New York City proposed legislation to end "at will" employment
New York City has proposed legislation that would effectively end "at will" employment. Three New York City Council Members proposed a workplace-related bill on December 8, 2022, that would essentially eliminate the concept of "at will" employment. If passed, it will be a game changer for businesses in one of the country's most important commercial markets.
A New York City employee who has completed their employer's probation period, if one exists, may not be fired unless there is "just cause or a bona fide economic reason," which the employer must prove. It would require consideration of no less than seven specific factors, including whether (i) the employee knows or should have known of the employer's policy, rule, practice, or performance standard that is the basis for the discharge, (ii) the employer disciplined or discharged the employee based on that employee's individual performance, irrespective of the performance of other employees, and (iii) the employer's policy, rule, practice, or performance standard, including the utilization of progressive discipline, was reasonable and applied consistently.
A termination would not be considered to be based on just cause unless the employer had first utilized progressive discipline with respect to the employee.
An employer would be required to provide 14 days' prior notice of any discharge for just cause or a bona fide economic reason. Failure to timely and properly provide such a written explanation would have drastic consequences. First, in determining whether an employer had just cause for discharge, a court would not be permitted to consider any reasons not included in such an explanation. And second, if an employer failed to timely provide such an explanation, then the employee's discharge would automatically not be deemed to be based on just cause.
In short, the Act, which also includes cumbersome provisions relating to electronic monitoring of employees, has the potential, if passed, to change the entire business landscape in New York City.
For more information on this and other topics, please contact Kevin via any of the channels listed below:
This document is designed for general information only. The information presented on this document should not be construed to be formal legal or tax advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship.
For more information on this and other topics, please contact Kevin via any of the channels listed below:
💻 https://www.kmckernanlaw.com
📞 718-317-5007