AG Schneiderman’s Leadership On Efforts To Raise Wages, Regulate Payroll Cards, And Rein In On-Call Scheduling Result In Major Progress For Workers

Since 2011, AG’s Investigations Into Cheating Employers Have Generated Over $21 Million In Restitution And Damages For More Than 17,000 Workers

Schneiderman: My Office Will Always Stand With Hard-Working New Yorkers In Their Fight For Dignity, Respect And Fairness In The Workplace

On behalf of New York State’s workforce and in recognition of Labor Day, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman recently issued a Labor Day report detailing the sweeping enforcement actions of his Labor Bureau, and the key policy initiatives his office has championed—and advanced—on behalf of working families this past year. The Labor Day report, Fighting for New York’s Workers, highlights recent successful efforts by the Attorney General’s office to raise the minimum wage, improve regulation of payroll cards, and end the widespread use of on-call scheduling by retailers. The report also details AG Schneiderman’s crack-down on wage theft across a diverse set of industries, including fast food. Since Attorney General Schneiderman took office in January 2011, his Labor Bureau has successfully brought cases against employers that cheated their workers out of wages and otherwise violated state labor laws, generating more than $21 million in restitution and damages for more than 17,000 workers.

Attorney General Schneiderman’s labor cases have benefited workers in regions across the state, including Western New York, Central New York, the Capital Region, the North Country, the Hudson Valley, New York City, and Long Island. The fast food industry in particular has been the subject of wide-ranging investigations with settlements or judgments covering 91 franchise locations. The report also offers tips to New Yorkers on their rights in the workplace, and how they can protect those rights.

“As Attorney General, it is my privilege to stand with hard-working New Yorkers all over the state in their fight for dignity, respect and fairness in the workplace,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “This Labor Day, I am proud to say that our office is fighting on the front lines of almost every major labor battle impacting New York workers. I look forward to many more tough fights—and victories—in the months and years ahead.”

The Labor Day report describes the Attorney General’s success protecting the rights of working New Yorkers in the past year, including:

• Stopping wage theft in industries including fast food, construction, building services, home-care, airport services and others;
• Bringing criminal enforcement actions for egregious violations, including failure to pay prevailing wage and violations of child labor laws;
• Advocating for a wage board to raise the minimum wage;
• Protecting New Yorkers’ rights to file workers compensation claims, seek unemployment insurance benefits, and serve jury duty without being penalized by employers;
• Protecting taxi drivers from unfair practices;
• Promoting stronger regulation of payroll cards to ensure that they are beneficial for workers;
• Fighting for fairer scheduling practices by reining in the use of on-call scheduling; and
• Helping to win a critical case that extends basic labor protections to home-care workers across the country.

The reports also includes a Know Your Rights guide that details important legal protections that New Yorkers have in the workplace, and includes phone numbers to call to get help and report labor rights violations.

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman believes that in New York, there must be equal justice under law and one set of rules for everyone. He encourages every worker who feels that his or her rights have been violated to contact the Office of the Attorney General’s Labor Bureau by calling (212) 416-8700 or visiting the Office of the Attorney General's website here.

Stuart Appelbaum, President, Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, UFCW, said, “Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has done incredible work to improve the lives of the working men and women in New York. His commitment to helping workers receive money they were owed from rampant wage theft in the car wash industry has improved the lives of many families. He has also played a crucial role in eliminating on-call scheduling – a practice many employers use that puts retail workers lives on hold. We look forward to continuing our partnership with him as the fight for advancing the rights of working people continues.”

Jonathan Westin, Executive Director of New York Communities for Change, said, "AG Schneiderman has proven to be a national leader in the fight for workers’ rights. His aggressive prosecution of employers that have violated the rights of working class people should stand as a national model of what it means to stand for the working poor. We commend the AG on his incredible work around the fast food industry and car wash industry and would ask others to take notice and follow his lead."

“Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has demonstrated his commitment to hard-working men and women. He continues to send the message that depriving workers of fair wages and equal employment opportunities will not be tolerated in New York State,” said Richard Lipsitz, President of the Western New York Area Labor Federation.

"Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has and continues to stand and protect the hard working men and women in New York State's construction industry by criminally prosecuting unscrupulous employers that either fail to pay proper wage rates or steal from their employees. This shows his commitment to uphold the law and to protect the working men and women of New York State," said Greg Lancette, Political Director for the New York Pipetrades Association.

“Attorney General Eric Schneiderman continues to champion issues that protect the rights of working New Yorkers,” said Dave Young, President of the Rochester Building and Construction Trades. “The Attorney General has also held bad actors accountable and taken action against those who fail to pay prevailing wage.”

"The respect for worker rights and wages is very important because without the respect and the guarantees that organized labor can provide, all workers are at risk. We commend Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for standing with workers in the Hudson Valley in our fight for dignity, respect and fairness in the workplace. We need people to have a decent job and to be able to see that those rights are ensured and protected and our Attorney General is doing just that," said Paul Ellis-Graham, President of Hudson Valley Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO.

"Whether it's going after employers like Papa John's for wage theft, advocating for a wage board or taking major corporations to task over unscrupulous lending practices Attorney General Schneiderman can be counted on as a champion for working families. In a time when working families are under attack, it's a relief to have NYS's top cop fighting to protect working people," said John Durso, President, Long Island Federation of Labor.