NY Civ Serv L § 201 (2021)
2021 New York Laws CVS - Civil Service Article 14 - Public Employees' Fair Employment Act 201 - Definitions.

§ 201. Definitions. As used in this article:   1.  The  term  "board"  means  the  public  employment relations board created by section two hundred five of this article.   2. (a) The term "membership dues deduction" means  the  obligation  or practice  of a government to deduct from the salary of a public employee with his consent an amount for the payment of his membership dues in  an employee  organization.  Such term also means the obligation or practice of a government  to  transmit  the  sums  so  deducted  to  an  employee organization.  (b)  The  term  "agency  shop  fee  deduction" means the obligation or practice of a government to deduct from the salary of a public  employee who is not a member of the certified or recognized employee organization which   represents   such   employee   for  the  purpose  of  collective negotiations conducted pursuant to this article, an amount equivalent to the amount of dues payable  by  a  member.  Such  term  also  means  the obligation  or practice of a government to transmit the sums so deducted to an employee organization.   3. The term "chief legal officer" means (a) in the case of  the  state of  New  York  or  a state public authority, the attorney general of the state of New York, (b) in the case of a county, city, town,  village  or school   district,   the  county  attorney,  corporation  counsel,  town attorney, village attorney or school district attorney, as the case  may be,  and  (c)  in  the  case  of  any such government not having its own attorney, or any other government or public  employer,  the  corporation counsel  of the city in which such government or public employer has its principal office, and if such principal office is not located in a city, the county attorney of the county in which  such  government  or  public employer has its principal office.   4.  The  term  "terms  and  conditions  of employment" means salaries, wages, hours and other terms  and  conditions  of  employment  provided, however, that such term shall not include any benefits provided by or to be  provided  by  a  public  retirement system, or payments to a fund or insurer to provide an income for retirees, or  payment  to  retirees  or their  beneficiaries.  No  such  retirement benefits shall be negotiated pursuant to this article, and any benefits so negotiated shall be void.   5. The term "employee organization" means an organization of any  kind having as its primary purpose the improvement of terms and conditions of employment  of public employees, except that such term shall not include an organization (a) membership in which is  prohibited  by  section  one hundred five of this chapter, (b) which discriminates with regard to the terms  or  conditions  of  membership  because  of race, color, creed or national origin, or (c) which, in the case of public employees who  hold positions  by  appointment or employment in the service of the board and who are excluded from the application  of  this  article  by  rules  and regulations of the board, admits to membership or is affiliated directly or  indirectly  with  an organization which admits to membership persons not in the service of the board, for purposes of any provision  of  this article  other  than  sections two hundred ten and two hundred eleven of this article.   6. (a) The term "government" or "public employer" means (i) the  state of  New  York, (ii) a county, city, town, village or any other political subdivision or civil division of the state, (iii) a school  district  or any   governmental   entity   operating  a  public  school,  college  or university, (iv) a public improvement or special district, (v) a  public authority,  commission,  or  public  benefit corporation, (vi) any other public corporation, agency or  instrumentality  or  unit  of  government which  exercises  governmental  powers  under  the laws of the state, or (vii) in the case of a county sheriff's office in those  counties  where  the  office  of  sheriff is an elected position, both the county and the sheriff, shall be designated as a joint public employer for all purposes of this article.  (b)  Upon  the  application of any government, the board may determine that the applicant shall be deemed to be  a  joint  public  employer  of public  employees  in  an  employer-employee negotiating unit determined pursuant to  section  two  hundred  seven  of  this  chapter  when  such determination would best effectuate the purposes of this chapter.   7.  (a) The term "public employee" means any person holding a position by appointment or employment in the service of a public employer, except that such term shall not include for the purposes of  any  provision  of this  article other than sections two hundred ten and two hundred eleven of this article, judges  and  justices  of  the  unified  court  system, persons  holding positions by appointment or employment in the organized militia of the state and persons who may reasonably be  designated  from time  to  time  as  managerial  or  confidential upon application of the public employer to the appropriate board in accordance  with  procedures established  pursuant  to section two hundred five or two hundred twelve of  this  article,  which  procedures  shall  provide  that   any   such designations   made  during  a  period  of  unchallenged  representation pursuant to subdivision two of section two hundred eight of this chapter shall only become effective upon  the  termination  of  such  period  of unchallenged  representation.  