Effective April 3, 2020, New York amended its paid election leave law, again, to require an employer to provide an employee with up to two hours—not three hours—of paid voting leave if the employee does not have sufficient time to vote. The State has issued an FAQ, explaining the amendment.  An employee is deemed to have “sufficient time to vote” if he/she has four consecutive hours to vote either from the time the polls open to the beginning of their work shift, or four consecutive hours between the end of a working shift and the time the polls close.   An example is provided of an employee who is scheduled to work from 9 am to 6 pm.  In that instance, where the polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 9 p.m., the employee is eligible for paid time off to vote, because the employee only has three consecutive hours off at the beginning of their shift and end of their shift.

Employees must provide their employers with at least two working days’ notice of an intent to take voting leave before an election, but not more than 10 working days.

The amendment explains that employers may not require employees to use their “personal” time off to vote.

Employers should update their voting leave policies and notices to comply with this change in the law.

As you may know, due to COVID-19, Governor Cuomo cancelled the June 23, 2020 Presidential primary in New York though other Congressional and local primaries in New York are scheduled to occur on that date.

The post New York State Amends Paid Election Leave Law, Again, to Provide Up to 2 Hours’ Paid Voting Leave first appeared on Staging Perlman and Perlman.

The Empire State Development (ESD) guidance on which organizations are deemed “essential” in New York State was updated on April 9, 2020, and can be found here.  Businesses and organizations deemed “essential” by ESD must continue to comply with the New York State Department of Health’s guidance and directives for maintaining a clean and safe work environment.

Every business is being strongly urged by New York State to continue to maintain social distancing measures to the extent possible.  Governor Phil Murphy of New Jersey has recently issued a similar executive order for essential businesses in New Jersey.

Governor Andrew Cuomo also directed that, effective at 8 p.m. on Friday, April 17, 2020, any individual who is over age two and able to medically tolerate a face-covering, must cover their nose and mouth with a mask or cloth face-covering when in public and unable to maintain, or when not maintaining, social distance.  This includes but is not limited to, when walking on the sidewalk or in a park, traveling on public transit or in an Uber, Lyft, Via, etc. 

On April 16th, 2020, Governor Andrew Cuomo also ordered “New York on PAUSE” extended to May 15, 2020.  The Executive Order requires all workers at non-essential businesses, including nonprofit organizations, to work from home, schools to remain closed, and individuals to maintain a 6-foot distance from others in public, as per an Executive Order.

If you have any questions, please contact Lisa M. Brauner, Esq., Head of Employment Law Practice, Perlman & Perlman LLP, lisa@perlmanandperlman.com, 212-889-0575 ext. 207.

The post Mask Up! New York “Essential” Businesses and Nonprofit Organizations Must Provide Face Masks to Public-Facing Employees first appeared on Staging Perlman and Perlman.