Bill Text: NY S04815 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Enacts the "parental involvement leave act" requiring employers to grant employees up to 24 hours leave during any school year to attend school conferences or classroom activities related to the employee's child if the conference or activity cannot be scheduled during non-work hours; defines "employer" as any person or entity employing any individual in any occupation, industry, trade or business or service including any of the following: a state agency, office or department, a unit of local government, a school district, an individual, a corporation, a partnership, an association, or a nonprofit organization; makes related provisions.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO LABOR [S04815 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S04815-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          4815
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                     March 26, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor
        AN ACT to amend the labor law and the education law, in relation to  the
          parental involvement leave act
          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 article 21 to read
     2  as follows:
     3                                 ARTICLE 21
     4                       PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT LEAVE ACT
     5  Section 750. Short title.
     6          751. Definitions.
     7          752. School-related event leave.
     8          753. Employee notice.
     9          754. Employee rights.
    10          755. Notification.
    11          756. Administrative enforcement and penalties.
    12          757. Existing rights and remedies preserved.
    13    § 750. Short title. This article shall be known and may  be  cited  as
    14  the "parental involvement leave act".
    15    § 751. Definitions. As used in this article:
    16    1.  "Employee"  shall mean any person employed for hire by an employer
    17  in any employment upon the completion of four weeks of employment for  a
    18  full-time  employee  or  twenty-five  days of employment for a part-time
    19  employee;
    20    2. "Employer" shall mean any person or entity employing any individual
    21  in any occupation, industry, trade, business or service  including,  but
    22  not limited to, any of the following: a state agency, officer or depart-
    23  ment,  a  unit  of local government, a school district, an individual, a
    24  corporation, a partnership, an association, or  a  non-profit  organiza-
    25  tion;
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03643-01-9

        S. 4815                             2
     1    3. "Child" shall mean a biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild
     2  or  legal ward, a child of a domestic partner (as defined in subdivision
     3  one of section four of the workers' compensation law),  or  a  child  to
     4  whom the employee stands in loco parentis who is enrolled in a school as
     5  defined in subdivision five of this section;
     6    4.  "Parent" means a biological, foster, or adopted parent, a steppar-
     7  ent, a legal guardian, or grandparent of, or a person who stands in loco
     8  parentis to a child;
     9    5. "School" means any  public  or  private  pre-kindergarten  program,
    10  elementary, or secondary school, licensed child-care facility, or educa-
    11  tional facility located within the state;
    12    6.  "School-related  event"  shall  mean an event related to a child's
    13  academic achievement or to  the  pursuit  of  educational  services  and
    14  programs,  including  but  not  limited  to, a parent-teacher meeting, a
    15  disciplinary proceeding, an individualized  education  plan  meeting,  a
    16  class presentation, a parent workshop, or an interview for a new school;
    17  and
    18    7.  "Retaliation"  shall  include  any  threat, discipline, discharge,
    19  demotion, suspension, reduction in employee hours, transfer to unfavora-
    20  ble shifts, denial of favorable shifts, or any other adverse  employment
    21  action against any employee for exercising or attempting to exercise any
    22  right guaranteed under this article.
    23    § 752. School-related event leave.  An employer shall grant an employ-
    24  ee  unpaid leave of up to a total of twenty-four hours during any twelve
    25  month period, to attend or  participate  in  any  school-related  events
    26  related  to  the  employee's child if the school-related event cannot be
    27  reasonably scheduled during non-work hours.  Such leave shall be limited
    28  to four hours on any given day unless such attendance  or  participation
    29  cannot reasonably be accomplished within four hours.
    30    § 753. Employee notice. 1. If the necessity for leave under this arti-
    31  cle  is  foreseeable,  the  employee  shall provide the employer with at
    32  least seven days' notice before the date that leave is required. If  the
    33  necessity  for  leave is not foreseeable or is otherwise deemed an emer-
    34  gency, the employee shall provide such notice as is practicable.
