Haynes and Boone, LLP Partner Jason Habinsky was featured in Law.com’s “Labor of Law” newsletter, discussing new sexual harassment regulation adopted by New York state and New York City.
Here is an excerpt:
This week, in New York, all employers must have adopted and distributed a prevention policy. The new state law includes a prohibition on nondisclosure agreements—unless the complainant wants one—and there are new notification requirements that must be made to employees. One of the biggest requirements of the law is sexual harassment training for all employees who work a portion of their time in New York.
This year, dozens of states around the country pushed forward bills and created new laws to address sexual harassment following the movement that brought accusations to light about high-profile men in power over the last year. New York’s measures were among the most comprehensive.
Jason Habinsky, labor and employment partner at Haynes and Boone in New York, said there's been “rapid fire development” in the law. He said sexual harassment is the focus of the laws, but he is urging clients to look broader at protections against all types of harassment in protected categories. Following the #MeToo movement, the number of sexual harassment charges at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission skyrocketed.
“Other states and jurisdictions will see the lead that California and New York have taken,” Habinsky said. “There is sometimes a bandwagon effect.”
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