Bill Text: NY S01514 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Empowers the commissioner of labor to issue stop-work orders against employers for misclassification of employees as independent contractors or for providing false, incomplete, or misleading information to an insurance company on the number of employees of such employer.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-3)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-10 - REFERRED TO LABOR [S01514 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-S01514-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1514

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 10, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced by Sens. HARCKHAM, HINCHEY, JACKSON, MATTERA, PALUMBO, RAMOS,
          ROLISON,  WEBB  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to
          be committed to the Committee on Labor

        AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to issuing  stop-work  orders
          for misclassification of employees

          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 section 45 to read
     2  as follows:
     3    § 45. Misclassification of employees;  stop-work  orders.  1.  If  the
     4  commissioner   determines,   after  an  investigation  pursuant  to  the
     5  provisions of this chapter, that an employer has knowingly misclassified
     6  employees as independent contractors or provided false,  incomplete,  or
     7  misleading  information to an insurance company on the number of employ-
     8  ees of such employer, the commissioner shall  notify  such  employer  in
     9  writing  of  their  intention  to  issue  a stop-work order. Such notice
    10  shall:
    11    a. be served in a manner consistent with section three  hundred  eight
    12  of the civil practice law and rules;
    13    b. notify such employer of their right to a hearing;
    14    c.  notify  such  employer  that  they shall have seventy-two hours to
    15  address the violation or violations before the stop-work order  will  be
    16  issued; and
    17    d. state the factual basis upon which the commissioner has based their
    18  decision  to  issue  a  stop-work order and how such employer shall come
    19  into compliance.
    20    2. a. After receipt of such notice, the employer shall  have  seventy-
    21  two hours to come into compliance and to notify the commissioner of such
    22  compliance. Within seventy-two hours after the employer's opportunity to
    23  come  into compliance, if the employer has not come into compliance, the
    24  commissioner shall issue a stop-work order requiring  the  cessation  of

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04513-01-5
        S. 1514                             2

     1  all  business  operations  of  the  employer  at every site at which the
     2  violation occurs.
     3    b.  A  stop-work order shall take effect when served upon the employer
     4  or when served at the worksite.
     5    c. A stop-work order shall remain in  effect  until  the  commissioner
     6  issues  an  order  releasing  the  stop-work order upon finding that the
     7  employer has come into compliance and has paid any penalty assessed.
     8    3. An employer who is subject to a  stop-work  order  shall  have  the
     9  right  to  apply  to  the commissioner, not more than ten days after the
    10  order is issued, for a hearing to contest whether the employer committed
    11  the violation on which the order was based.
    12    4. Failure or refusal to comply with a stop-work order issued  by  the
    13  commissioner  shall,  in  addition  to any other penalties authorized by
    14  law, result in the assessment of a penalty of not less than one thousand
    15  dollars and not more than five thousand dollars for each day the employ-
    16  er is found not to be in compliance.
    17    5. An employee affected by a stop-work order pursuant to this  section
    18  shall  be  paid their regular rate for the period the stop-work order is
    19  in place or the first ten days the employee would have been scheduled to
    20  work if the stop-work order had not been issued, whichever is  less,  by
    21  the employer that was served the stop-work order.
    22    6.  Stop-work  orders  and any additional penalties imposed under this
    23  chapter against a corporation, partnership or sole proprietorship  shall
    24  be  effective  against  any successor entity that has one or more of the
    25  same principals or officers as  the  corporation,  partnership  or  sole
    26  proprietorship  against  which  the  stop-work  order was issued and are
    27  engaged in the same or equivalent trade or activity.
    28    7. For the purposes of this  section,  there  shall  be  a  rebuttable
    29  presumption  of  unlawful  retaliation  if  an  employer  in  any manner
    30  discriminates, retaliates, or  takes  any  adverse  action  against  any
    31  employee  within  ninety  days  of  the  employee initiating a complaint
    32  pursuant to this article.
    33    8. The commissioner shall promulgate any rules and regulations  neces-
    34  sary to carry out the provisions of this section.
    35    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    36  it shall have become a law.