News

Effective April 12, 2019, all public and private New York State employers are now required to permit an employee up to three hours of paid time off (PTO) to vote in any public election, if the employee (1) is registered to vote, and (2) requests the time off at least two business days prior to the election.  An employee may request this PTO to vote regardless of the employee’s work schedules or working hours.  However, employers have the option to designate when during the [...]

On July 16, 2019, the Governor signed the Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act into law.   When the Act becomes effective on January 1, 2020, it will provide the following labor protections for the first time to farm workers in New York State:  eligibility for overtime pay for any work over 60 hours per week, at an overtime rate of one and one-half times the laborer’s regular rate of pay; a full 24-hours day of rest each week; an 8-hour work day; disability [...]

Whiteman Osterman & Hanna partner Robert Schofield was recently appointed to the New York State Bar Association's Executive Committee as Vice President, 3rd District.  Robert is a partner with Whiteman Osterman & Hanna's Labor and Employment, Education, and Litigation, Aribitration and Mediation practice groups.

Whiteman Osterman & Hanna and Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. hosted over 110 attendees at the Desmond Hotel on Tuesday, September 12 for a presentation on what companies need to do to prepare for the NYS Paid Family Leave Act which goes into effect on January 1, 2018. Presenters Bob Schofield and Monica Skanes from Whiteman Osterman & Hanna, Joanne Schneider from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., and Quinn Rapp-Ellis from the NYS Workers' Compensation Board provided an overview of the PFL [...]

Monica Skanes, an Associate with Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP, the Capital Region’s largest law firm, was recently appointed as the Secretary of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA). Ms. Skanes also serves as a Co-Chair of the NYSBA Section’s Communications Committee. An attorney with Whiteman Osterman & Hanna since 2011, Ms. Skanes focuses her practice on labor and employment law, education law, and litigation, and is the [...]