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MOSKOWITZ & BOOK MONTHLY UPDATE |
New York City Council Expands Protection for Pregnant Employees
On September 23, 2013, the New York City Council approved the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. In all likelihood, this law will go into effect sometime early next year.
This new law requires New York City employers to provide "reasonable accommodations" to women due to pregnancy, childbirth, or related health issues. It applies to all employers with four or more employees (including independent contractors). Accommodations may include such things as extra bathroom breaks, permission to carry a water bottle, or periodic use of a seat. Employers would have to demonstrate "undue hardship" in denying the requested accommodation. Employees will be allowed to file a civil lawsuit for violations of this law.
This law is yet another example of New York City law granting greater rights than the federal or New York State law.
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Federal Judge Says Interns Are Not Protected from Harassment
In our June issue, we dealt with the topic of unpaid interns suing for repayment of back wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Now, one federal judge has taken the issue of unpaid interns into a whole new realm when he ruled that unpaid interns cannot sue for sexual harassment under the New York City Human Rights Law. In Wang v. Phoenix Satellite Television U.S., Inc., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 143627, the Court noted that it was already clear that both federal and New York State law prohibited such claims by unpaid interns. The Court then ruled that New York City law was not any different and so long as they are not considered "employees", protection from sexual harassment did not extend to unpaid interns.
Mayoral candidate Bill DeBlasio has already promised to change the law should he win the upcoming election.
http://www.metro.us/newyork/news/2013/10/13/de-blasio-backs-extending-harassment-protections-to-unpaid-interns/
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M & B Updates
We are pleased to announce that all three of the Firm's partners have been selected to the 2013 New York Metro Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists. Avi Moskowitz was selected to the Super Lawyers list for the sixth straight year, Chaim Book was selected to the Super Lawyers list for the second straight year, and Todd Parker was selected to the Rising Stars list for the first time. Each year no more than 5% of the lawyers in the state are named to Super Lawyers and no more than 2.5% of the lawyers in the state are selected to the Rising Stars list by the research team at Super Lawyers. We are very pleased that our Firm's lawyers have received this recognition.
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Offices Available for Rent
We have two beautiful offices with Hudson River views available for rent in our Midtown South suite. Many amenities, such as phone, internet service, and conference room space are included in the monthly rent. Please contact Chaim Book, cbook@mb-llp.com for more information.
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