normal working years and in retirement; and
(C) promoting stable families by raising family incomes.
(b) It is the purpose of this article to correct and as rapidly as practicable to eliminate discriminatory wage practices based on sex, race and/or national origin.
§ 752. Definitions. (a) The term "employ" shall mean to suffer or permit to work.
(b) The term "employee" shall mean any person employed by an employer and includes all of an employer's permanent employees, whether working full-time or part-time, and any temporary employee employed by an employer for a period of at least three months. "Employee" shall not include any individual employed by his or her parents, spouse or child.
(c) The term "employer" shall mean any person who employs four or more persons and includes the state and all political subdivisions thereof.
(d) The term "equivalent jobs" means jobs or occupations that are equal within the meaning of the Equal Pay Act of 1963, 29 U.S.C. 206(d), or jobs or occupations that are dissimilar but whose requirements are equivalent, when viewed as a composite of skills, effort, responsibility and working conditions. Equivalency of skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions shall be determined by utilizing job comparison methodologies that do not ignore or undervalue the worth of jobs where women and minorities are disproportionately represented.
(e) The term "person" shall mean one or more individuals, partnerships, associations, corporations, limited liability companies, legal representatives, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers and the state and all political subdivisions and agencies thereof.
(f) The term "labor organization" shall mean any organization that exists for the purpose, in whole or part, of collective bargaining or of dealing with employers concerning grievances, terms of conditions of employment, or of other mutual aid or protection in connection with employment.
(g) The term "wages" and wage "rates" shall include all compensation in any form that an employer provides to employees in payment for work done or services rendered, including but not limited to base pay, bonuses, commissions, awards, tips, or various forms of non-monetary compensation if provided in lieu of or in addition to monetary compensation and that have economic value to an employee.
S. 1454 3
§ 753. Prohibition against discrimination in wages. (a) It shall be an unlawful employment practice in violation of this article for an employer to discriminate between employees on the basis of sex, race and/or national origin by:
(1) paying wages to employees at a rate less than the rate paid to employees of the opposite sex or of a different race or national origin for work in equivalent jobs; and/or
(2) paying wages to employees in a job that is dominated by employees of a particular sex, race or national origin at a rate less than the rate at which such employer pays to employees in another job that is dominated by employees of the opposite sex or of a different race or national origin, for work on equivalent jobs.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section, it shall not be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to pay different wage rates to employees, where such payments are made pursuant to:
(1) a bona fide seniority or merit system;
(2) a bona fide system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production;
(3) a bona fide system based on geographic differentials; or
(4) a bona fide factor other than sex, race or national origin, such as education, training, or experience. Such factor: (A) shall not be based upon or derived from a sex, race or national origin based differential in compensation and (B) shall be job-related with respect to the position in question and shall be consistent with business necessity. Such exception under this paragraph shall not apply when the employee demonstrates (i) that an employer uses a particular employment practice that causes a disparate impact on the basis of sex, race or national origin, (ii) that an alternative employment practice exists that would serve the same business purpose and not produce such differential, and (iii) that the employer has refused to adopt such alternative practice.
(c) For the purpose of subdivision (b) of this section, "business necessity" shall be defined as a factor that bears a manifest relationship to the employment in question.
(d) An employer who is paying wages in violation of this section shall not, in order to comply with the provisions of this section, reduce the wage of any employee.
(e) No labor organization or its agents representing employees of an employer having employees subject to any provision of this chapter shall cause or attempt to cause such an employer to discriminate against an employee in violation of subdivision (a) of this section.
(f) An agreement by any employee to work for less than the compensation to which the employee is entitled under this article shall not be a bar to any action to which the employee would otherwise be entitled to enforce the provisions of this article.
(g) Nothing set forth in this section shall be construed to impede, infringe or diminish the rights and benefits which accrue to employees through bona fide collective bargaining agreements, or otherwise diminish the integrity of the existing collective bargaining relationship.
(h) (1) The department shall promulgate regulations specifying the criteria for determining whether a job is dominated by employees of a particular sex, race, or national origin. Criteria shall include, but not be limited to, factors such as whether the job has ever been formally classified as or traditionally considered to be a "male" or "female" or "white" or "minority" job; whether there is a history of discrimination against women and/or people of color with regard to wages,
S. 1454 4
assignment or access to jobs, or other terms and conditions of employment; and the demographic composition of the work force in equivalent jobs e.g., numbers or percentages of women, men, white persons and people of color. The regulations shall not include a list of jobs.
(2) The department shall promulgate regulations specifying the methodology for determining equivalent skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions. Any methodology prescribed by the department shall ensure that comparison systems do not ignore or undervalue the worth of jobs where women and minorities are disproportionately represented.
(3) The equivalence of jobs dominated by employees of a particular sex, race or national origin relative to jobs dominated by employees of the opposite sex or of a different race or origin will be established through the application of a single job comparison system that does not systematically ignore or undervalue the job content of traditionally female and minority jobs.
§ 754. Other prohibited acts. It shall be an unlawful employment practice in violation of this article for an employer:
(a) to take adverse actions or otherwise discriminate against any individual because such individual has opposed any act or practice made unlawful by this article, has sought to enforce rights protected under this article, or has testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation, hearing, or other proceeding to enforce this article; or
(b) to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against, coerce, intimidate, threaten, or interfere with any employee or any other person because the employee inquired about, disclosed, compared, or otherwise discussed the employee's wages or the wages of any other employee, or because the employee exercised, enjoyed, aided, or encouraged any other person to exercise or enjoy any right granted or protected by this article.
