New York State has launched the Restaurant Resiliency Program to provide relief to the restaurant industry. The program provides funding to New York’s network of food banks and emergency food providers to purchase prepared meals from New York restaurants and deliver them to families in need. Restaurants will need to show capacity to create meals…

Governor Hochul has pledged to usher in a new era of greater transparency and accountability. As part of that commitment, she has required all of the State agencies under her control to submit plans to accomplish this goal. The Liquor Authority’s submission to the Governor’s senior staff was comprised of a summary of their current…

The Joint Employer-Employee Workplace Safety Committee provision of the recently enacted HERO Act takes effect on November 1st. Under this part of the Health and Essential Rights Act, employers with at least 10 employees shall permit employees to establish and administer a joint labor-management workplace safety committee. The law does not require employers to create…

Governor Hochul’s Labor Department announced today it has determined that the upstate minimum wage for general occupations should rise 70 cents on December 31, 2021, to a new rate of $13.20 an hour. That is consistent with the increases each of the last six years. The upstate minimum has risen 70 cents annually — from…

The NYS HERO Act requires action by all employers – regardless of your size. Every employer in the State is required to have a HERO Act plan in place and, given the recent designation of COVID-19 as a covered illness, those plans need to be active at this time. The State Labor Department has drafted…

The resignation of Andrew Cuomo last month has led to the ascension of Kathy Hochul to Governor. The new Governor immediately announced that anyone cited in Attorney General James’ report on Governor Cuomo for doing anything untoward would be asked to leave the administration. She also said she was going to take 45 days to…

On May 5, 2021, the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (NY HERO Act) was signed into law. The purpose of the NY HERO Act is to protect employees against exposure and disease during an airborne infectious disease outbreak. The New York State Department of Labor released a series of minimum standards and advanced…

It was heartwarming to see our members and friends from around the state at Cronin’s Golf Resort in Warrensburg this week. We had more than 50 golfers load up their carts and hit the links for a beautiful day in the Adirondacks at our Annual Cleo Emmer “Open for Hospitality.” When the weather is beautiful,…

Governor Kathy Hochul has directed the State Health Department to officially designate COVID-19 as a “highly contagious airborne infectious disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health” under the Hero Act, requiring employers to activate the plans they adopted. As a result of this designation, New York employers must immediately implement…

At a press conference this morning, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that New York City will require proof of vaccination for indoor activities at restaurants, gyms, and performances. The mandate will apply to patrons and employees and will be mandatory without a testing option. The policy will go into effect on August…

The State Labor Department has released the Airborne Infectious Disease Prevention Standard, Model Airborne Infectious Disease Prevention Plan, and industry specific templates (including the template for the Food Services industry) to facilitate compliance with the recently enacted HERO Act. The HERO Act requires employers to adopt and maintain an airborne infectious disease prevention plan to…

Governor Cuomo signed legislation (S.6353-A/A.7733) that will allow restaurants to utilize municipal spaces like sidewalks and streets for outdoor dining. First granted under an Executive Order by the Governor, this law allows restaurants to continue using these public spaces for another year as they recover from the economic devastation brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially…