The recently proposed Delivery Protection Act has now been sponsored by a supermajority of New York City Council members. While the bill has not yet been voted on, the broad support makes passage highly likely. The proposed law would introduce significant new requirements for package-delivery warehouses, which include facilities where companies such as Amazon and other delivery services receive goods and distribute them for final delivery to NYC consumers. The legislation is designed to enhance safety, improve working conditions, and increase oversight of the growing “last-mile” delivery industry.
What Types of Facilities Are Covered?
The law applies to “last-mile delivery facilities”—which are defined as:
Warehouses or storage sites that receive goods and then ship them to customers in NYC.
The law would not apply to retail stores where most of the space is devoted to in-person sales.
Key Changes Businesses Need to Know
1. Facilities Must Now Get a City License
To operate in NYC, these warehouses will need a license from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.
When applying, a facility must report any past violations related to:
Workplace safety
Road or traffic safety
Environmental rules
Deceptive business practices
Worker-protection laws
The license would cost $500 per year and will be valid for two years.
2. Workers Cannot Be Hired Through Staffing Agencies
A major change under the proposed law is the prohibition on hiring warehouse workers through staffing agencies or subcontractors for core operational roles. If a business ends a contract with a staffing agency, it must offer jobs to the affected workers before hiring additional personnel.
3. Mandatory Training for All Warehouse Employees
The proposed law will require that all warehouse workers receive “last-mile facility training” within their first 92 days of employment and once a year thereafter.
The training will cover, among other topics:
Worker rights
Employer responsibilities
Safe driving and delivery practices
Safety around new technology, including automated or robotic vehicles
What This Means for Businesses
Staffing must shift to direct hiring: if a warehouse relies on contractors, the business will need to adjust its staffing practices
Increased compliance obligations: licenses, disclosures and required training mean new administrative tasks
Elevated safety expectation: annual training will become a key part of compliance.
Bond will continue to monitor relevant updates regarding this legislation and provide additional updates as appropriate. If you have any questions or would like any additional information regarding this legislation, employer updates or other legal developments, please contact Sam Dobre, Jason Kaufman or any attorney in Bond’s labor and employment practice.
*Special thanks to associate trainee Timothy Bouffard for his assistance in the preparation of this memo. Timothy is not yet admitted to practice law.
As part of this year’s budget, New York State added Section 139-m to the State Finance Law, which requires bidders on competitive state procurements to certify that they have a written policy addressing gender-based violence and the workplace and that such policy meets certain requirements. The law went into effect on Nov. 5, 2025.
The statute requires competitive bids to contain the following statement:
“By submission of this bid, each bidder and each person signing on behalf of any bidder certifies, and in the case of a joint bid each party thereto certifies as to its own organization, under penalty of perjury, that the bidder has and has implemented a written policy addressing gender-based violence and the workplace and has provided such policy to all of its employees, directors and board members. Such policy shall, at a minimum, meet the requirements of subdivision 11 of section five hundred seventy-five of the executive law.”
Applicable New York State procurement guidelines define a “bidder” as “any individual, business, vendor or other legal entity, or any employee, agent, consultant or person acting on behalf thereof, that submits a bid in response to a solicitation.”
While this certification is mandatory for all bids that are legally required to be competitive, it may also be required for bids on noncompetitive contracts at the discretion of the public entity awarding the contract. Accordingly, employers who contract with New York State agencies should review new or renewed contracts for any new requirements or obligations, including the new requirements under State Finance Law Section 139-m.
A bid that fails to comply with the new requirements will not be considered or be awarded the contract. The law also states that if a bidder cannot make the required certification of compliance with the new requirements, the bidder shall state so and provide a signed statement detailing the reasons for noncompliance with the submitted bid.
The New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence (“OPDV”) published guidance, including what gender-based violence and the workplace policies must contain, which specifically include, at a minimum, the following provisions:
Share Information: Employers must provide information regarding gender-based violence where employees can see and access it. This includes displaying the NYS Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline information and a gender-based violence and the workplace poster. When possible, materials should be available in an employee’s primary language.
Refer Employee Survivors to Services: The policy must require that the employer refer employees who disclose current or past victim status to the NYS Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline and/or a local service provider. For bidders outside of New York State, referrals should be made to a local provider or statewide hotline. While referrals are required to be provided by the employer, it is not required for the employee to access services.
