§ 125. Job discrimination prohibited based on prior receipt of
benefits. 1. It shall be unlawful for any employer to inquire into, or
to consider for the purpose of assessing fitness or capability for
employment, whether a job applicant has filed for or received benefits
under this chapter, or to discriminate against a job applicant with
regard to employment on the basis of that claimant having filed for or
received benefits under this chapter, or because the claimant is an
injured veteran. An individual aggrieved under this subdivision may
initiate proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction seeking
damages, including reasonable attorney fees, for violation of this
subdivision.

2. An employer who violates the provisions of subdivision one of this
section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be
punished, except as in this chapter or in the penal law otherwise
provided, by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, and subject
to the debarment provisions of section one hundred forty-one-b of this
chapter.