NY Lab L § 203-E (2021)
2021 New York Laws LAB - Labor Article 7 - General Provisions 203-E - Prohibition of Discrimination Based on an Employee's or Dependent's Reproductive Health Decision Making.

§  203-e.  Prohibition  of  discrimination based on an employee's or a dependent's reproductive health decision making. 1. An employer shall be prohibited from accessing an employee's personal  information  regarding the   employee's  or  the  employee's  dependent's  reproductive  health decision making, including but not limited to, the decision  to  use  or access  a  particular  drug,  device  or  medical  service  without  the employee's prior informed affirmative written consent.   2. An employer shall not:  (a) discriminate nor take any retaliatory personnel action against  an employee  with respect to compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of  employment  because  of  or  on  the  basis  of  the  employee's  or dependent's  reproductive  health  decision  making,  including, but not limited to, a decision to use or access a  particular  drug,  device  or medical service; or  (b)  require  an  employee  to  sign  a waiver or other document which purports to deny an employee the right to make  their  own  reproductive health  care  decisions,  including use of a particular drug, device, or medical service.   3. An employee may bring a civil action  in  any  court  of  competent jurisdiction against an employer alleged to have violated the provisions of  this  section.  In  any  civil  action  alleging a violation of this section, the court may:  (a) award damages, including, but not limited to, back  pay,  benefits and  reasonable  attorneys'  fees  and  costs  incurred  to a prevailing plaintiff;  (b) afford injunctive relief against  any  employer  that  commits  or proposes to commit a violation of the provisions of this section;  (c) order reinstatement; and/or  (d) award liquidated damages equal to one hundred percent of the award for  damages  pursuant  to  paragraph  (a) of this subdivision unless an employer proves a good faith  basis  to  believe  that  its  actions  in violation of this section were in compliance with the law.   4.  Nothing  in this section shall be construed to limit any rights of an employee provided through any other provision of law, common  law  or collective bargaining unit.   5.  Any  act  of  retaliation  for  an  employee exercising any rights granted under this section shall subject an employer to  separate  civil penalties  under  this  section.  For  the  purposes  of  this  section, retaliation or retaliatory  personnel  action  shall  mean  discharging, suspending, demoting, or otherwise penalizing an employee for:  (a)  making  or  threatening  to  make,  a  complaint  to an employer, co-worker, or to a  public  body,  that  rights  guaranteed  under  this section have been violated;  (b)  causing  to be instituted any proceeding under or related to this section; or  (c) providing information to, or testifying before,  any  public  body conducting an investigation, hearing, or inquiry into any such violation of a law, rule, or regulation by such employer.   6.  An  employer  that  provides an employee handbook to its employees must include in the handbook notice  of  employee  rights  and  remedies under this section.   7.  If  any word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or part of this section  or  the  application  thereof  to  any  person  or circumstances  shall,  for  any  reason,  be  adjudged  by  any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment  shall  not  affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, and the application thereof to  other  persons  or  circumstances,  but  shall  be  confined  in its operation to the word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision,  or part thereof directly involved  in  the  controversy  in  which  such judgment  shall  have  been  rendered and to the person or circumstances involved. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the legislature that this section would have been enacted even if such invalid provisions had not been included herein.