On Aug. 1, 2023, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a revised version of Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification (PDF, 899.28 KB). Form I-9 is used to “verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. All U.S. employers must properly complete Form I-9 for each individual they hire for employment in the United States. This includes citizens and noncitizens. Both employees and employers (or authorized representatives of the employer) must complete the form.” (USCIS)

A news source recently reported that “another summer COVID wave may have started in the U.S.” (NPR, 2023).  As a result, NYS employers may begin seeing an uptick in the number of employees who are absent from work due to illness.  You yourself may have wondered, “What are my obligations regarding employee sick leave due to COVID-19?”

Most organizations are aware of the privacy laws designed to protect consumer data. However, many organizations may not be aware that another constituency has the same rights—employees. Without the proper protocols in place for protecting and providing access to employee data, employers could find themselves in hot water. This LEGALcurrents provides insights on what organizations should be doing to establish the right data protection model for consumer and employee data.

An update to New York State's nursing employee and breastfeeding accommodations law is now in effect as of June 7. Here are the essential obligations that employers should take note of to ensure they are in full compliance.

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In his most recent column published in the Rochester Business Journal, Labor and Employment Partner, Ben Mudrick, breaks down New York state’s recently revised Model Sexual Harassment Policy and what has changed. Ben discusses the circumstances leading up to these changes, how they are affecting New York businesses, and what employers should be aware of when considering their own policies.

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Are patients and practitioners still required to wear a face mask?

Recently, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) weighed-in, backing away somewhat from the Department’s previous face mask mandate for certain health care settings, principally facilities regulated by the Department under Articles 28, 36 and 40 of the New York State Public Health Law (PHL) relating to hospitals, home healthcare services, and hospices, respectively. 

Join your fellow healthcare professionals and the New York Yankees for select games in May at Yankee Stadium. The dates for the games are May 8-14, 2023

Medical Xpress: Chiropractic spinal manipulation associated with reduction in low back surgery

A recent study from University Hospitals (UH) Connor Whole Health has found that adults who initially visit a chiropractor to receive spinal manipulation for low back pain caused by disc herniation or radiculopathy (i.e., sciatica) are less likely to undergo discectomy (i.e., disc surgery) over the subsequent two years. This study was recently published in the journal BMJ Open.

On March 17, 2022, the provision of the New York HERO Act requiring masking has “ended” without it being renewed. Therefore, apart from those health care settings identified by the Commissioner of Health in her recent determination (March 2, 2022) which only applies to "facilities or entities regulated under Articles 28 [Hospitals], 36 [Home Health Care Services] and 40 [Hospices] of the Public Health Law," the mask requirement does not appear to apply to private practice settings in New York State.

New York State masking requirements continue to be in effect for health care settings, including chiropractic offices.

The Governor announced yesterday that the statewide mask mandate was lifted as of today. There were a number of exceptions to this, including for health care settings.

Earlier this week New York State's mask mandate was thrown into doubt when a judge In Nassau county ruled that the Governor did not have the authority to issue a mask mandate, temporarily rendering the mask order null and void.

New York State Department of Health Releases Updated Recommendations for Healthcare Workers Related to COVID-19 Exposure and Infection

What is the current quarantine guidance for fully vaccinated, asymptomatic healthcare providers who are exposed to COVID-19?

New York Governor Hochul issued a statewide mask mandate that take effect today, December 13, 2021. This mandate requires that all healthcare settings must continue to require masks be worn regardless of vaccination status. 

New York State Law requires that employers of one or more employees must conduct sexual harassment prevention training for all employees. Additionally, New York City Local Law 96 of 2018 requires employers with 15 or more employees are required to conduct annual sexual harassment prevention training for all employees. 

We are pleased to announce that registration is open for ACA Engage, which will take place in Washington, D.C., February 2-5, 2022. Looking forward to seeing everyone together again!

Back in August, New York had issued a vaccine mandate that applied to all healthcare workers in hospitals, long term care facilities and nursing homes. It required these facilities to develop and implement a policy requiring employee vaccinations, with limited exceptions for those with religious or medical reasons. According to the language as written, we did not believe this would apply to private office settings.

The following statement related to the federal mandate regarding COVID-19 vaccination requirements was received by the NYSCA from the ACA on September 15, 2021 via email:

President Joe Biden on Thursday, 09/09/2021 imposed stringent new vaccine rules on federal workers, large employers, and health care staff in a sweeping attempt to contain the latest surge of Covid-19.