Bill Text: NY S03378 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Relates to the rights and working conditions of emergency medical technicians employed by the New York city fire department; requires rest and meal breaks.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO CIVIL SERVICE AND PENSIONS [S03378 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S03378-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          3378
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    February 6, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by Sen. GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
        AN ACT to amend the civil service law and the administrative code of the
          city  of New York, in relation to the rights and working conditions of
          emergency medical technicians employed  by  the  New  York  city  fire
          department
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The civil service law is amended by adding  a  new  section
     2  215 to read as follows:
     3    §  215.  Emergency  medical technicians rights and working conditions.
     4  1. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the following
     5  meanings unless otherwise specified:
     6    (a) "Emergency medical technician" shall mean a person employed by the
     7  fire department of the city of New York in  a  title  whose  duties  are
     8  those  of  an emergency medical technician or advanced emergency medical
     9  technician, as those terms are defined in section three thousand one  of
    10  the public health law, or whose duties require the direct supervision of
    11  such employees whose duties are those of an emergency medical technician
    12  or advanced emergency medical technician.
    13    (b)  "Department"  shall  mean  the fire department of the city of New
    14  York.
    15    2. (a) An emergency medical technician engaged in prehospital emergen-
    16  cy medical services whose scheduled shift or hours worked  is  at  least
    17  four  hours shall be authorized and permitted to take rest periods that,
    18  to the extent practicable, shall be in the middle of each  work  period.
    19  The duration of such authorized rest periods shall be based on the total
    20  hours  worked  daily at the rate of ten minutes rest time for every four
    21  hours worked. A rest period is not required  for  an  emergency  medical
    22  technician  whose total daily work time is less than four hours. Author-
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08634-01-9

        S. 3378                             2
     1  ized rest period time shall be counted as hours worked for  which  there
     2  shall be no deduction from wages.
     3    (b)  During  the  authorized rest period provided for in this subdivi-
     4  sion, an emergency medical technician shall be relieved  of  all  duties
     5  and the department shall relinquish control over the use of such time by
     6  such  emergency medical technician; provided, however, that an emergency
     7  medical technician may be required to monitor  pagers,  radios,  station
     8  alert  boxes,  intercoms,  cellular  telephones,  or other communication
     9  methods during such time.
    10    (c) (i) The department may interrupt a  rest  period  and  require  an
    11  emergency  medical  technician  to  terminate his or her rest period and
    12  resume work in the event of an unforeseeable natural or man-made  disas-
    13  ter.
    14    (ii)  In  the  event  that  a  rest  period is interrupted pursuant to
    15  subparagraph (i) of this paragraph  or  not  provided  to  an  emergency
    16  medical  technician for any other reason, such emergency medical techni-
    17  cian shall be paid one hour of pay at his or her regular rate of compen-
    18  sation for each workday during which a rest period is interrupted or not
    19  provided, and shall be provided with an equivalent rest period  as  soon
    20  as  practicable  thereafter  during  such emergency medical technician's
    21  shift.
    22    (iii) At the end of each pay period, an emergency  medical  technician
    23  shall be furnished with an itemized statement of the total hours paid or
    24  owed  due  to  an  interrupted  rest  period or rest period that was not
    25  provided in accordance  with  this  paragraph.  This  statement  may  be
    26  included as part of the payroll statement issued for the pay period.
    27    3. (a) An emergency medical technician engaged in prehospital emergen-
    28  cy  medical  services  for a work period of more than five hours per day
    29  shall be provided a meal period of not less than thirty minutes,  except
    30  that  if  the  total work period per day of the employee is no more than
    31  six hours, the meal period may be waived by mutual consent of  both  the
    32  department and the collective bargaining representative of the emergency
    33  medical technician.
    34    (b)  During the meal period provided for in this subdivision, an emer-
    35  gency medical technician shall be relieved of all duties and the depart-
    36  ment shall relinquish control over the use of such time by such emergen-
    37  cy medical technician, except that an emergency medical  technician  may
    38  be  required  to monitor pagers, radios, station alert boxes, intercoms,
    39  cellular telephones, or other communication methods during such time.
    40    (c) (i) The department may interrupt a  meal  period  and  require  an
    41  emergency  medical  technician  to  terminate the meal period and resume
    42  work in the event of an unforeseeable natural or man-made disaster.
    43    (ii) In the event that  a  meal  period  is  interrupted  pursuant  to
    44  subparagraph  (i)  of  this  paragraph  or  not provided to an emergency
    45  medical technician for any other reason, such emergency medical  techni-
    46  cian shall be paid one hour of pay at his or her regular rate of compen-
    47  sation  for  each workday during which the meal period is interrupted or
    48  not provided as scheduled, and shall be provided with an equivalent meal
    49  period as soon as practicable thereafter during such  emergency  medical
    50  technician's shift.
    51    (iii)  At  the end of each pay period, an emergency medical technician
    52  shall be furnished with an itemized statement of the total hours paid or
    53  owed due to an interrupted meal period or a meal  period  that  was  not
    54  provided  in  accordance  with  this  paragraph.  This  statement may be
    55  included as part of the payroll statement issued for the pay period.

