A01780 Summary:

BILL NOA01780A
 
SAME ASSAME AS S00248-A
 
SPONSORRosenthal (MS)
 
COSPNSRJaffee, Robinson, Paulin, Schimel, Wright, Gottfried, Gabryszak, Galef, Weprin, Rivera P, Hevesi, Englebright
 
MLTSPNSRBrennan, Colton, Cook, Dinowitz, Farrell, Glick, Heastie, Jacobs, Lupardo, Maisel, McEneny, Meng, Millman, O'Donnell, Perry, Rivera N, Weinstein, Weisenberg
 
Amd SS115 & 118, add S119, Civ Serv L
 
Seeks to comply with the federal equal pay act of 1963 by implementing a state policy of compensating employees in state service equally for work of comparable value by eliminating wage inequality in job titles having been segregated by sex, race or national origin; requires the president of the civil service commission to report annually to the legislature and the governor on those segregated titles for which wage disparity exists; mandates governor to appropriate monies to ensure wage disparities are corrected.
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A01780 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A1780A
 
SPONSOR: Rosenthal (MS)
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the civil service law, in relation to implementing a state policy of setting salaries on the basis of equiv- alent value of work   PURPOSE: To implement the state policy of compensating employees in state service equally for work of equivalent value by eliminating wage inequality in job titles and position classifications which have been segregated by sex, race, or national origin.   SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Amends § 115 of the civil service law to define the intent of New York state to comply with the federal "Equal Pay Act of 1963" and "Civil Rights Act of 1964" and to state its intent to ensure a fair and non-biased wage structure for all employees regard- less of sex, race or national origin. Amends § 118 of the civil service law to define "equivalent value of work" and to provide for exceptions to the rule. Adds a new § 119 to the civil service law which (a) defines segregated titles, (b) prescribes methodologies that may be used by the president of the civil service commission for determining equivalent value of work, (c) mandates that the president of the civil service commission report the Legislature and Executive, by January 1, 2013, on those segregated titles for which a wage disparity exists, and (d) mandates the president to request an appropriation necessary to correct such disparities.   JUSTIFICATION: While newspapers carry banner headlines about the advances women have made in the work force, the fact is, women's wages continue to lag far behind men's. The economic position of women on the whole has deteriorated, despite affirmative action and equal pay laws, and the movement of some women into a few traditionally male-dominated occupations. The wage gap exists, in part, because many women are still segregated into a few low-paying occupations. More than half of all women workers hold sales,, clerical and service jobs. Studies show that the more an occupation is dominated by women, the less it pays. Part of the wage gap results from differences in education, experience or time in the work- force. But a significant portion cannot be explained by any of those factors; the General Accounting Office's Oct. 2003 report Women's Earn- ings, which examined 38 years of data, found a 20 percent earnings gap between women and men that could not be explained, even when accounting for demographic and work-related factors such as occupation, industry, race, marital status and job tenure. More than half of all women work in occupations which are over 70% female, and 25% are in jobs which are more than 95% female. The National Academy of Sciences, which has conducted the most authoritative study to date on comparable worth, found that "the more an occupation is domi- nated by women, the less it pays." The Academy concluded that sex discrimination is deeply imbedded in our society's wage structures and in our so-called free market system.   LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2011: A.1780 - Passed Assembly 2009-2010: A.6712 - Passed Assembly 2007-2008: A.7407 - Passed Assembly 2005-2006: A.305 - Passed Assembly 2003-2004: A.737 - Passed Assembly 2002: A.236 - Passed Assembly 2001: A.236 - Passed Assembly 2000: A.4171 - Passed Assembly 1999: A.4171 - Passed Assembly 1998: A.810 (Katz) Passed, Assembly 1997: A.810 (Katz) - Gov. Emp.   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: Determined by the amount of wage disparity.   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
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A01780 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         1780--A
 
                               2011-2012 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    January 11, 2011
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A. ROSENTHAL, JAFFEE, ROBINSON, PAULIN, SCHIMEL,
          WRIGHT, GOTTFRIED, GABRYSZAK, GALEF, WEPRIN, P. RIVERA --  Multi-Spon-
          sored  by -- M. of A. BRENNAN, COLTON, COOK, DINOWITZ, FARRELL, GLICK,
          HEASTIE, JACOBS, LUPARDO, MAISEL, McENENY, MENG,  MILLMAN,  O'DONNELL,
          PERRY,  N. RIVERA,  WEINSTEIN, WEISENBERG -- read once and referred to

          the Committee on Governmental Employees -- recommitted to the  Commit-
          tee on Governmental Employees in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec.
          2  --  reported  and  referred  to  the Committee on Ways and Means --
          committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
          recommitted to said committee
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the civil service law, in relation to implementing a
          state policy of setting salaries on the basis of equivalent  value  of
          work
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. Section 115 of the civil service law, as added  by  chapter
     2  790 of the laws of 1958, is amended to read as follows:
     3    §  115.    Policy  of the state. It is the policy of New York state to

     4  comply with the letter and spirit of  the  federal  "Equal  Pay  Act  of
     5  1963,"  Pub. L. 88-38 (29 U.S.C. § 206) which requires that employees of
     6  both sexes receive equal pay for equal work, the federal  "Civil  Rights
     7  Act  of  1964,"  Pub.  L.   88-352 (42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2) which prohibits
     8  discrimination on the basis of sex, race, and  national  origin  in  all
     9  terms  of  employment,  article fifteen of the executive law and section
    10  forty-c of the civil rights law, which prohibit  discrimination  on  the
    11  basis  of  sex,  race  or  national  origin  in all terms of employment.
    12  Consistent with these laws, it is the policy of the state  to  ensure  a
    13  fair, non-biased wage structure for its employees in which sex, race, or

