Author Archives: Levy Ratner

New York City Lactation Room Laws Go Into Effect

On March 18, 2019, new laws went into effect in New York City requiring lactation rooms in certain City spaces, requiring employers to provide lactation rooms, and requiring employers to implement a lactation room accommodation policy. Employers in New York City must now provide a lactation room that is within a reasonable proximity to employees’…

Settling Employee Faces Jail for Breaking Non-Disparagement Agreement

Many negotiated severance agreements contain confidentiality provisions and non-disparagement clauses. In a reminder that these provisions must be taken seriously, a federal judge has held a former Genzyme Corp. employee in contempt – with the possibility of incarceration – for her repeated refusals to comply with those provisions of her settlement agreement with Genzyme. This…

NYS Bans Gender Expression Discrimination & Conversion Therapy

On January 25, 2019, Governor Cuomo signed the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) into law in New York. GENDA amends existing law to include gender identity or expression as a protected class and prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression in employment, housing, education, credit, and access to public accommodations. An estimated…