STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7665 IN SENATE February 4, 2020 ___________ Introduced by Sen. RAMOS -- 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 actions for non-payment of wages 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 198-e to 2 read as follows: 3 § 198-e. Construction industry wage theft. 1. A contractor making or 4 taking a construction contract shall assume liability for any debt 5 resulting from an action under section one hundred ninety-eight of this 6 article, owed to a wage claimant or third party on the wage claimant's 7 behalf, incurred by a subcontractor at any tier acting under, by, or for 8 the contractor for the wage claimant's performance of labor. 9 2. No agreement or release by an employee or subcontractor to waive 10 liability assigned to a contractor under this section shall be valid. 11 The provisions of this section shall not be deemed to impair the rights 12 of a contractor to maintain an action against a subcontractor for owed 13 wages that are paid by a contractor pursuant to this section. 14 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the remedies available 15 for a claim pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall only be 16 civil and administrative actions. In the case of a civil action by an 17 employee, such employee may designate a third party to make a wage claim 18 on his or her behalf. In the case of an action against a subcontractor, 19 the contractor shall be considered jointly and severally liable for any 20 unpaid wages, benefits, wage supplements, penalties, liquidated damages, 21 attorneys' fees and any other costs resulting from such action. 22 4. As used in this section: 23 a. "Construction contract" means a written or oral agreement for the 24 construction, reconstruction, alteration, maintenance, moving or demoli- 25 tion of any building, structure or improvement, or relating to the exca- 26 vation of or other development or improvement to land. For purposes of 27 this section, a construction contract shall not include any contract 28 which is subject to article eight of this chapter. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD14453-04-0

S. 7665 2 1 b. "Contractor" means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, 2 association, company, organization or other entity, including a 3 construction manager, or any combination thereof, which enters into a 4 construction contract with an owner. 5 c. "Owner" means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, company, 6 association or other organization or other entity, or a combination of 7 any thereof, (with an ownership interest, whether the interest or estate 8 is in fee, as vendee under a contract to purchase, as lessee or another 9 interest or estate less than fee) that causes a building, structure or 10 improvement, new or existing, to be constructed, altered, repaired, 11 maintained, moved or demolished or that causes land to be excavated or 12 otherwise developed or improved. 13 d. "Subcontractor" means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, 14 company, association, organization or other entity, or any combination 15 thereof, which is a party to a contract with a contractor or another 16 subcontractor to perform a portion of work pursuant to a construction 17 contract. 18 § 2. Severability. If any provision of this act, or any application of 19 any provision of this act, is held to be invalid, that shall not affect 20 the validity or effectiveness of any other provision of this act, or of 21 any other application of any provision of this act, which can be given 22 effect without that provision or application; and to that end, the 23 provisions and applications of this act are severable. 24 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after 25 it shall have become a law and shall apply to construction contracts 26 entered into, renewed, modified or amended on or after such effective 27 date.

Relates to actions for non-payment of wages

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