New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 9 - EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT › Subtitle A - Governor's Office › Chapter I - Executive Orders › Part 8 - Executive Orders (Andrew M. Cuomo) › Section 8.159 - Executive Order No. 159: Establishing a Permanent Joint Task Force to Fight Worker Exploitation and Employee Misclassification

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
WHEREAS, millions of New York workers are exploited through
					 unfair labor practices including wage theft, retaliation, unsafe or unsanitary
					 working conditions, unstable or unscheduled hours, and illegal deductions for
					 supplies, training, or uniforms; and
WHEREAS, an increasing number of employers in New York
					 improperly classify individuals they hire as "independent contractors," even
					 when those workers should be legally classified as "employees" (hereinafter
					 referred to as "employee misclassification"); and
WHEREAS, worker exploitation and employee misclassification
					 deprive vulnerable workers of protections and benefits to which they are
					 legally entitled, and negatively affect the health and well-being of workers
					 and their families by diminishing their ability to afford housing, food, and
					 other basic necessities; and
WHEREAS, worker exploitation and employee misclassification
					 give scofflaw employers an improper competitive advantage over law-abiding
					 ones, and also deprive the State of substantial revenues while increasing the
					 demand for payment of social services; and
WHEREAS, it is the policy of this State to promote
					 fairness, combat discrimination, and protect the welfare of all New Yorkers;
					 and
WHEREAS, New York State has a long history of combatting
					 wage theft and unfair labor practices that deprive workers of hard-earned wages
					 and deny them fundamental protections provided by law; and
WHEREAS, on September 5, 2007, Executive Order No. 17
					 established a Joint Enforcement Task Force (hereinafter referred to as "JETF")
					 to develop strategies for systemically investigating employee
					 misclassification, and to facilitate the prosecution of scofflaw employers;
					 and
WHEREAS, in May 2015, I launched a multi-agency Nail Salon
					 Industry Enforcement Task Force to prevent unlawful practices and unsafe
					 working conditions in nail salons, recover unpaid wages, shut down unlicensed
					 businesses and businesses out of compliance with state law, and to enforce New
					 York's health and safety regulations; and
WHEREAS, in July 2015, I established the Exploited Workers'
					 Task Force to identify and halt illegal practices in additional industries
					 across the State, leading to a surge in wage recoveries; and
WHEREAS, efforts to address worker exploitation and
					 employee misclassification require all State agencies to work collaboratively
					 to assist exploited workers, prosecute abusive employers, and end unfair labor
					 practices; and
WHEREAS, the creation of joint task forces has proven to be
					 an effective mechanism for coordinating agency efforts to end worker
					 exploitation and ensure employers comply with all applicable laws, rules, and
					 regulations;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ANDREW M. CUOMO, Governor of the State
					 of New York, by virtue of the power and authority vested in me by the
					 Constitution and laws of the State of New York, do hereby order as
					 follows:
1. There is hereby
				  established the Joint Task Force on Employee Misclassification and Worker
				  Exploitation (hereinafter referred to as the "Joint Task Force").
2. The missions and vested powers and duties
				  of the JETF, the Nail Salon Task Force, and the Exploited Workers' Task Force
				  shall be merged into the Joint Task Force.
3. The Joint Task Force shall consist of the
				  Department of Agriculture and Markets, the Department of Health, the Department
				  of Labor, the Department of State, the Department of Taxation and Finance, the
				  Office of Children and Family Services, the Division of Criminal Justice
				  Services, the Office of Faith-Based Community Development Services, the
				  Division of Human Rights, the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance,
				  the State Liquor Authority, the State Police, the Workers' Compensation Board,
				  and any other agencies and authorities that are necessary or appropriate to
				  further the mission of the Joint Task Force (collectively, the "Joint Task
				  Force members").
4. The Joint Task
				  Force shall be established as a permanent body vested with the power and duty
				  to:
a. facilitate the sharing of information
				  between Joint Task Force members, relating to suspected employee
				  misclassification and worker exploitation violations, in a timely
				  manner;
b. establish protocols for
				  inter-agency referrals, and establish procedures for referring cases to
				  prosecuting authorities, as appropriate;
c. work cooperatively with labor and
				  community organizations, businesses and business coalitions, and other advocacy
				  groups to:
(1) seek and develop new methods
				  of prevention, detection, and deterrence of employee misclassification and
				  worker exploitation,
(2) enhance or
				  modify mechanisms for identifying and reporting instances of alleged employee
				  misclassification and worker exploitation, and
(3) receive input on educational needs or
				  compliance opportunities;
d. assess and improve existing methods of
				  investigating and taking enforcement action, including developing strategies
				  for systematically investigating industries in which employee misclassification
				  and worker exploitation are most common;
e. facilitate identification of potential
				  violators and filing of complaints, including soliciting referrals and other
				  relevant information from the public through different methods, including but
				  not limited to a telephone hotline, text messaging mechanism, and a Joint Task
				  Force website;
f. increase public
				  awareness about the illegality and harm inflicted by employee misclassification
				  and worker exploitation through educational campaign efforts;
g. work cooperatively with federal, state,
				  and local social services agencies to provide timely assistance to vulnerable
				  populations that have been misclassified and exploited; and
h. identify potential regulatory, statutory,
				  budgetary, administrative, or other actions that would strengthen enforcement
				  and education efforts, including clarifying any existing legal or procedural
				  ambiguities or inconsistencies.