    14  national  origin is not a consideration either directly or indirectly in
    15  determining the proper wages for a title in state service, nor in deter-
    16  mining the pay for any individual  or  group  of  employees.    For  the
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01541-02-2

        A. 1780--A                          2
 
     1  purpose  of  this  chapter,  the  terms  "wages"  and wage "rates" shall
     2  include all compensation, in any form,  that  an  employer  provides  to
     3  employees  in  payment for work done or services rendered, including but

     4  not  limited to base pay, bonuses, commissions, awards, tips, or various
     5  forms of non-monetary compensation if provided in lieu of or in addition
     6  to monetary compensation and that have economic value to an employee. In
     7  order to attract unusual merit and ability to the service of  the  state
     8  of  New  York,  to  stimulate  higher efficiency among the personnel, to
     9  provide skilled leadership  in  administrative  departments,  to  reward
    10  merit  and to insure to the people and the taxpayers of the state of New
    11  York the highest return in services for the necessary costs  of  govern-
    12  ment,  it  is [hereby declared to be] the policy of the state to provide
    13  equal pay for equal and similar work and for equivalent value  of  work,
    14  and  regular increases in pay in proper proportion to increase of abili-

    15  ty, increase of output and increase of quality of work  demonstrated  in
    16  service.
    17    §  2.  Paragraph  (c)  of  subdivision  1  of section 118 of the civil
    18  service law, as added by chapter 790 of the laws of 1958, is amended and
    19  two new paragraphs (d) and (e) are added to read as follows:
    20    (c) The principle of fair and equal  pay  for  similar  work  and  for
    21  equivalent  value  of  work  shall be followed in the classification and
    22  reclassification and the allocation and reallocation of positions pursu-
    23  ant to this article and all positions having the  same  title  shall  be
    24  allocated to the same salary grade.  Equivalent value of work shall mean
    25  titles  or position classifications that are equal within the meaning of
    26  the Equal Pay Act of 1963, 29 U.S.C. 206(d), or titles or position clas-

    27  sifications that are dissimilar but whose requirements  are  equivalent,
    28  when viewed as a composite of skills, effort, responsibility and working
    29  conditions.  The principle of fair and equal pay for equivalent value of
    30  work requires that consideration of sex, race or national  origin  shall
    31  not influence directly or indirectly the establishment of wages.
    32    (d) It shall not be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to
    33  pay  different  wage  rates  to  employees, where such payments are made
    34  pursuant to:
    35    (1) a bona fide seniority or merit system;
    36    (2) the geographic location of the job; or
    37    (3) any other bona fide  factor  other  than  sex,  race  or  national

    38  origin,  provided however, that such factor does not result in discrimi-
    39  nation based on sex, race or national origin.
    40    (e) Nothing set forth in this section shall be  construed  to  impede,
    41  infringe  or  diminish the rights and benefits which accrue to employees
    42  through collective bargaining  agreements,  or  otherwise  diminish  the
    43  integrity of the existing collective bargaining relationship.
    44    §  3.  The civil service law is amended by adding a new section 119 to
    45  read as follows:
    46    § 119. Equivalent value of work; segregated job  titles  reviewed  and
    47  adjusted.  1.  The legislature finds that despite the policy of New York
    48  state as declared in section one hundred fifteen of  this  article,  job

    49  titles  which  are  segregated by sex, race, or national origin may have
    50  been undervalued and assigned wages which do not  reflect  the  relative
    51  worth  of  the  job.  It is the intent of the legislature to remedy such
    52  undervaluation and to correct such disparities.
    53    2. The civil service commission shall promulgate regulations  specify-
    54  ing  the  methodology  for determining equivalent value of work based on
    55  skill, effort, responsibility, and working conditions.  Any  methodology
    56  prescribed  by  the  commission,  such  as a systematic point factor job

        A. 1780--A                          3
 
     1  evaluation system, shall ensure that comparison systems do not ignore or

     2  undervalue the worth of jobs where women and minorities  are  dispropor-
     3  tionately  represented.  For  the purposes of this chapter, a segregated
     4  title  shall  constitute  any  title  in  which  the total percentage of
     5  employees of a particular sex, race or national origin in the  title  is
     6  equal to or greater than one hundred twenty percent of the percentage of
     7  that sex, race or national origin in the state service.
     8    3.  The  president shall, by January first, two thousand thirteen, and
     9  every five years thereafter, submit to the legislature  and  the  gover-
    10  nor's  office of employee relations, a list showing, by negotiating unit
    11  and for management/confidential employees, those segregated  titles  for

    12  which  a disparity exists based on the equivalent value of the work. The
    13  president shall also submit to the legislature, the governor's office of
    14  employee relations and the division of budget along with  the  list,  an
    15  estimate  of  the  appropriation  necessary to correct such disparities.
    16  When the department creates new titles or, because of  merges  or  take-
    17  overs,  transfers  state  workforce from one title to another title, the
    18  president  shall re-submit such list of any segregated titles for  which
    19  a  disparity  exists  based  on  the  equivalent value of work and shall
    20  submit to the legislature, the governor's office of  employee  relations
    21  and  the  division of budget with such list an estimate of the appropri-

    22  ation necessary to correct such disparities.
    23    4. Beginning with the  budget  requests  for  the  first  fiscal  year
    24  commencing  after the effective date of this section, the governor shall
    25  include the appropriation necessary to ensure  that  wages  are  set  in
    26  accordance  with subdivision one of this section and section one hundred
    27  fifteen and paragraph (c) of subdivision  one  of  section  one  hundred
    28  eighteen of this article.
    29    5.  The  president  shall  not,  in order to comply with this section,
    30  reduce the wages of any employee or reduce the wage rate for  any  posi-
    31  tion.
    32    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
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