Employees may be designated as managerial only if they are persons (i)  who  formulate  policy  or  (ii)  who  may reasonably  be  required  on  behalf  of  the  public employer to assist directly in the preparation for and conduct of  collective  negotiations or  to  have  a  major  role  in  the administration of agreements or in personnel administration provided that such role is not of a routine  or clerical  nature  and  requires  the  exercise  of independent judgment. Employees may be designated as confidential only if they are persons who assist and act  in  a  confidential  capacity  to  managerial  employees described in clause (ii).  (b)  For  the  purposes  of this article, assistant attorneys general, assistant district attorneys,  and  law  school  graduates  employed  in titles  which  promote  to assistant district attorney upon admission to the bar of  the  state  of  New  York  shall  be  designated  managerial employees,  and confidential investigators employed in the department of law shall be designated confidential employees.  (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of any general,  special  or  local law  or  code to the contrary, for the purposes of this article and with respect to the officers of a paid city fire department in a city of  one million  or  more  inhabitants,  members  in  the  rank  of deputy chief designated as deputy assistant chief and higher shall be  designated  as managerial  and confidential employees and members in the rank of deputy chief or lower shall not be so designated.  (d) A substitute teacher or a  person  employed  in  a  nonpedagogical position   who   has  received  a  reasonable  assurance  of  continuing employment in accordance with subdivision ten or eleven of section  five hundred  ninety  of  the labor law which is sufficient to disqualify the substitute teacher or person employed in a nonpedagogical position  from receiving  unemployment  insurance  benefits  shall  be  deemed to be an employee of the school district  or  board  of  cooperative  educational services  that  has  furnished  such  reasonable assurance of continuing employment; provided however that for the purposes of this article only, the determination of whether such  reasonable  assurance  was  furnished shall  be  made  as  if  such  determination  were  made  prior  to  the promulgation by the United States department of labor of program  letter number 4-87, dated December twenty-fourth, nineteen hundred eighty-six.  (e)  Notwithstanding  the  provisions of any general, special or local law or code to the contrary, for the purposes of this article  and  with respect  to  the officers of a paid city police department, in a city of one million  or  more  inhabitants,  members  in  the  rank  of  captain designated  as  assistant  chief  and  higher  shall  be  designated  as managerial and confidential employees; members in the rank  of  captain, deputy  inspector,  inspector  and deputy chief or lower shall not be so designated, unless a final determination to the contrary results from  a petition  to  decertify (or from an action to otherwise designate any or all  such  members  as  managerial  or  confidential  employees),  which petition  or  action  is  or  was initiated at any time prior to October first, nineteen hundred eighty-four and such petition or action  is  not withdrawn or otherwise discontinued.  (f)  The  term "public employee" means any person employed by a school district or board of  cooperative  educational  services  not  otherwise deemed  to  be  a  public  employee  pursuant  to the provisions of this subdivision, but who would be deemed a public employee under  precedents or  standards  utilized  or  promulgated  by  the  board for determining whether a person employed in a part-time, seasonal or casual position by a public employer other than a school district or board  of  cooperative educational  services  would be a public employee under paragraph (a) of this subdivision, taking into account the length of the school  day  and school year.  (g)  Notwithstanding  the  provisions of any general, special or local law or code to the contrary, for the purposes of this article  and  with respect  to  employees  of a city school district having a population of one million or more inhabitants, members in  a  title  of  school  plant manager  shall be designated as managerial and confidential employees in the noncompetitive classification.   8.  The  term  "state  public  authority"  means  a   public   benefit corporation  or  public  corporation, a majority of the members of which are (i) appointed by the governor or by another state officer  or  body, (ii)  designated  as  members  by virtue of their state office, or (iii) appointed or designated by any combination of the foregoing.   9. The term "strike" means any strike or other concerted  stoppage  of work or slowdown by public employees.   10.  The  term  "chief  executive  officer"  in  the  case  of  school districts, means the  superintendent  of  schools  in  school  districts employing  their  own superintendents, and in school districts under the jurisdiction of a district superintendent of  schools,  shall  mean  the principal of the district.   11.  The  term  "legislative  body  of the government," in the case of school districts, means the board of education,  board  of  trustees  or sole trustee, as the case may be.   12.  The  term  "agreement" means the result of the exchange of mutual promises between the chief executive officer of a public employer and an employee organization which becomes a binding contract, for  the  period set  forth  therein,  except  as to any provisions therein which require approval by a legislative body, and as to those provisions, shall become binding when the appropriate legislative body gives its approval.