September 10, 2024 — At a ceremony in New York City on September 4, Governor Kathy Hochul signed several bills written or supported by PEF. The legislation improves due process rights under Section 72 and expands access to the Civil Service system as New York seeks to fill thousands of vacant positions across all agencies.
Under Civil Service Law, Section 72 governs the process by which state agencies address workers who the employer feels are unable to perform their duties due to a disability other than an occupational disability. A new law signed by the Governor and introduced by Senator Robert Jackson and Assemblywoman Stacey Pfeffer Amato ensures that any and all information relating to disability accusations be made available to the affected employee. Previously, that information could be withheld or redacted.
Additionally, legislation introduced by Senator James Skoufis and Assemblywoman Marianne Buttenschon, will require agencies to develop a policy to notify affected employees when certain information is being requested.
Both bills empower employees and their union representatives to protect the due process rights of workers.
Additional Section 72 legislation that seeks to make a hearing officer’s final determination legally binding and provides the right to appeal that decision has passed both houses and is awaiting consideration by the Governor. That legislation was initiated by PEF and was supported by other public sector unions.
Three other bills — all introduced by Senator Jackson and Assemblywoman Pheffer Amato – chairs of their respective Civil Service Committees — also were signed into law by the governor. They reform and expand the Civil Service System and are major victories for PEF and other public service unions seeking to build stronger workforces.
The laws encourage more New Yorkers to take civil service exams by allowing applicants to take competitive exams if they will meet either minimum age requirements or minimum education requirements within 12 months, and by providing that New York State Civil Service review and update questions within exams at least every five years.
For New Yorkers who pass the exams and begin their careers in public service, another new law allows provisional employees who are appointed to the same title immediately following the provisional appointment to use time earned in their provisional appointment towards the requirements for taking a promotional exam.
Several other Civil Service reforms provide better test notifications, credit probationary time for provisional employees, and require the commissioner of the Department of Civil Service to prepare a report on titles that require license and registration as a mental health practitioner in one or more professions under Article 163 of the Education Law.
PEF President Wayne Spence believes the changes will help the State address some of its staffing concerns.
“On behalf of the 54,000 members of the New York State Public Employees Federation, we appreciate Governor Hochul’s support of these important bills,” said Spence in a press release distributed by the Governor’s office. “They are critical as we work to address the continued staffing issues across state agencies.”
There are still hundreds of bills for the Governor to potentially sign into law, and of those, at least 12 are major PEF priorities.
Bills addressing Workplace Bullying, Artificial Intelligence and mandatory staffing reports at the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities are high on the list of PEF priorities that are still awaiting the Governor’s signature. Each of these bills seeks to define and develop new policies to address concerns that negatively impact public employees.
PEF is also supporting bills that expand Workers’ Compensation Benefits for mental injury and work-related stress, regulate temperatures in correctional facilities, and allow for a one-year public notice and engagement when a hospital seeks to close entirely or close a unit that provides certain services like maternity, mental health or substance use care.
PEF members are encouraged to urge the Governor to sign these bills. The union has made it easy for members to copy and paste pre-written letters and submit them via the Governor’s website.