New York State Enacts Retail Workplace Violence Prevention Law
In fewer than six months, New York businesses with ten or more retail employees will need to adopt a model retail workplace violence prevention policy that the New York State Department of Labor (“NYS DOL” or the “Department”) will distribute, or to promulgate their own policy that meets or exceeds the minimum requirements established by the NYS DOL’s model, in accordance with a new statute - the New York Retail Workers Safety Act (“RWSA” or the “Act”). Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Act into law on September 5, 2024, and it will take effect on March 4, 2025. The RWSA also requires retail businesses to make sure that their employees participate in workplace violence prevention training when hired and then on an annual basis. The Act also mandates that businesses with 500 or more retail employees nationwide provide retail employees in New York access to panic buttons in the workplace by no later than January 1, 2027.
The Act defines retail employees as individuals “working at a store that sells consumer commodities at retail and which is not primarily engaged in the sale of food for consumption on the premises.” Accordingly, the Act will not cover most restaurants, bars, and other hospitality industry employers. The RWSA describes a panic button as “a physical button that when pressed immediately contacts the 9-1-1 public safety answering point (“PSAP”), provides that PSAP with employee location information, and dispatches local law enforcement to the workplace.”
Retail employers whom the Act covers need to be alert for the NYS DOL’s release of its model workplace violence prevention policy, and its model interactive workplace violence prevention training program, which we expect the Department to make available by February 2025. The RWSA directs that the policy (a) outline a list of factors that might place retail employees at risk of workplace violence; (b) outline methods that employers may use to prevent incidents of workplace violence; (c) include information concerning the federal and state statutory provisions concerning violence against retail workers, as well as a statement that local laws may apply; and (d) clearly state that retaliation against employees who complain of workplace violence is unlawful. The Act requires retail employers to provide a copy of the retail violence prevention policy in writing to all employees upon hire and annually thereafter.
Covered retail employers will also need to provide interactive workplace violence prevention training that utilizes a model training program that the NYS DOL will make available, or their own training programs that meets or exceeds the minimum standards in the Department’s model. The RWSA directs that such training include (a) information of the requirements of the Act; (b) examples of measures that retail workers can use to protect themselves; (c) de-escalation tactics; (d) active shooter drills; (e) emergency procedures; (f) instruction on the use of security alarms, panic buttons, and other related emergency devices; (g) information concerning responsibilities of supervisors; (h) training on areas of previous security problems; and (i) a site-specific list of emergency exits and meeting places in case of emergency.
Effective January 1, 2027, employers in New York with 500 or more retail employees nationwide will also need to install panic buttons throughout the workplace or provide a wearable or mobile phone-based panic button to each retail employee. Such panic buttons may not be used to track employee locations except when the panic button is triggered.
We recommend that retail employers begin to evaluate the risk factors and emergency procedures that are relevant to their workplaces. The NYS DOL will also prepare templates of the model workplace prevention policy in a number of languages in addition to English. Employers should make sure that they know the primary language of each of their retail employees because the Act requires that, in addition to distributing the policy in English, a retail employer must provide a copy of the policy to each employee in that employee’s primary language if the Department has created a template in that language.
If you have any questions about the RWSA, please contact Glen P. Doherty (518.433.2433), Charles H. Kaplan (646.218.7513), Kinsey O’Brien (716.848.1287), or any other member of the Hodgson Russ Labor & Employment Practice.
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