    35    2. If requested by the employer, an employee shall provide  documenta-
    36  tion,  as soon as practicable either preceding or soon after the school-
    37  related event, from the school as  proof  that  he  or  she  engaged  in
    38  school-related  activities  permitted in section seven hundred fifty-two
    39  of this article on a  specific  date  and  at  a  particular  time.  For
    40  purposes of this subdivision, "documentation" shall mean written verifi-
    41  cation that the school deems appropriate and reasonable.
    42    §  754.  Employee  rights.  1.  Retaliation  against an employee by an
    43  employer for exercising his or her rights under this  section  shall  be
    44  prohibited.   Nothing in this article shall be construed to supersede or
    45  replace or diminish in any way section two hundred fifteen of this chap-
    46  ter.
    47    2. The leave provided by this article shall consist  of  unpaid  leave
    48  unless  the  employee  elects  to  use any paid leave, including but not
    49  limited to, vacation or personal leave.
    50    § 755. Notification.  1.  The  department  shall  develop  courses  of
    51  instruction and conduct ongoing public education efforts as necessary to
    52  inform  employers,  employees,  employment  agencies, and job applicants
    53  about their rights and responsibilities under this article. The  depart-
    54  ment  shall  work with the department of education to notify each public
    55  and private primary and secondary school  regarding  the  provisions  of
    56  this article.

        S. 4815                             3
     1    2.  The department of education shall notify each school regarding the
     2  provisions of this article. Each public and private school shall  notify
     3  parents  with a child enrolled in the school of the school-related event
     4  leave policy provided under this article.
     5    §  756.  Administrative  enforcement  and  penalties. 1. Any employee,
     6  person or organization acting on the employee's behalf,  or  the  recog-
     7  nized and certified collective bargaining agent acting on the employee's
     8  behalf, may file with the commissioner a complaint regarding a violation
     9  of  this  article within one year from the date of the alleged violation
    10  against the employer who violates this article.
    11    2. The commissioner shall have  the  power  to  require  employers  to
    12  provide  the  complaining  employee: (a) any wages or benefits lost as a
    13  result of the violation; or (b) an order of reinstatement  without  loss
    14  of position, seniority, wages, or benefits.
    15    3.  The  commissioner  shall  also  have the power to impose penalties
    16  provided for in this article. Such penalties include a fine  payable  to
    17  the  state in an amount not to exceed five hundred dollars for the first
    18  violation and, for subsequent violations that occur within two years  of
    19  any  previous  violation,  not to exceed seven hundred fifty dollars for
    20  the second violation, and not to exceed one thousand  dollars  for  each
    21  succeeding violation.
    22    §  757.  Existing  rights  and  remedies preserved. 1. Nothing in this
    23  article shall in any way contravene or limit  the  rights,  remedies  or
    24  privileges  which are otherwise available to an employee under any other
    25  provision of law, including but not limited to, the human rights law.
    26    2. Nothing in this article shall be construed to affect an  employer's
    27  obligation to comply with any collective bargaining agreement or employ-
    28  ee benefit plan.
    29    3.  Nothing  in  this article shall prevent an employer from approving
    30  leave in excess of the requirements of this article.
    31    4. Nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent  an  employer
    32  policy  or  local  or  municipal  law  from providing additional or more
    33  generous school-related leave beyond that required in this article.
    34    § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 115 to  read
    35  as follows:
    36    §  115.  Parental  leave  involvement. The department, in consultation
    37  with the department of labor, shall notify  each  school  regarding  the
    38  provisions  of  article twenty-one of the labor law and shall promulgate
    39  rules and regulations for the promotion and communication of such  bene-
    40  fits  to  the  parents  of  enrolled students.   Each public and private
    41  school shall notify parents with a child enrolled in the school  of  the
    42  school-related event leave benefit.
    43    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
    44  it shall have become a law.
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