Prohibit Retaliation: The policy must include a clear statement that discrimination or retaliation against employees who identify as victims or survivors of gender-based violence is prohibited.
Comply with Laws: The policy must follow state law. As a reminder for employers based in New York State, this means that the policy and employers must follow the SAFE Leave Act, which is more commonly referred to by employers as the NYS Paid Sick Leave Law, which includes qualifying reasons and protections for employees seeking to use accrued leave time for reasons related to domestic violence. The policy and employers must also follow the New York State Human Rights Law, which includes protections against sexual harassment as well as protections for victims of domestic violence (including the obligation to provide reasonable accommodations to victims of domestic violence for reasons related to the domestic violence). Employers should also follow any other relevant laws and regulations that may apply.
Offer Implementation Support: The guidance also reminds employers that OPDV is able to assist employers in developing and implementing this policy. Per the guidance, employers must provide information to supervisors and human resources about this technical assistance from OPDV.
The OPDV guidance states that covered employers should distribute the gender-based violence and the workplace policies to all employees, board members and directors upon hire and annually.
Employers that bid on competitive contracts with New York State should develop and implement a compliant gender-based violence and the workplace policy, consistent with the guidance from OPDV. Employers that contract or may contract with New York State agencies should also review any new or renewed contracts with such agencies, or other updated information from said agencies for any changes in expectations, including adoption and incorporation of this provision mandating development and implementation of a gender-based violence and the workplace policy.
OPDV has published a model policy, but we encourage employers to carefully review and customize any policy to fit their workplace.
While neither the law nor the guidance currently requires employers to provide training on this topic, employers should nevertheless consider training supervisors, human resources personnel and others who will interface with employees so that they understand the protections afforded to victims of domestic violence and comply with the employer’s relevant policies.
If you have any questions regarding compliance or would like assistance drafting your gender-based violence and the workplace policy, please contact Stephanie Hoppe Fedorka, Colin Smith or the Bond attorney with whom you are regularly in contact.
On September 25, 2025, the New York City Council passed significant amendments to the New York City Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (ESSTA or the Act) and delivered the bill to New York City Mayor Eric Adams on that same date. Because Adams did not veto the bill within the 30-day window, it automatically became law and will go into effect in 120 days, on or around February 22, 2026.
The amendments make significant changes to the existing ESSTA, as well as the New York City Temporary Schedule Change Act (TSCA). A brief summary of some of the key changes include: recognition of additional, new qualifying reasons for use of ESSTA sick/safe leave related to child care, caregiving, workplace violence, subsistence benefits or housing and public disasters, as well as a new obligation for employers to provide additional unpaid sick time and changes related to the alignment of the TSCA with the ESSTA.
By way of brief background, the ESSTA requires covered employers to provide sick/safe leave to employees. The amount and nature of the sick/safe leave that must be provided depends on employer size. Employers with 100 or more employees must provide up to 56 hours of paid sick/safe leave each year; employers with five to 99 employees or employers with four or fewer employees an a net income of $1 million or more must provide up to 40 hours of paid sick/safe leave each year; and employers with four or fewer employees and a net income of less than $1 million must provide up to 40 hours of unpaid sick/safe leave each year. Employers with one to 99 domestic worker(s) must also provide 40 hours of paid sick/safe leave each year. Employees must accrue sick/safe leave at a rate of at least 1 hour for every 30 hours worked, but an employer may choose to front-load the sick/safe leave each year.
Recently, the ESSTA was also amended to require employers of any size or net income to provide a separate bank of 20 hours of paid prenatal leave in a 52-week period.
Under the sick/safe leave provisions of the ESSTA, employees may currently use accrued sick/safe leave for the employee’s own care, treatment or medical care, or to care for a qualifying family member (including treatment or medical care of the family member), for the closure of the employer’s place of business or the employee’s need to care for a child whose child care provider has closed due to a public health emergency, as well as to seek assistance (including legal or social services) or take other measures related to domestic violence, sexual offenses, stalking or human trafficking when the employee or the employee’s family member is a victim of domestic violence, unwanted sexual contact, stalking or human trafficking.
