NY Gen Bus L § 171 (2021)
2021 New York Laws GBS - General Business Article 11 - Employment Agencies. 171 - Definitions.

§ 171. Definitions. Whenever used in this article:   1.  "Commissioner"  means  the industrial commissioner of the state of New York, except that in the application of this article to the city  of New  York  the  term  "commissioner"  means the commissioner of consumer affairs of such city.   2. a. "Employment agency" means any person  (as  hereinafter  defined) who, for a fee, procures or attempts to procure:  (1)  employment  or  engagements  for  persons  seeking  employment or engagements, or  (2) employees for employers seeking the services of employees.   b. "Employment  agency"  shall  include  any  person  engaged  in  the practice  of  law  who  regularly  and  as part of a pattern of conduct, directly or indirectly, recruits, supplies, or  attempts  or  offers  to recruit  or  supply,  an  employee  who  resides outside the continental United States (as defined in section one hundred eighty-four-a  of  this article)  for  employment  in  this  state  and  who  receives  a fee in connection with the arrangement for the admission into this  country  of such workers for employment.   c.  "Employment  agency"  shall  include  any  person  who, for a fee, renders vocational guidance or counselling services and who directly  or indirectly:  (1)  procures or attempts to procure or represents that he can procure employment or engagements for persons seeking employment or engagements;  (2) represents that he has access, or has the capacity to gain access, to jobs not otherwise available to those not purchasing his services; or  (3) provides information or service of any kind purporting to promote, lead to or result in employment for  the  applicant  with  any  employer other than himself.   d.  "Employment  agency"  shall  include  any nurses' registry and any theatrical employment agency (as hereinafter defined).   e. "Employment agency" shall not include: (1)  any  employment  bureau conducted  by a duly incorporated bar association, hospital, association of registered professional nurses, registered medical institution, or by a duly incorporated association or society of professional engineers, or by a duly incorporated association or society of land surveyors, or by a duly incorporated association or society of registered  architects;  (2) any  speakers'  bureau  as defined in subdivision eleven hereof; (3) any organization operated by or under the exclusive control  of  a  bonafide nonprofit    educational,    religious,   charitable   or   eleemosynary institution. (4) any person, firm, corporation or  organization  defined and  regulated  by  sections  one hundred ninety-one through one hundred ninety-three of this chapter.   3. "Fee" means  anything  of  value,  including  any  money  or  other valuable  consideration  charged,  collected, received, paid or promised for any service, or act rendered or to  be  rendered  by  an  employment agency,  including  but  not limited to money received by such agency or its emigrant agent which  is  more  than  the  amount  paid  by  it  for transportation,  transfer  of baggage, or board and lodging on behalf of any applicant for employment.   4. "Agency manager" means the person designated by the applicant for a license who is responsible  for  the  direction  and  operation  of  the placement  activities  of  the  agency  at  the  premises covered by the license.   5. "Placement employee"  shall  mean  any  agency  manager,  director, counsellor,  interviewer,  or any other person employed by an employment agency  who  spends  a  substantial  part  of  his  time   interviewing, counselling  or  conferring  with  job  applicants  or employers for the purpose of placing or procuring job applicants, but  shall  not  include  employees  of an employment agency who are primarily engaged in clerical occupations.   6.  "Nurses'  registry" means any employment agency, bureau, office or other  place  which  procures  or  attempts  to  procure  employment  or engagements   for  nurses  licensed  pursuant  to  article  one  hundred thirty-nine of the education law as a registered professional  nurse  or licensed practical nurse.   7.  "Person"  means  any  individual,  company,  society, association, corporation, manager, contractor,  subcontractor,  partnership,  bureau, agency, service, office or the agent or employee of the foregoing.   8.  "Theatrical  employment  agency"  means  any person (as defined in subdivision seven of this section) who procures or attempts  to  procure employment  or engagements for an artist, but such term does not include the business of managing entertainments, exhibitions or performances, or the artists or attractions constituting the same,  where  such  business only incidentally involves the seeking of employment therefor.   8-a.  "Artist"  shall  mean actors and actresses rendering services on the legitimate stage and in the production  of  motion  pictures,  radio artists, musical artists, musical organizations, directors of legitimate stage, motion picture and radio productions, musical directors, writers, cinematographers,  composers,  lyricists,  arrangers,  models, and other artists and persons rendering professional services in  motion  picture, theatrical, radio, television and other entertainment enterprises.   9.  "Theatrical  engagement"  means any engagement or employment of an artist.   10. "Emigrant agent" shall mean any person, on behalf of an employment agency who, for a fee, procures or attempts to  procure  employment  for persons  outside  the  state  or  outside  the continental United States seeking such employment, or employees from outside the state or  outside the continental United States for employers seeking the services of such employees.   11. "Speakers' bureau" means any person whose principal business is to provide  lecture  business management and promotional services on behalf of lecturers or speakers  and  procures  on  behalf  of  a  lecturer  or speaker,  speaking engagements to appear in lecture programs established by an individual  or  institutional  sponsor  and  who  charges  a  fee, directly or indirectly, to such lecturer or speaker.   Whenever  used in this article words in the singular shall include the plural.