Assembly Bill A7275

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7275
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              March 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  BICHOTTE HERMELYN, LEVENBERG, DAVILA, LUCAS,
   SEPTIMO, FORREST -- read once and referred to the Committee on  Trans-
   portation
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the labor law, in relation to establishing light duty
   during pregnancy and parental leave for railroad employees

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Legislative  intent.  The  legislature  hereby  finds and
 declares that pregnant employees and new parents in the railroad  indus-
 try  face  unique  challenges  that necessitate specific protections and
 accommodations. The intent of this legislation is to ensure  that  preg-
 nant  employees  are  provided  with  suitable light duty assignments to
 safeguard their health and well-being, and to  establish  paid  parental
 leave  benefits to support employees bonding with their newborn or newly
 adopted children. These measures aim to promote  a  safe  and  inclusive
 work environment while balancing the operational needs of employers.
   §  2.  The  labor  law is amended by adding two new sections 167-a and
 167-b to read as follows:
   § 167-A. LIGHT DUTY FOR PREGNANT RAILROAD  EMPLOYEES.  1.  SHOULD  ANY
 EMPLOYEE  ENGAGED IN THE SERVICE OF ANY RAILROAD, INCLUDING ANY COMMUTER
 RAIL SERVICE, AS DEFINED BY SECTION NINETY-SEVEN-A OF THE RAILROAD  LAW,
 OWNED  OR OPERATED BY A STATE AUTHORITY OR ITS SUBSIDIARY, AS DEFINED BY
 SECTION TWO OF THE PUBLIC AUTHORITIES LAW, WHO IS PREGNANT BE  PREVENTED
 BY SUCH PREGNANCY FROM PERFORMING THE ACTIVITIES INVOLVED IN THE EMPLOY-
 EE'S  REGULAR  ASSIGNED  DUTIES  DUE,  BUT IS ABLE, AS DETERMINED BY THE
 EMPLOYEE'S MEDICAL PROVIDER, TO PERFORM SPECIFIED TYPES OF  LIGHT  DUTY,
 THE  EMPLOYER  SHALL  MAKE  AVAILABLE  SUCH  LIGHT DUTY TO THE EMPLOYEE,
 PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT SUCH LIGHT DUTY SHALL  ENABLE  THE  EMPLOYEE  TO
 CONTINUE  TO  BE  ENTITLED TO THE EMPLOYEE'S CONCURRENT ASSIGNMENT EARN-
 INGS, INCLUDING INCREASES THEREOF AND  FRINGE  BENEFITS,  TO  WHICH  THE
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11046-01-5
 A. 7275                             2
              

 
 EMPLOYEE  WOULD  HAVE BEEN ENTITLED IF THE EMPLOYEE WERE ABLE TO PERFORM
 THE EMPLOYEE'S REGULAR ASSIGNED DUTIES.
   2.  NOTHING  IN  THIS  SECTION SHALL BE DEEMED TO DIMINISH THE RIGHTS,
 PRIVILEGES, OR REMEDIES OF ANY EMPLOYEE UNDER ANY COLLECTIVE  BARGAINING
 AGREEMENT OR EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT.
   §  167-B.  PARENTAL  LEAVE  FOR RAILROAD EMPLOYEES. 1. FOR PURPOSES OF
 THIS SECTION, "PARENTAL  LEAVE" SHALL MEAN ANY LEAVE TAKEN BY AN EMPLOY-
 EE OF ANY RAILROAD, INCLUDING ANY COMMUTER RAIL SERVICE, AS  DEFINED  BY
 SECTION NINETY-SEVEN-A OF THE RAILROAD LAW, OWNED OR OPERATED BY A STATE
 AUTHORITY  OR  ITS  SUBSIDIARY,  AS DEFINED BY SECTION TWO OF THE PUBLIC
 AUTHORITIES LAW, FROM WORK TO BOND WITH THE EMPLOYEE'S CHILD DURING  THE
 FIRST  TWELVE MONTHS AFTER THE CHILD'S BIRTH, OR THE FIRST TWELVE MONTHS
 AFTER THE PLACEMENT OF THE CHILD FOR ADOPTION OR FOSTER  CARE  WITH  THE
 EMPLOYEE.
   2.  BEGINNING JANUARY FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX, RAILROAD EMPLOY-
 EES IN EMPLOYMENT FOR TWENTY-SIX OR  MORE  CONSECUTIVE  WEEKS  SHALL  BE
 ELIGIBLE FOR PARENTAL LEAVE BENEFITS. EVERY SUCH EMPLOYEE SHALL CONTINUE
 TO  BE  ELIGIBLE  FOR  PARENTAL  LEAVE BENEFITS UNTIL THE TERMINATION OF
 EMPLOYMENT WITH THE EMPLOYER. AN EMPLOYEE REGULARLY IN THE EMPLOYMENT OF
 AN EMPLOYER AS DESCRIBED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION  ON  A  WORK
 SCHEDULE LESS THAN THE EMPLOYER'S NORMAL WORK WEEK SHALL BECOME ELIGIBLE
 FOR PARENTAL LEAVE BENEFITS ON THE ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY-FIFTH DAY OF SUCH
 REGULAR EMPLOYMENT. AN EMPLOYEE WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR PARENTAL LEAVE BENE-
 FITS SHALL NOT BE DEEMED, FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, TO HAVE SUCH
 EMPLOYMENT  TERMINATED  DURING  ANY  PERIOD  THE EMPLOYEE IS ELIGIBLE TO
 RECEIVE BENEFITS UNDER THIS SECTION WITH RESPECT TO SUCH EMPLOYMENT.
   3. THE WEEKLY BENEFIT FOR PARENTAL LEAVE THAT OCCURS ON OR AFTER JANU-
 ARY FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX, SHALL NOT EXCEED TWELVE WEEKS DURING
 ANY FIFTY-TWO WEEK CALENDAR PERIOD AND SHALL BE SIXTY-SEVEN  PERCENT  OF
 THE  EMPLOYEE'S  AVERAGE  WEEKLY WAGE. THE ENTIRE PERIOD OF THE LEAVE OF
 ABSENCE GRANTED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL NOT  BE  CHARGED  AGAINST
 ANY  OTHER LEAVE SUCH EMPLOYEE IS OTHERWISE ENTITLED TO. BENEFITS MAY BE
 PAYABLE TO EMPLOYEES FOR PARENTAL LEAVE TAKEN INTERMITTENTLY OR FOR LESS
 THAN A FULL WORK WEEK IN INCREMENTS OF ONE FULL DAY OR ONE-FIFTH OF  THE
 WEEKLY BENEFIT.
   4.  PARENTAL  LEAVE  BENEFITS SHALL BE PAYABLE TO AN ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEE
 FOR THE FIRST FULL DAY WHEN PARENTAL LEAVE IS  REQUIRED  AND  THEREAFTER
 DURING THE CONTINUANCE OF THE NEED FOR PARENTAL LEAVE. THE FIRST PAYMENT
 OF  BENEFITS  SHALL  BE  DUE ON THE FOURTEENTH DAY OF PARENTAL LEAVE AND
 BENEFITS FOR THAT PERIOD SHALL BE PAID  DIRECTLY  TO  THE  EMPLOYEE  AND
 THEREAFTER BENEFITS SHALL BE DUE AND PAYABLE BI-WEEKLY IN LIKE MANNER.
   5.  NOTHING  IN  THIS  SECTION SHALL BE DEEMED TO DIMINISH THE RIGHTS,
 PRIVILEGES,  OR REMEDIES OF ANY EMPLOYEE UNDER ANY COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
 AGREEMENT OR EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.