Expanded uses: In addition to the current list of qualifying reasons for use of sick/safe leave under the ESSTA briefly summarized above, the amendments allow employees to take available sick/safe leave under ESSTA for additional recognized reasons including:
Public Disaster – Employees may use ESSTA leave for a public disaster, defined as a “fire, explosion, terrorist attack, severe weather conditions or other catastrophe that is declared a public emergency or disaster by the president of the United States, the governor of the State of New York, or the mayor of the City of New York.” This also includes direction by a public official to remain indoors or avoid travel during a public disaster that prevents an employee from reporting to their work location.
Caregiving Responsibilities – Employees may use ESSTA leave to provide care to a minor child or care recipient when the employee is a caregiver for the minor child or care recipient.
Subsistence Benefits/Housing – Employees may use ESSTA leave to initiate, attend or prepare for a legal proceeding or hearing related to subsistence benefits or housing to which the employee or the employee’s family member or care recipient is a party. Leave may also be taken by the employee to take actions necessary to apply for, maintain or restore subsistence benefits or shelter for the employee or their family member or care recipient.
Workplace Violence – Employees may use ESSTA leave for certain reasons, including but not limited to seeking legal or social services, meeting with a district attorney or filing a complaint with law enforcement, related to when the employee or the employee’s family member has been the victim of workplace violence. This change specifically adds workplace violence to the “safe leave” provisions of the ESSTA.
New Additional Unpaid Sick Time: The amendments also require employers to provide all employees with an additional thirty-two (32) hours of unpaid sick/safe leave upon hire and on the first day of each benefit year. This leave must be front-loaded, meaning that the full amount must be made immediately available for use and can be used for any qualifying ESSTA purpose. This unpaid ESSTA time does not need to be carried over to the following benefit year.
TSCA: The law effectively realigns the requirements of the TSCA with the ESSTA. Currently, the TSCA entitles employees to request up to two temporary schedule changes each year for qualifying “personal events.” Personal events include the need to care for a minor child or care recipient, the need to attend a legal proceeding or hearing related to public benefits or the employee (or the employee’s family member, minor child or care recipient), or any other reason recognized under the ESSTA. Employers must either grant these temporary schedule change requests or provide the requesting employee with unpaid leave.
The qualifying reasons previously recognized for temporary schedule change requests under the TSCA have been incorporated as protected, qualifying reasons under the ESSTA as explained in greater detail above. Significantly, under these changes, employers will no longer be required to grant an employee’s temporary schedule change request as previously required by the TSCA.
However, employers must respond to an employee’s request as soon as practicable. Employers may propose an alternative temporary change, but employees are not required to accept such proposed alternatives. Notably, employees may still request such changes and are protected from retaliation for doing so under the TSCA.
What’s Next
Employers should review their existing sick leave and Temporary Schedule Change Act policies and revise them to reflect the significant changes in the ESSTA by the effective date. As a reminder, the ESSTA requires employers to maintain a written policy with specific minimum information related to ESSTA leave.
Employers should also ensure that accruals for paid and unpaid ESSTA leave are tracked and reported on a pay statement or other written documentation provided to the employee each pay period.
In further preparation for compliance, employers should consider providing training to supervisors, managers or human resources professionals that are responsible for attendance enforcement within their organizations. This will mitigate the risk of non-compliance, including retaliation claims, due to any misunderstandings of employees’ rights and protections under the ESSTA and the TSCA.
It is likely that the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, the agency responsible for enforcement of the ESSTA, will issue updated guidance and other materials, including a new “Workers’ Bill of Rights” notice and the “You Have a Right to Temporary Changes to Your Work Schedule” notice, reflecting these changes. Employers should monitor for the updated guidance and notice.
Employer are encouraged to work with legal counsel to understand their new obligations and tailor policies and practices to fit their goals and objectives while maintaining compliance with the new amendments.
If you have any questions or would like additional information, please contact Stephanie Hoppe Fedorka, Rachel Kreutzer or the Bond attorney with whom you are regularly in contact.
The sun rises, the alarm blares and Sonny & Cher’s “I Got You Babe” plays on the radio. It’s Groundhog Day— or, for New York City employers, another new bill from the city council introducing additional compliance requirements.
On Oct. 9, 2025, the New York City Council passed, with overwhelming support, two bills that together would establish a framework requiring private employers in the city to report pay and demographic data for purposes of determining whether there are any disparities in compensation based on gender, race or ethnicity. While the bills currently await action by the mayor, it is widely expected that they will become law—either through approval by the incoming administration or by a veto override.