        S. 3378                             3
     1    4. An emergency medical  technician  who,  for  purposes  of  awaiting
     2  dispatch, is stationed at a location within one thousand feet of a fire-
     3  house  in use by the department may choose the firehouse as an alternate
     4  location for performing his or her duties while awaiting dispatch.
     5    §  2.  The  administrative  code of the city of New York is amended by
     6  adding a new section 12-140 to read as follows:
     7    § 12-140 Emergency medical technicians rights and working  conditions.
     8  a. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the following
     9  meanings unless otherwise specified:
    10    (1) "Emergency medical technician" shall mean a person employed by the
    11  fire  department  of  the  city  of New York in a title whose duties are
    12  those of an emergency medical technician or advanced  emergency  medical
    13  technician,  as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of
    14  the public health law, or whose duties require the direct supervision of
    15  such employees whose duties are those of an emergency medical technician
    16  or advanced emergency medical technician.
    17    (2) "Department" shall mean the fire department of  the  city  of  New
    18  York.
    19    b. (1) An emergency medical technician engaged in prehospital emergen-
    20  cy  medical  services  whose scheduled shift or hours worked is at least
    21  four hours shall be authorized and permitted to take rest periods  that,
    22  to  the  extent practicable, shall be in the middle of each work period.
    23  The duration of such authorized rest periods shall be based on the total
    24  hours worked daily at the rate of ten minutes rest time for  every  four
    25  hours  worked.  A  rest  period is not required for an emergency medical
    26  technician whose total daily work time is less than four hours.  Author-
    27  ized  rest  period time shall be counted as hours worked for which there
    28  shall be no deduction from wages.
    29    (2) During the authorized rest period provided for  in  this  subdivi-
    30  sion,  an  emergency  medical technician shall be relieved of all duties
    31  and the department shall relinquish control over the use of such time by
    32  such emergency medical technician, provided, however, that an  emergency
    33  medical  technician  may  be required to monitor pagers, radios, station
    34  alert boxes, intercoms,  cellular  telephones,  or  other  communication
    35  methods during such time.
    36    (3)  (i)  The  department  may  interrupt a rest period and require an
    37  emergency medical technician to terminate his or  her  rest  period  and
    38  resume  work in the event of an unforeseeable natural or man-made disas-
    39  ter.
    40    (ii) In the event that  a  rest  period  is  interrupted  pursuant  to
    41  subparagraph  (i)  of  this  paragraph  or  not provided to an emergency
    42  medical technician for any other reason, such emergency medical  techni-
    43  cian shall be paid one hour of pay at his or her regular rate of compen-
    44  sation for each workday during which a rest period is interrupted or not
    45  provided,  and  shall be provided with an equivalent rest period as soon
    46  as practicable thereafter during  such  emergency  medical  technician's
    47  shift.
    48    (iii)  At  the end of each pay period, an emergency medical technician
    49  shall be furnished with an itemized statement of the total hours paid or
    50  owed due to an interrupted rest period  or  rest  period  that  was  not
    51  provided  in  accordance  with  this  paragraph.  This  statement may be
    52  included as part of the payroll statement issued for the pay period.
    53    c. (1) An emergency medical technician engaged in prehospital emergen-
    54  cy medical services for a work period of more than five  hours  per  day
    55  shall  be provided a meal period of not less than thirty minutes, except
    56  that if the total work period per day of the employee is  no  more  than

        S. 3378                             4
     1  six  hours,  the meal period may be waived by mutual consent of both the
     2  department and the collective bargaining representative of the emergency
     3  medical technician.
     4    (2)  During the meal period provided for in this subdivision, an emer-
     5  gency medical technician shall be relieved of all duties and the depart-
     6  ment shall relinquish control over the use of such time by such emergen-
     7  cy medical technician, except that an emergency medical  technician  may
     8  be  required  to monitor pagers, radios, station alert boxes, intercoms,
     9  cellular telephones, or other communication methods during such time.
    10    (3) (i) The department may interrupt a  meal  period  and  require  an
    11  emergency  medical  technician  to  terminate the meal period and resume
    12  work in the event of an unforeseeable natural or man-made disaster.
    13    (ii) In the event that  a  meal  period  is  interrupted  pursuant  to
    14  subparagraph  (i)  of  this  paragraph  or  not provided to an emergency
    15  medical technician for any other reason, such emergency medical  techni-
    16  cian shall be paid one hour of pay at his or her regular rate of compen-
    17  sation  for  each workday during which the meal period is interrupted or
    18  not provided as scheduled, and shall be provided with an equivalent meal
    19  period as soon as practicable thereafter during such  emergency  medical
    20  technician's shift.
    21    (iii)  At  the end of each pay period, an emergency medical technician
    22  shall be furnished with an itemized statement of the total hours paid or
    23  owed due to an interrupted meal period or a meal  period  that  was  not
    24  provided  in  accordance  with  this  paragraph.  This  statement may be
    25  included as part of the payroll statement issued for the pay period.
    26    d. An emergency medical  technician  who,  for  purposes  of  awaiting
    27  dispatch, is stationed at a location within one thousand feet of a fire-
    28  house  in use by the department may choose the firehouse as an alternate
    29  location for performing his or her duties while awaiting dispatch.
    30    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
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