N.Y. Labor Law § 27-e: Prevention of retail workplace violence

§ 27-e. Prevention of retail workplace violence. 1. Definitions. For

the purposes of this section:

a. "Employer" means any person, entity, business, corporation,

partnership, limited liability company, or an association employing at

least ten retail employees. The term shall not include the state, any

political subdivision of the state, a public authority, or any other

governmental agency or instrumentality.

b. "Retail employee" means an employee working at a retail store for

an employer.

c. "Workplace" means any location away from an employee's domicile,

permanent or temporary, where an employee performs any work-related duty

in the course of their employment by an employer.

d. "Retail store" means a store that sells consumer commodities at

retail and which is not primarily engaged in the sale of food for

consumption on the premises.

2. Written workplace violence prevention policy. The department shall

create and publish a model retail workplace violence prevention guidance

document and retail workplace violence prevention policy that employers

may utilize in their adoption of a retail workplace violence prevention

policy required by this section. Such model retail workplace violence

prevention policy shall be publicly available and posted on the website

of the department.

a. Such model retail workplace violence prevention policy shall:

(i) outline a list of factors or situations in the workplace that

might place retail employees at risk of workplace violence, including

but not limited to:

(A) working late night or early morning hours;

(B) exchanging money with the public;

(C) working alone or in small numbers; and

(D) uncontrolled access to the workplace;

(ii) outline methods that employers may use to prevent incidents of

workplace violence, including but not limited to establishing and

implementing reporting systems for incidents of workplace violence;

(iii) include information concerning the federal and state statutory

provisions concerning violence against retail workers and remedies

available to victims of violence in the workplace and a statement that

there may be applicable local laws; and

(iv) clearly state that retaliation against individuals who complain

of workplace violence or the presence of factors or situations in the

workplace that might place retail employees at risk of workplace

violence, or who testify or assist in any proceeding under the law is

unlawful.

b. Every employer shall adopt the model retail workplace violence

prevention policy promulgated pursuant to this subdivision, or establish

a workplace violence prevention policy that equals or exceeds the

minimum standards provided by such model retail workplace violence

prevention policy. Such retail workplace violence prevention policy

shall be provided to all employees in writing upon hire and annually

thereafter pursuant to paragraph a of subdivision four of this section.

3. Employee information and training. a. The department, in

consultation with relevant groups as deemed necessary by the department,

shall produce a model workplace violence prevention training program.

Every employer shall utilize the model workplace violence prevention

training program pursuant to this subdivision or establish a workplace

violence prevention training program that equals or exceeds the minimum

standards provided by such model training program. The department's

model training program shall be interactive and shall include, but not

be limited to:

(i) information on the requirements of this section;

(ii) examples of measures retail employees can use to protect

themselves when faced with workplace violence from customers or other

coworkers;

(iii) de-escalation tactics;

(iv) active shooter drills;

(v) emergency procedures; and

(vi) instruction on the use of security alarms or buttons, and other

related emergency devices.

b. The department shall include information in such model workplace

violence prevention training program addressing conduct by supervisors

and any additional responsibilities for such supervisors, including ways

to address workplace specific emergency procedures, and training on

areas of previous security problems.

c. As part of this training, every employer shall communicate to each

employee a site-specific list of emergency exits and meeting places in

case of emergency. Such workplace violence prevention training shall be

provided to all retail employees upon hire and on an annual basis

thereafter. Employers covered under this section employing fewer than

fifty retail employees shall provide such workplace violence prevention

training upon hire and once every two years thereafter.

4. Notice of policy. a. Every employer shall provide their retail

employees, in writing in English and in the language identified by each

employee as the primary language of such employee, at the time of hiring

and at every annual workplace violence prevention training provided

pursuant to subdivision three of this section, a notice containing such

employer's retail workplace violence prevention policy and the

information presented at such employer's workplace violence prevention

training program.

b. The commissioner shall prepare templates of the model retail

workplace violence prevention policy created and published pursuant to

subdivision two of this section and the model workplace violence

prevention training program produced pursuant to subdivision three of

this section. The commissioner shall determine, in their discretion,

which languages to provide in addition to English, based on the twelve

most common non-English languages spoken by limited-English proficient

individuals in the state, based on the data in the most recent American

Community Survey published by the United States Census Bureau and

published online by the New York state office of language access.

c. When an employee identifies as their primary language a language

for which a template is not available from the commissioner, the

employer shall comply with this subdivision by providing that employee

an English-language notice.

d. An employer shall not be penalized for errors or omissions in the

non-English portions of any notice provided by the commissioner.

* 5. Retail worker requests for assistance. a. Every employer of five

hundred or more retail employees statewide shall provide every retail

employee with a silent response button to request immediate assistance

from a security officer, manager, or supervisor while the employee is

working at the employee's location in case of an emergency. Such silent

response button may be a device that is installed in an easily

accessible location in the workplace, or a wearable or mobile

phone-based button.

b. Mobile phone-based silent response buttons may only be installed on

employer-provided equipment, and wearable and mobile phone-based silent

response buttons shall not be used to track employee locations except

when the silent response button is triggered.

* NB Effective January 1, 2027

6. Rules and regulations. The commissioner may adopt rules and

regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this section.

7. Evaluation of policy. Beginning in the year two thousand

twenty-seven and every succeeding four years thereafter, the department

shall evaluate, using the criteria within this section, the impact of

the current model retail workplace violence prevention guidance document

and retail workplace violence prevention policy. Upon the completion of

each evaluation the department shall update the model retail workplace

violence prevention guidance document and retail workplace violence

prevention policy as needed.