The first bill, Int. No. 982-A, requires private employers with 200 or more employees to submit a pay report annually. In determining the number of employees, all employees, whether full-time, part-time, or temporary, would be counted. While many employers have a fluctuating number of employees, the count is “determined by counting the highest total number of employees concurrently employed at any point during the reporting year.”
The bill will require the mayor to designate a city agency to develop a standardized form for employers to submit reports. Once the standardized form is published, employers will be required to submit the pay report to the agency within the next year and every year thereafter. The city will allow employers to submit the information anonymously. Upon submitting the required data to the designated agency each year, employers must also sign a statement certifying the accuracy of the information contained in their report, which must identify the employer. Employers that fail to comply with the Bill’s requirements would be subject to penalties. While a first time offense can be remedied within 30 days of a summons indicating a violation, if the employer does not remedy the violation, it would face an initial civil penalty of $1,000. For each subsequent violation, the employer would face a civil penalty of $5,000. There does not appear to be a cap on how many times the employer would be subject to this penalty.
The second bill, Int. No. 984-A, would work in tandem with Int. No. 982-A, requiring the designated agency to create a pay equity study no later than one year after employers submit their reports, and annually thereafter. This study must evaluate the data from the pay reports to assess disparities in compensation based on gender, race or ethnicity, identify prevalent industries with disparities and track trends in occupational segregation. Moreover, the report would be done in a manner that does “not reveal any particular covered employer’s or employee’s identifying information.”
Given the annual reporting and the level of detail required, the bills are expected to impose additional administrative burdens on employers. Employers who have high turnover rates or seasonal employees may face obstacles in complying with this bill to the extent it may be difficult to gather, organize and report data accurately.
While not yet law, these bills are expected to take effect soon and we will continue to track their progress. Employers should remain aware of existing federal reporting obligations and consider taking steps to prepare for the collection and reporting of data under these potentially forthcoming requirements.
If you have any questions or would like any additional information regarding any policy updates, or other legal developments, please contact Sam Dobre, Mallory Campbell, Samuel Wiles or any attorney in Bond’s labor and employment practice.
New York City continues to set the standard nationwide in expanding workplace protections for service industry employees. Recent legislative updates have strengthened scheduling rights for retail and fast-food workers under the City’s Fair Workweek Law and introduced new safeguards for app based and grocery delivery workers. Employers operating in these sectors should carefully review their scheduling and pay practices, as noncompliance can result in substantial penalties and enforcement actions.
Fair Workweek Requirements
New York City’s Fair Workweek Law—part of a growing national trend toward predictable scheduling—has a stated aim of providing service sector workers more stable and transparent work hours. The law applies separately to fast food and retail employers, each with specific obligations.
Fast Food Employers
Fast food employees must receive a regular schedule identifying their expected workdays and hours. Employers must:
Provide schedules 14 days in advance, both posted at the workplace and distributed directly to employees (individual notification may take the form of a personal message such as email, text message or a push notification in a scheduling app).
Communicate schedule changes in writing as soon as possible by posting the changed schedule conspicuously in the workplace and individually notifying the affected employees by personal message or push notification in a scheduling app.
Pay premium compensation for last minute changes—ranging from $10 to $75 per change, depending on timing and impact.
Pay a $100 premium for “clopening” shifts (back-to-back closing and opening shifts).
Retail Employers
Retail employers must:
Provide work schedules at least 72 hours in advance, both posted at the workplace and distributed to employees via personal message or push notification on a scheduling app.
Obtain written employee consent to add or cancel shifts within 72 hours of a shift start.
Avoid on call scheduling, which is prohibited under the law.
Pay fines of up to $300 per affected employee, with higher penalties for repeat violations.
Recordkeeping
All covered employers must retain for three years records of:
Employee schedules and hours worked;
Any written consent to schedule changes; and
Copies of all schedules provided.
Failure to maintain these records creates a presumption in favor of the employee in any dispute or enforcement action. For wage and hour best practices, employers should maintain all time and schedule records for at least six (6) years.
Protections for App Based and Grocery Delivery Workers
New York City was the first city in the U.S. to establish minimum pay standards and working conditions for app based food delivery workers. The law sets a minimum pay rate of $21.44 per hour and imposes additional requirements on third party delivery platforms.
