Bill Text: NY A05776 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Prohibits agreements between employers that directly restrict the current or future employment of any employee and allows for a cause of action against employers who engage in such agreements.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 20-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-27 - amended on third reading 5776c [A05776 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A05776-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Prohibits agreements between employers that directly restrict the current or future employment of any employee and allows for a cause of action against employers who engage in such agreements.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 20-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-27 - amended on third reading 5776c [A05776 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A05776-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5776 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 19, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Judiciary AN ACT to amend the general obligations law, in relation to prohibiting agreements between employers that directly restrict the current or future employment of any employee The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "End 2 Employer Collusion Act". 3 § 2. The general obligations law is amended by adding a new section 4 5-337 to read as follows: 5 § 5-337. Agreements between employers restricting the current or 6 future employment of an employee void. (a) For the purposes of this 7 section, the following term "restrictive employment agreement" shall 8 mean any agreement that: 9 (i) is between two or more employers, including through a franchise 10 agreement or a contractor-subcontractor agreement; and 11 (ii) prohibits or restricts one employer from soliciting or hiring 12 another employer's employees or former employees. 13 (b) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, no employer shall 14 enter into a restrictive employment agreement with another employer, 15 enforce a restrictive employment agreement or threaten to enforce a 16 restrictive employment agreement and any restrictive employment agree- 17 ment is hereby declared to be contrary to public policy and wholly void. 18 (c) Every person who was denied employment due to a restrictive 19 employment agreement or was otherwise damaged due to a violation of 20 subdivision (b) of this section may, within three years after such 21 denial of employment, sue for and recover a judgment equal to the sum of 22 (i) any actual damages sustained by the individual as a result of such 23 violation, (ii) such amount of punitive damages as the court may allow, 24 and (iii) in the case of any successful action to enforce any liability 25 under this section, the costs of the action together with reasonable 26 attorney's fees as determined by the court. 27 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04740-01-9