Bill Text: NY A06069 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the waterfront commission act, relating to empowering the waterfront commission to accept applications in the longshoremen's register.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to corporations, authorities and commissions [A06069 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A06069-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          6069
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 26, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. CUSICK, WEPRIN -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.
          MALLIOTAKIS -- read once and  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Corpo-
          rations, Authorities and Commissions
        AN ACT to amend the waterfront commission act, in relation to empowering
          the waterfront commission to accept applications in the longshoremen's
          register
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 5-p of chapter 882 of the laws of 1953,  constitut-
     2  ing the waterfront commission act, as amended by chapter 431 of the laws
     3  of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
     4    §  5-p.  [Suspension  or  acceptance  of applications for inclusion in
     5  longshoremen's] Longshoremen's register[; exceptions].  [1.] The commis-
     6  sion shall [suspend the acceptance of] accept applications for inclusion
     7  in the longshoremen's register [for a period of  sixty  days  after  the
     8  effective date of this act. Upon the termination of such sixty day peri-
     9  od the commission shall thereafter have the power to make determinations
    10  to   suspend   the  acceptance  of  application  for  inclusion  in  the
    11  longshoremen's register for such periods of time as the  commission  may
    12  from  time  to  time establish and, after any such period of suspension,
    13  the commission shall have the power to  make  determinations  to  accept
    14  applications  for such period of time as the commission may establish or
    15  in such number as the commission may determine, or both.  Such  determi-
    16  nations  to  suspend or accept applications shall be made by the commis-
    17  sion]: (a) [on its own initiative or (b)] upon the joint  recommendation
    18  in writing of stevedores and other employers of longshoremen in the port
    19  of  New  York  district,  acting  through  their  representative for the
    20  [purpose] purposes of collective bargaining with  a  labor  organization
    21  representing  such  longshoremen in such district, and such labor organ-
    22  ization; or [(c)] (b) upon the petition in writing  of  a  stevedore  or
    23  [another]  other  employer  of  longshoremen  in  the  port  of New York
    24  district which does not have a representative for the [purpose] purposes
    25  of collective bargaining with a  labor  organization  representing  such
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00182-01-9
        A. 6069                             2
     1  longshoremen.  [The  commission shall have the power to accept or reject
     2  such joint recommendation or petition.
     3    All  joint  recommendations  or  petitions filed for the acceptance of
     4  applications with the commission for  inclusion  in  the  longshoremen's
     5  register shall include:
     6    (a) the number of employees requested;
     7    (b) the category or categories of employees requested;
     8    (c)  a  detailed  statement  setting  forth the reasons for said joint
     9  recommendation or petition;
    10    (d) in cases where a joint recommendation is made under this  section,
    11  the collective bargaining representative of stevedores and other employ-
    12  ers  of  longshoremen  in  the  port  of New York district and the labor
    13  organization representing such longshoremen shall provide the allocation
    14  of the number of persons to be sponsored by each employer of  longshore-
    15  men in the port of New York district; and
    16    (e) any other information requested by the commission.
    17    2.  In  administering  the  provisions of this section, the commission
    18  shall observe the following standards:
    19    (a) To encourage as far  as  practicable  the  regularization  of  the
    20  employment of longshoremen;
    21    (b) To bring the number of eligible longshoremen into balance with the
    22  demand  for longshoremen's services within the port of New York district
    23  without reducing the number of eligible longshoremen below  that  neces-
    24  sary  to  meet  the requirements of longshoremen in the port of New York
    25  district;
    26    (c) To encourage the mobility and full  utilization  of  the  existing
    27  work force  of longshoremen;
    28    (d)  To  protect  the job security of the existing work force of long-
    29  shoremen by considering the wages and employment benefits of prospective
    30  registrants;
    31    (e) To eliminate oppressive and evil  hiring  practices  injurious  to
    32  waterfront  labor  and  waterborne  commerce  in  the  port  of New York
    33  district, including, but not  limited  to,  those  oppressive  and  evil
    34  hiring  practices  that  may result from either a surplus or shortage of
    35  waterfront labor;
    36    (f) To consider the effect of technological change and automation  and
    37  such  other economic data and facts as are relevant to a proper determi-
    38  nation;
    39    (g) To protect the public interest of the port of New York district.
