February Employee Benefits Tips and Guidance from NYSTIA Member Brown & Brown

Two new laws that were included in the federal Omnibus Appropriations Bill, enacted on Dec. 29, 2022, expand workplace rights for employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth or related conditions starting in 2023.

Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the Warehouse Worker Protection Act (WWPA) into law late last year. This new legislation aims to protect warehouse distribution workers from undisclosed or unlawful work speed quotas and includes protections for workers who fail to meet these quotas. The law took effect Feb. 19, 2023.

The WWPA requires covered employers to provide a written description of quotas to which employees are subject and states that employees shall not be required to meet quotas that prevent compliance with meal or rest periods, or use of bathroom facilities, including reasonable travel time to and from bathroom facilities. A “covered employer” is anyone who employs 100 or more employees at a single warehouse distribution center or 500 or more employees at one or more warehouse distribution centers.