There are many responsibilities that fall to HR. One of the biggest and most important is keeping an up-to-date and compliant handbook, and in a state like New York, there are a lot of requirements to keep up with.
Here is everything you need to include in your New York employee handbook:
HR teams in New York need to ensure that the following labor laws have policies included in their handbooks:
HR teams should note that there may be additional local laws that require certain policies in your handbook. For instance, New York City and Westchester County have a variety of local laws that further protect employee rights.
Whether it's because of a lack of a process for updates, not understanding what applies to your business and what doesn't, or some other challenge, building or updating a New York Employee Handbook is no easy task.
EBC HCM's team of HR experts can help with our Employee Handbooks & Development Services.
Employers can either get direct help with creating and updating a comprehensive guide for workplace policies, or expert guidance to ensure their handbook reflects their company's values, remains up-to-date with regulations, and effectively guides their workforce.
Keep reading to get a basic overview of each requirement for New York Employee Handbooks.
This requirement originated from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now aims to protect employees against exposure and disease during a future airborne infectious disease outbreak.
Employers can choose to adopt an applicable policy template/plan provided by the New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL) or establish an alternative plan that meets or exceeds the DOL's minimum requirements. HR teams should include this in their employee handbooks.
In New York, employers are legally required to reimburse employees for business expenses they incur. It's recommended that HR teams outline how reimbursement works in their handbooks to avoid conflicts with employees.
Employees in New York State are entitled to Crime Victim Leave, which is unpaid leave from work to attend to matters related to the crime, such as a court appearance, or consulting with a lawyer.
HR teams should include a policy that covers the details and access to crime victim leave in their handbooks.
HR teams need to ensure that their handbook includes a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment based on a variety of protected characteristics, and the provisions included under New York State Human Rights Law.
While the law requires employers to display specific workplace posters, it's a good idea for HR teams to also include the applicable information in their handbook as well.
New York Jury Duty Leave requires that employers allow employees time off from work to serve as a juror. Depending on the size of the company, the time off may even be compensated.
HR teams should ensure that their handbooks include the details around use and access to Jury Duty Leave.
New York State employees also have access to Military Service Leave under certain circumstances. The law also provides certain protections for employees who are also members of the military. There are additional requirements for employers with 20 or more employees.
HR teams should ensure that their handbooks include the protections, requirements, and details around use and access to leave.
Employers with 20 employees or more must also provide workers with access to Organ and Bone Marrow Donor Leave.
HR teams of covered businesses should ensure that their handbooks include the details around use and access to leave.
New York employers must allow employees two hours of voting leave for any election for employees that don’t have time outside of work hours to vote.
HR teams should ensure that their handbooks include the details around use and access to leave, and how compensation works.
New York Paid Family Leave provides paid time off for certain reasons regarding family care.
HR teams should ensure that their handbooks include details around eligibility for leave, usage, compensation, and other important details.
New York State Paid Sick & Safe Leave Law provides time off for reasons regarding illness, injury, health conditions, and reasons relating to domestic or similair violence. Whether or not leave is paid or unpaid depends on the size of the employer.
HR teams should ensure that their handbooks include details around eligibility for leave, usage, compensation, accruals, and other important details.
New York State has some of the strongest protections in the country for pregnant or nursing employees in the workplace. These protections include requirements for lactation breaks, accommodation requirements for breastfeeding employees / mothers, as well as the new Paid Prenatal Leave, which provides paid time off for prenatal care or any medical care related to pregnancy.
HR teams should ensure that their employee handbook covers all of the above information.
New York State break laws require that employers offer employees meal and breastfeeding breaks to qualifying employees.
HR teams should ensure that these break entitlements are outlined in their employee handbook.
While rest breaks are not required in New York State, all breaks 20 minutes or less must be compensated as hours worked. It is a good idea to include this in your handbook as well. Furthermore, if your company does offer rest breaks, it's a good idea to lay out a policy for how they are given and used.
This is one of the longest and also most important policies to include in your handbook. The policy must include the purpose and goals of the policy, definitions, examples of harassment, and much more.
Handbooks must also include the employee complaint form, which should also be made available to employees at all times.
Finally, businesses with at least one employee must include a whistleblower policy in their employee handbook, which covers whistleblower protections and rights.
HR teams in New York still must ensure that the following federal labor laws are also covered in their handbooks with a policy:
EBC HCM is a leading New York HR services provider focusing on businesses of all sizes, specializing in all areas of HR services, including building brand new, or reviewing and updating existing handbooks.
Contact us today to learn more, or request a handbook review now.