NY State Senate Bill 2025-S2382

Senate Bill S2382

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for confronting an individual to prevent a theft or the unlawful taking of goods, wares, or merchandise

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Labor Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 16, 2025	referred to labor

2025-S2382 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Labor
Law Section:: Labor Law
Laws Affected:: Add §215-d, Lab L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S7639

2025-S2382 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for confronting an individual to prevent a theft or the unlawful taking of goods, wares, or merchandise; does not prohibit employers from training or re-training employees on policies against confrontation of theft.

2025-S2382 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S2382

SPONSOR: MATTERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the labor law, in relation to prohibiting employers from
retaliating against employees for confronting an individual to prevent a
theft or the unlawful taking of goods, wares, or merchandise

 
PURPOSE:

To protect employees from retaliation by an employer if an employee
confronts or attempts to confront an individual to prevent a theft.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Amends the Labor law by adding a new section 215-d to prohibit retali-
ation by an employer against an employee who confronts an individual to
prevent a theft or the unlawful taking of goods, wares, or merchandise.
In addition, an employer may not penalize or retaliate against any
employee by reducing work hours, denying a promotion or decreasing pay.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

While it is important that retail stores focus on protecting their
employees or instituting policies advising employees against confronta-
tion to prevent a theft, an employee who intervenes in such attempt
should not be penalized including termination of the job. The current
explosion in retail theft, which shows no signs of subsiding, whether it
is organized retail crime or a lone individual acting on their own
behalf, has created turmoil in the industry for both employers and
employees. The unfortunate outcome has resulted in job loss for many
employees who react to these crimes by intervening in an attempt to stop
these criminals.

Nothing in this bill is intended to encourage employee interactions with
criminals committing theft of merchandise. In fact, it is only common
sense that for stores who have security personnel, that job is best left
up to trained professionals. This bill simply states that an employee
intervening in an attempt to thwart a theft, that employee will not be
subjected to job termination.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2024 S7639 Referred to Labor

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S2382 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2382
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 16, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. MATTERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor
 
 AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to prohibiting employers from
   retaliating against employees for confronting an individual to prevent
   a theft or the unlawful taking of goods, wares, or merchandise

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The labor law is amended by adding a new section 215-d to
 read as follows:
   § 215-D. EMPLOYEE CONFRONTATION OF THEFT; PROHIBITED  RETALIATION.  1.
 NO  EMPLOYER OR THEIR AGENT, OR THE OFFICER OR AGENT OF ANY CORPORATION,
 PARTNERSHIP, OR LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, OR  ANY  OTHER  PERSON  SHALL
 DISCHARGE,  THREATEN,  PENALIZE,  OR IN ANY OTHER MANNER DISCRIMINATE OR
 RETALIATE AGAINST  ANY  EMPLOYEE  BECAUSE  SUCH  EMPLOYEE  CONFRONTS  OR
 ATTEMPTS  TO  CONFRONT  AN INDIVIDUAL TO PREVENT A THEFT OR THE UNLAWFUL
 TAKING OF GOODS, WARES, OR MERCHANDISE.
   2. AS USED IN THIS SECTION, TO THREATEN, PENALIZE,  OR  IN  ANY  OTHER
 MANNER  DISCRIMINATE  OR  RETALIATE  AGAINST  ANY EMPLOYEE SHALL INCLUDE
 REDUCING WORK HOURS, DENYING A PROMOTION,  AND/OR  DECREASING  PAY,  BUT
 SHALL  NOT  INCLUDE TRAINING OR RE-TRAINING ON APPLICABLE EMPLOYER POLI-
 CIES.
   3. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL  REQUIRE  AN  EMPLOYEE  TO  CONFRONT,
 PREVENT,  OR ATTEMPT TO PREVENT A THEFT OR THE UNLAWFUL TAKING OF GOODS,
 WARES, OR MERCHANDISE OF AN EMPLOYER, NOR SHALL THIS SECTION PREVENT  AN
 EMPLOYER  FROM INSTITUTING A POLICY ADVISING EMPLOYEES AGAINST CONFRONT-
 ING, PREVENTING, OR ATTEMPTING TO PREVENT A THEFT OR THE UNLAWFUL TAKING
 OF GOODS, WARES, OR MERCHANDISE OF AN EMPLOYER.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06436-01-5

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