    40    In observing the foregoing standards and before determining to suspend
    41  or accept applications  for inclusion in  the  longshoremen's  register,
    42  the  commission  shall consult with and consider the views of, including
    43  any statistical data or other factual information concerning the size of
    44  the longshoremen's  register submitted by, carriers of freight by water,
    45  stevedores, waterfront terminal owners and operators, any  labor  organ-
    46  ization  representing  employees  registered  by the commission, and any
    47  other person whose  interests  may  be  affected  by  the  size  of  the
    48  longshoremen's register.
    49    Any  joint  recommendation  or  petition  granted  hereunder  shall be
    50  subject to such terms and conditions as the commission may prescribe.
    51    3. Any determination by the commission pursuant  to  this  section  to
    52  suspend  or  accept  applications  for  inclusion  in the longshoremen's
    53  register shall be made upon a record, shall not become  effective  until
    54  five  days  after  notice thereof to the collective bargaining represen-
    55  tative of stevedores and other employers of longshoremen in the port  of
    56  New  York district and to the labor organization representing such long-
        A. 6069                             3

     1  shoremen and/or the petitioning stevedore or  other  employer  of  long-
     2  shoremen  in the port of New York district and shall be subject to judi-
     3  cial review for being arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of  discretion
     4  in a proceeding jointly instituted by such representative and such labor
     5  organization  and/or  by  the petitioning stevedore or other employer of
     6  longshoremen in the port of New  York  district.  Such  judicial  review
     7  proceeding  may  be instituted in either state in the manner provided by
     8  the law of such state for review of the  final  decision  or  action  of
     9  administrative  agencies  of  such  state,  provided, however, that such
    10  proceeding shall be decided directly by the appellate  division  as  the
    11  court of first instance (to which the proceeding shall be transferred by
    12  order  of  transfer  by the supreme court in the state of New York or in
    13  the state of New Jersey by notice  of  appeal  from    the  commission's
    14  determination)  and  provided  further  that  notwithstanding  any other
    15  provision of law in either state no court shall have power to  stay  the
    16  commission's  determination  prior  to  final judicial decision for more
    17  than fifteen days. In the event that the  court  enters  a  final  order
    18  setting aside the determination by the commission to accept applications
    19  for  inclusion  in  the longshoremen's register, the registration of any
    20  longshoremen included in the longshoremen's register as a result of such
    21  determination by the commission shall be cancelled.
    22    This section shall apply, notwithstanding any other provision of  this
    23  act,  provided  however,  such  section  shall  not  in any way limit or
    24  restrict the provisions of section five of  article  nine  of  this  act
    25  empowering  the commission to register longshoremen on a temporary basis
    26  to meet special or emergency needs or the provisions of section four  of
    27  article  nine  of  this  act  relating to the immediate reinstatement of
    28  persons removed from the longshoremen's  register  pursuant  to  article
    29  nine  of this act. Nothing in this section shall be construed to modify,
    30  limit or restrict in any way any of  the  rights  protected  by  article
    31  fifteen of this act.
    32    4.  Upon  the  granting  of any joint recommendation or petition under
    33  this section for the acceptance of applications  for  inclusion  in  the
    34  longshoremen's  register,  the commission shall accept applications upon
    35  written sponsorship from the prospective employer of longshoremen.   The
    36  sponsoring  employer shall furnish the commission with the name, address
    37  and such other identifying or category information as the commission may
    38  prescribe for any person so sponsored.  The  sponsoring  employer  shall
    39  certify  that  the  selection  of the persons so sponsored was made in a
    40  fair and non-discriminatory basis in accordance with the requirements of
    41  the laws of the United States and the states of New York and New  Jersey
    42  dealing with equal employment opportunities.
    43    Notwithstanding  any of the foregoing, where the commission determines
    44  to accept applications for inclusion in the longshoremen's  register  on
    45  its own initiative, such acceptance shall be accomplished in such manner
    46  deemed appropriate by the commission.
