A01867 Summary:

BILL NO    A01867B

SAME AS    Same as S 2247-B

SPONSOR    Nolan

COSPNSR    Millman, Barron, Lancman, Gottfried, DenDekker, O'Donnell, Maisel,
           Castro, Rivera P, Englebright, Lifton, Ortiz, Perry, Cook,
           Scarborough

MLTSPNSR   Brennan, Glick, Heastie, Mayersohn, Meng, Peralta, Pheffer, Towns,
           Weisenberg

Amd SS2, 161, 564, 651, 674 & 701, add SS163-a, 704-b & 719, Lab L; amd S225,
Pub Health L; amd S51, add S110-b, Work Comp L

Enacts the farmworkers fair labor practices act: grants collective bargaining
rights to farm laborers; requires employers of farm laborers to allow at least
24 consecutive hours of rest each week; provides for an 8 hour work day for
farm laborers; requires overtime rate at one and one-half times normal rate;
makes provisions of unemployment insurance law applicable to farm laborers;
defines "work agreement" and mandates use thereof; provides sanitary code shall
apply to all farm and food processing labor camps intended to house migrant
workers, regardless of the number of occupants; provides for eligibility of
farm laborers for workers' compensation benefits; requires employers of farm
laborers to provide such farm laborers with claim forms for workers'
compensation claims under certain conditions; requires reporting of injuries to
employers of farmworkers.

A01867 Actions:

BILL NO    A01867B

01/12/2009 referred to labor
02/04/2009 reported referred to codes
02/11/2009 reported referred to ways and means
05/12/2009 reported 
05/14/2009 advanced to third reading cal.558
06/08/2009 passed assembly
06/08/2009 delivered to senate
06/08/2009 REFERRED TO RULES
01/06/2010 DIED IN SENATE
01/06/2010 RETURNED TO ASSEMBLY
01/06/2010 ordered to third reading cal.170
01/12/2010 amended on third reading (t) 1867a
01/25/2010 amended on third reading (t) 1867b

A01867 Votes:

BILL: A01867  DATE: 06/08/2009  MOTION:                       YEA/NAY: 086/058

Abbate  ER Cahill  Y  Englebr Y  Hooper  Y  Maisel  Y  Powell  Y  Skartad NO
Alessi  NO Calhoun NO Errigo  NO Hoyt    Y  Markey  Y  Pretlow Y  Spano   Y
Alfano  NO Camara  Y  Espaill Y  Hyer-Sp Y  Mayerso Y  Quinn   NO Stirpe  NO
Amedore NO Canestr Y  Farrell Y  Jacobs  Y  McDonou NO Rabbitt NO Sweeney Y
Arroyo  ER Carrozz ER Fields  NO Jaffee  Y  McEneny Y  Raia    NO Tedisco NO
Aubry   Y  Castro  Y  Finch   NO Jeffrie Y  McKevit ER Ramos   Y  Thiele  Y
Bacalle NO Christe NO Fitzpat NO John    Y  Meng    Y  Reilich NO Titone  NO
Ball    NO Clark   Y  Gabrysz NO Jordan  NO Miller  NO Reilly  NO Titus   Y
Barclay NO Colton  Y  Galef   NO Kavanag Y  Millman Y  Rive J  Y  Tobacco NO
Barra   NO Conte   NO Gantt   Y  Kellner Y  Molinar NO Rive N  Y  Towns   ER
Barron  Y  Cook    Y  Gianari Y  Kolb    NO Morelle Y  Rive PM Y  Townsen NO
Benedet Y  Corwin  NO Gibson  Y  Koon    NO Nolan   Y  Robinso Y  Walker  NO
Benjami Y  Crespo  Y  Giglio  NO Lancman Y  Oaks    NO Rosenth Y  Weinste Y
Bing    Y  Crouch  NO Glick   Y  Latimer Y  O'Donne Y  Russell NO Weisenb Y
Boyland ER Cusick  Y  Gordon  NO Lavine  Y  O'Mara  NO Saladin NO Weprin  Y
Boyle   NO Cymbrow Y  Gottfri Y  Lentol  Y  Ortiz   Y  Sayward NO Wright  Y
Bradley Y  DelMont NO Gunther NO Lifton  Y  Parment Y  Scarbor Y  Zebrows Y
Brennan Y  DenDekk Y  Hawley  NO Lope PD NO Paulin  Y  Schimel Y  Mr Spkr Y
Brodsky Y  Destito NO Hayes   NO Lope VJ Y  Peoples Y  Schimmi NO
Brook-K Y  Dinowit Y  Heastie Y  Lupardo Y  Peralta Y  Schroed Y
Burling NO Duprey  NO Hevesi  Y  Magee   NO Perry   Y  Scozzaf NO
Butler  NO Eddingt Y  Hikind  NO Magnare NO Pheffer Y  Seminer Y

A01867 Memo:

BILL NUMBER:A1867B

TITLE  OF BILL:   An act to amend the labor law, in relation to allowing
farm workers one day of rest each  week,  and  including  farm  laborers
within  the provisions pertaining to overtime compensation and unemploy-
ment insurance, and regulating the farm employment of certain  employees
whose  earning  capacity  is  affected  or impaired by youth or age, and
granting collective bargaining  rights  to  certain  farm  laborers  and
establishing  an  advisory  committee on collective bargaining; to amend
the public health law, in relation to the application  of  the  sanitary
code  to  all  farm and food processing labor camps for migrant workers;
and to amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to the eligibil-
ity of farm laborers for disability benefits and the provision of  claim
forms  to  farm  laborers  injured  in  the  course of employment and in
relation to service as farm laborers

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: To establish the Farmworkers Fair Labor
practices Act to allow farm workers overtime, a day of rest,  disability
insurance, unemployment benefits, and other labor protections granted to
other workers in New York State.

SUMMARY  OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1 of the bill entitles the bill
"The Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act"

Section 2 of the bill amends section 2 of the labor law  to  define  the
term 'farm labor."

Section  3 of the bill amends section 161 of the labor law to allow farm
workers 24 consecutive hams of rest each week and to provide for payment
of overtime for working on the day of rest.

Section 4 of the bill amends section 161 of the labor law to allow work-
ers employed in dairies, creameries, and who care for  live  animals  24
flours of rest during each calendar week.

Section  5  of the bill establishes a new section 163-a of the labor law
to establish an overtime rate for farmworkers who  work  more  than  ten
hours a day, sixty hours a week, or six days a week.

Section  6 of the bill amends section 564 of the labor law to change the
unemployment insurance threshold to make farmworkers eligible for  bene-
fits if their employers paid at least $6250 in a calendar quarter. A new
subdivision(2)  is  added  to  eliminate  unemployment  contributions by
employers for farmworkers who are  ineligible  for  benefits  under  the
federal unemployment tax act.

Section 7 of the bill amends section 674 of the labor law to exclude the
sub-minimum wage for underage farm workers.

Section  8  of  the  bill amends section 701 of the labor law to provide
collective bargaining rights to workers of a farm  employer  with  gross
sales of at least $650,000 during the previous calendar year.

Section  9  of  the  bill  adds  a new section 704-a to the labor law to
require a 21-day cooling off period between certain farm  employers  and
employees  before  they use a work stoppage or lockout to settle a labor
dispute.

Section 10 of the bill establishes an advisory committee on agricultural
collective  bargaining  to  report  to  the  legislature and governor by
December 31, 2010 with recommendations to implement collective  bargain-
ing  procedures,  and to foster labor-management cooperation end dispute
resolution between farm employers and farmworkers.

Section 11 of the bill amends section 225 of the public  health  law  to
expand  the application of the state sanitary code to farmworker housing
occupied by less than five migrant workers.

Section 12 of the bill amends section 51 of  the  workers'  compensation
law  to require the posting of notice of workers' compensation insurance
in English and Spanish, and to increase the penalty from  $250  to  $500
for failure to post such notice.

Section  13 of the hill adds a new section 110-b to the workers' compen-
sation law to require foremen who receive notice of an injury to a work-
er suffered in the course of farm employment to inform the  employer  of
the injury.

Section  14  of  the bill amends the section 120 of the workers' compen-
sation law to make it unlawful to discharge an employee for requesting a
claim form relating to injuries incurred in the course of employment.

Section 15 of the bill amends section 201 of the  workers'  compensation
law to provide disability insurance coverage to farm workers.

Section 16 of the bill adds a new section to protect the rights of farm-
workers established under a collective bargaining agreement

Section  17  of  the  bill establishes the effective dates of the rights
established under the act.

JUSTIFICATION: Farmworkers perform essential  services  for  New  York's
agricultural  industry  which  ranks  near  the top nationally in dairy,
apples, vegetables, grapes, floriculture and other products.  Farm  work
is  labor intensive that involves arduous tasks, exposure to pesticides,
and long hours. Farmworkers  frequently  suffer  physical  injuries  and
illnesses  in the course of their employment, often beyond that suffered
by workers in other industries. It is unjust that the labor  protections
provided  to  other  workers in New York such as a day of rest, overtime
pay, disability insurance, unemployment benefits and collective bargain-
ing have been denied to farmworkers for decades. This legislation  would
grant  farmworkers  the  basic labor rights long enjoyed by other public
and private employees in our State.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2009: S.2247 Reported front Labor  to  Codes:
A.1867  Passed  Assembly.  2008:  S.3884  Reported  from Labor to Rules;
A.7528 Advanced to 3rd reading.

EFFECTIVE  DATE:  April 1, 2010, except that section fourteen shall take
effect within 180 days after enactment, section Five shall  take  effect
on  January  1,  2011,  and sections eight and nine shall take effect on
April 1, 2011.