§ 755. Remedies and enforcement. (a) (1) The department shall receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve complaints of violations of this article.
(2) In the event the department is unable to reach a voluntary resolution of a complaint filed under this article, the department may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the equitable and monetary relief described in subdivision (b) of this section.
(3) Any sums recovered by the department pursuant to this paragraph shall be paid directly to each employee affected by the employer's unlawful acts.
(b) (1) In any action in which a court or jury finds that an employer has engaged in acts in violation of this article, the court or jury shall award to any affected employee or employees monetary relief, including back pay in an amount equal to the difference between the employee's actual earnings and what the employee would have earned but for the employer's unlawful practices, and an additional amount in compensatory and punitive damages, as appropriate.
(2) In any action in which a court or jury finds that an employer has engaged in acts in violation of this article, the court shall enjoin the employer from continuing to discriminate against affected employees and shall direct the employer to comply with the provisions of this article; and may order the employer to take such additional affirmative steps as are necessary, including reinstatement or reclassification of affected workers, to ensure an end to unlawful discrimination.
(3) In any action in which an affected employee or employees prevail in their claims against employers, the court may, in addition to any
S. 1454 5
judgment awarded to the plaintiffs, allow a reasonable attorney's fee, reasonable expert witness fees, and other costs of the action to be paid by the employer.
(c) An action to recover the damages or equitable relief prescribed in subdivision (b) of this section may be maintained against any employer in any court of competent jurisdiction by any one or more employees or their representative for or on behalf of:
(1) the employees; or
(2) the employees and other employees similarly situated.
§ 756. Regulations. The department shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this article.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the labor law, in relation to enacting the "New York state fair pay act"
Purpose
This bill would establish that paying different wages between employees on the basis of sex, race, or national origin is discriminate and an unlawful employment practice.
Summary of provisions
Section 1: Creates a new Article 21 of the Labor Law.
Read the full memo (843 words)
§ 750 - Establishes that the bill shall be known as the "New York State Fair Pay Act".
§ 751 - Proclaims that wage differentials persist between women and men and minorities and non-minorities in both the public and private sector despite the implementation of present laws that ban discrimination in the workplace. It affirms that this bill would correct these discrimina- tory practices and ensure pay equity.
§ 752 - Defines the following terms: employ, employee, employer, equiv- alent jobs, person, labor organization, wages, and wage rates.
§ 753 - Establishes that it is an unlawful employment practice for an employer to discriminate between employees on the basis of sex, race, and or national origin in any of the following ways: engaging in differ- ential pay between employees doing equivalent work but are of the oppo- site sex, different race or national origin or paying different wages to employees in a job dominated by a particular sex, race, or national origin than employees in another job owned by the same employer and doing equivalent work but are of the opposite sex or are of a different race or national origin. This section also establishes that it shall not be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to engage in differ- ential pay if such payments are made pursuant to the following circum- stances: a bona fide seniority or merit system; a bona fide system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; or a bona fide system based on geographic differentials. This section also establishes an exception for bona fide factors other than sex, race or national origin, such as education, training, or experience as long as such factor is not based on a sex, race, or national origin based differen- tial and such factor shall be job-related and be consiste nt with busi- ness necessity; further, this exception does not apply if the employer uses an employment practice that causes a disparate impact on the basis of sex, race, or national origin and if an alternative employment prac- tice that would serve the same business purpose but would not produce such differential exists yet the employer fails to implement such alter- native. Furthermore, this section prohibits employers from reducing an employee's wages in order to comply with the provisions of this section and ensures an employees' right to a cause of action regardless of any agreement to work for less than their entitled compensation and clari- fies that this section shall not be understood to impede against any bona fide collective bargaining agreements. Lastly, this section requires the Department of Labor to promulgate regulations specifying the criteria for determining whether a job is dominated by employees of a particular sex, race, or national origin and also requires regulations that would specify the methodology for determining equivalent skill, effort, responsibility, and working conditions.
§ 754 - Provides that it shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to take adverse actions or discriminate against an individual for seeking to enforce their rights under this article or for an employ- er to discharge, coerce, intimidate, threaten, or interfere with any employee or person who have discussed their wages with other employees or have exercised any rights granted under this article.
§ 755 - Authorizes the Department of Labor to receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve any complaints in violation of this article and requires that any equitable and monetary relief awarded shall be paid directly to the affected employee.
§ .756 - Authorizes the Department of Labor to promulgate any additional regulations deemed necessary to effectively carry out the provisions of this article.
Section 2: Effective Date
Existing law
None
Justification
Pay equity has not been universally achieved in our state. Legislative hearings have consistently received testimony from women performing work equal to their male counterparts and being paid less for their labor. Present law does not adequately address the issue of pay inequity and the need for state enforcement of a prohibition on such inequities. The fact is that not only women but also minorities still earn less than white men for jobs that require the same skills, responsibilities, and working conditions which has resulted in a significant wage gap in earn- ings amongst these demographics. This bill would enhance present law to respond to the continuing pay inequity in our state and would ensure that the workers of the state of New York are able to enforce their right to equal pay without retaliation.
Legislative history
04/28/15 Referred to Labor
01/6/16 Referred to Labor
Fiscal implications
None
Local fiscal implications
None
Effective date
This act shall take effect 120 days after enactment.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.