Senate Bill S4470

                                BILL NUMBER:S4470

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the labor law, in relation to
unemployment insurance benefits for professional employment by certain
education institutions

PURPOSE:  This legislation amends the Labor Law to provide that
part-time professional employment in an instructional, research, or
principal administrative capacity with SUNY, CUNY and any public
community college is exempt from those provisions which make
eligibility for unemployment benefits contingent upon the presence or
absence of reasonable assurance of continued employment.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:  Subdivision 10 of section 590 of the labor law
is amended by adding language that says any provisions which make
eligibility for benefits contingent upon the presence or absence of
reasonable assurance of continued employment, shall not apply to
part-time professional employment in an instructional, research or
principal administrative capacity with SUNY, CUNY, and any public
community colleges and entitlement of claims shall be determined in
the same manner as is applicable to claimants not employed by
education institutions.

JUSTIFICATION:  Unemployment insurance is a benefit that is supposed
to cover workers during times of unemployment when they have no
income. Under current law however, many part-time faculty working in
              

colleges and universities in New York State are unable to receive
employment insurance when they have become unemployed between
semesters because the college or university holds that they have a
"reasonable assurance" of continuous employment under the provisions
of subdivision 10 of section 590 of the Labor Law. Yet, these
employees who generally work 30 weeks a year are seasonal workers,
like actors, construction workers, diamond, cutters, and furriers, all
of whom are eligible for benefits during periods they are not
employed. These employees have no "reasonable assurance" that they
will have a job when the next semester starts as that decision rests
entirely with the employer and is often based on contingent factors
such as enrollment, funding, and programmatic changes. In many cases,
these employees, are not notified by the college or university that
there is no position for them Until they Are. very close to the start
of the next semester. In fact, current law provides an incentive for
colleges and universities to wait as long as possible to officially
disclose to part-time faculty that they will not be employed for the
upcoming semester to avoid paying unemployment insurance costs, for
those employed between semesters. Part-time faculty are treated
unfairly under the current law as they are only eligible for
unemployment insurance benefits from the time they are officially
notified they are not renewed by the college or university for the
next semester. It is only at this time that they can file a claim to
be eligible for benefits even though they may have been out of work
for months before this notification and have absolutely no control
over their employment. Both the California and Washington State
Legislatures have passed legislation that assures the ability of
part-time professional, employees to collect benefits during periods
when they are not working. This measure will help to ensure that
part-time faculty members are treated equitably under the current law
as other workers who have no reasonable assurance of future


employment. It is certainly reasonable and just to afford these
benefits to part-time faculty who have no control over their contract
employment and therefore have "no reasonable assurance" of employment.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: S. 7393 of 2012 Session

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: To be determined.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect immediately.