    47    5. Notwithstanding any other provision of this act, the commission may
    48  include  in  the longshoremen's register under such terms and conditions
    49  as the commission may prescribe:
    50    (a) a person issued registration on a temporary basis to meet  special
    51  or emergency needs who is still so registered by the commission;
    52    (b)  a  person defined as a longshoreman in subdivision six of section
    53  five-a of this act who is employed by a stevedore defined  in  paragraph
    54  (b)  or  (c) of subdivision one of said section five-a and whose employ-
    55  ment is not subject to the guaranteed annual income  provisions  of  any
    56  collective bargaining agreement relating to longshoremen;
        A. 6069                             4

     1    (c)  no more than twenty persons issued registration limited to acting
     2  as scalemen pursuant to the provisions of chapter 953  of  the  laws  of
     3  1969  and  chapter 64 of the laws of 1982 who are still so registered by
     4  the commission and who are no longer employed as scalemen on the  effec-
     5  tive date of this subdivision;
     6    (d)  a person issued registration on a temporary basis as a checker to
     7  meet special or emergency needs who applied for such registration  prior
     8  to January 15, 1986 and who is still so registered by the commission;
     9    (e)  a person issued registration on a temporary basis as a checker to
    10  meet special or emergency needs in accordance with a waterfront  commis-
    11  sion  resolution  of September 4, 1996 and who is still so registered by
    12  the commission;
    13    (f) a person issued registration on a temporary basis as  a  container
    14  equipment operator to meet special or emergency needs in accordance with
    15  a waterfront commission resolution of September 4, 1996 and who is still
    16  so registered by the commission; and
    17    (g)  a person issued registration on a temporary basis as a longshore-
    18  man to meet special or emergency needs in accordance with  a  waterfront
    19  commission  resolution  of  September 4, 1996 and who is still so regis-
    20  tered by the commission.
    21    6. The commission may include in the  longshoremen's  register,  under
    22  such  terms  and  conditions  as  the  commission may prescribe, persons
    23  issued registration on a temporary basis as a longshoreman or a  checker
    24  to  meet  special  or emergency needs and who are still so registered by
    25  the commission upon the enactment of this amendment.]
    26    Stevedores and other employers of longshoremen in the port of New York
    27  district shall furnish the commission with the names  and  addresses  of
    28  the persons selected for inclusion in the longshoremen register.
    29    §  2.  If any part or provision of this act or the application thereof
    30  to any person or circumstances be  adjudged  invalid  by  any  court  of
    31  competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall be confined in its operation
    32  to  the  part, provision or application directly involved in the contro-
    33  versy in which such judgment shall have  been  rendered  and  shall  not
    34  affect or impair the validity of the remainder of this act or the appli-
    35  cation  thereof  to  other  persons  or circumstances and the two states
    36  hereby declare that they would have entered into this act or the remain-
    37  der thereof had the invalidity of such provisions or application thereof
    38  been apparent.
    39    § 3. This act constitutes an agreement between the states of New  York
    40  and  New  Jersey, supplementary to the waterfront commission compact and
    41  amendatory thereof, and shall be liberally construed to  effectuate  the
    42  purposes of that compact and the powers vested in the waterfront commis-
    43  sion  hereby  shall be construed to be in aid of and supplemental to and
    44  not in limitation of or in derogation of any of  the  powers  heretofore
    45  conferred upon or delegated to the waterfront commission.
    46    §  4.  This  act  shall take effect upon the enactment into law by the
    47  state of New Jersey of legislation having an identical effect with  this
    48  act,  but  if  the  state  of New Jersey shall have already enacted such
    49  legislation, this act shall take effect immediately; and  provided  that
    50  the  waterfront  commission  shall  notify the legislative bill drafting
    51  commission upon the occurrence  of  the  enactment  of  the  legislation
    52  provided for in section one of this act in order that the commission may
    53  maintain an accurate and timely effective data base of the official text
    54  of  laws  of  the  state  of New York in furtherance of effectuating the
    55  provisions of section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of  the
    56  public officers law.