N.Y. Workers' Compensation Law § 71: Accrual of liabilities

§ 71. Accrual of liabilities. 1. Notwithstanding any other provision

of this article, a county may by local law provide for the operation of

a plan on an accrued liability basis whereby amounts charged to

participants shall be based on the estimated total liability of

participants actuarially computed, arising each year. A county also may

by local law provide for the operation of a plan on an experience rating

basis, whereby amounts charged to participants shall be based either

partially or totally on the past liability of participants. Once

adopted, an accrued liability basis or an experience rating basis shall

not thereafter be discontinued.

2. If a county elects to operate its plan on an experience rating

basis, the chief elected official of such county shall create and

appoint a labor-management safety committee. The purposes of the

committee shall be to educate public employees of the plan participants

in proper health and safety procedures in the work places of the

participants, and to design such additional programs as may be

appropriate to the development of a safe working environment in

participants' facilities and job sites. The committee shall accomplish

these purposes by establishing and maintaining such employee safety and

health programs as it deems appropriate and by publicizing the

availability of such programs. The purposes and powers of the committee

may be expanded by the county by adopting rules and regulations pursuant

to section sixty-five of this chapter.

3. The committee, which shall be appointed by the chief elected

official, shall be comprised of an equal number of employer and employee

representatives consisting of not less than three nor more than five

representatives each of the employer and of the employees, respectively.

The participants in the plan shall submit to the chief elected official

a list of candidates for the labor-management safety committee. In cases

in which employee organizations recognized or certified to represent

employees of the participants pursuant to article fourteen of the civil

service law exist, such recognized or certified employee organizations

shall submit a list of employee candidates for the labor-management

safety committee to the chief elected official. The chief elected

official shall create the committee from the lists of candidates so

submitted. The chief elected official, or person designated by him,

shall act as the chairperson of the committee, but shall not be entitled

to vote on any committee business. The members of the committee shall

serve without salary, but shall be entitled to reimbursement for

reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their

official duties pursuant to this section. The committee shall meet at

least four times a year, with at least one meeting in each calendar

quarter. The chairperson shall designate the dates of the meeting, and

shall give at least ten days written notice to each committee member of

each meeting. The costs and expenses of the committee and its health and

safety programs shall be an administrative expense of the plan.

4. A recognized or certified employee organization may file a

grievance in writing with the chief elected official of the county

alleging that the county is not complying with subdivision two or three

of this section. The grievance shall designate in detail the particulars

in which the employee organization alleges the county has failed to

comply with either or both such subdivisions. The chief elected official

shall answer the grievance in writing within fifteen days of its filing.

5. If such answer is unsatisfactory to the employee organization, or

is not received by the employee organization within fifteen calendar

days, then the employee organization may submit the grievance to

arbitration. In such event the employee organization shall request in

writing a list of three arbitrators from the nearest regional office of

the American arbitration association. The association shall compile and

send a copy of such list to each party. Each party shall rank the

arbitrators in order of decreasing preference from one to three and

shall return the marked list within ten calendar days of receipt to the

regional office of the American arbitration association from which the

list was requested. Such office shall then determine the arbitrator most

acceptable to both parties.

6. The arbitrator selected shall hear arguments from both parties and

from such additional witnesses as the arbitrator deems necessary to

assist in rendering a decision. Within thirty days of such hearing the

arbitrator shall render a decision which shall be final and binding on

both parties.