In September 2025, the City Council overrode Mayor Adams’ veto to extend these protections to grocery delivery workers, previously excluded from coverage. The updated law also requires:
Apps to provide insulated delivery bags;
Improved bathroom access at restaurants and delivery hubs; and
Greater transparency about how tips and pay are calculated.
Compliance Takeaways
These developments underscore New York City’s ongoing focus on scheduling and treatment of service and gig economy workers. Employers in the retail, fast food, and delivery sectors should take proactive steps to ensure compliance, including:
Reviewing scheduling policies to confirm adherence to notice and consent requirements.
Training managers on premium pay obligations and prohibited scheduling practices.
Verifying that recordkeeping procedures satisfy the City’s three year retention standard (and six year for wage and hour best practices).
Failure to comply can expose employers to civil penalties, private litigation and reputational risk. Employers are encouraged to consult experienced counsel to ensure their scheduling and pay practices align with current city requirements and enforcement priorities.
If you have any questions or would like any additional information regarding best practices, policy updates, or other legal developments, please contact Sam Dobre, Jason Kaufman or any attorney in Bond’s labor and employment practice.
*Special thanks to associate trainee Lindsay McCarthy for her assistance in the preparation of this memo. Lindsay is not yet admitted to practice law.
Effective June 19, 2024, New York State Labor Law Section 206-c requires all private and public employers to provide 30 minutes of paid break time for employees to express breast milk when the employee has a reasonable need to express breast milk. Prior to enactment of this law, New York State employers were only required to provide reasonable unpaid break time for breast milk expression.
The New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) has issued guidance FAQs on the amended law. NYSDOL’s guidance provides that paid break time must be permitted as often as an employee reasonably needs to express breast milk. NYSDOL has issued a template Policy on the Rights of Employees to Express Breast Milk in the Workplace which provides:
HOW OFTEN DURING THE WORKDAY CAN I TAKE BREAKS TO PUMP BREAST MILK? The number of paid breaks an employee will need is unique to each employee. Your employer must accommodate you whenever you reasonably need to take a break to express milk.
Employees must also be permitted to use existing paid break or meal time if they need additional time for breast milk expression beyond the paid 30 minutes, and employers may not require employees to make up this missed work time. Employees are entitled to paid breaks for breastmilk expression for up to three years following childbirth.
Employers are required to provide written notice of breast milk expression rights to all employees at the time of hire and then annually thereafter. Additionally, notice must be provided when an employee returns from childbirth leave.
Employees must provide reasonable advance notice of their need for lactation breaks. As a reminder, employers must continue to provide a room or other location to express breast milk once an employee submits a written request to their direct supervisor or an individual designated by the employer to process lactation room requests. Employers must respond to lactation room requests in writing within five days.
Lactation rooms must have the following:
Be close to an employee’s work area
Provide good natural or artificial light
Be private – both shielded from view and free from intrusion
Have accessible, clean running water nearby
Have an electrical outlet (if the workplace is supplied with electricity)
Include a chair
Provide a desk, small table, counter or other flat surface
Ability to store pumped breast milk in a refrigerator if one is available
Employers are prohibited from discriminating in any way against an employee who chooses to express breast milk in the workplace.
On May 20, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) announced a final rule updating the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS). The amended rule (29 CFR 1910) better aligns with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).
In a 3-2 vote on April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued its final rule on non-compete clauses, declaring all non-compete clauses to be unfair methods of competition, resulting in a national ban on non-compete clauses.
New York has long protected its residents from discrimination in the job hiring process with the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL), which was originally passed in 1945. New York City also has its own Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) that further covers discrimination in job hiring.
On May 31, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) new “Walkaround” rule will take effect. The amended rule (29 CFR 1903.8(c)) is a sea change for employers, as it was written with the intent of allowing union representatives to participate in OSHA inspections, even in non-union workplaces.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that its Contractor Portal will open to receive Affirmative Action Program (AAP) certification submissions on April 1, 2024. The deadline for contractors to certify that they are in compliance with their AAP obligations for each establishment and/or functional unit is set for July 1, 2024.
On March 8, 2024, the Eastern District of Texas issued a decision striking down the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB or Board) recently-adopted rule governing the standard for joint employer status, further delaying the rule’s implementation.
