Delayed start date for New York’s Retail Workers Safety Act

Albany, NY — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has signed legislation that alters and delays implementation of the Retail Worker Safety Act.

Initially set to go into effect Jan. 31, the act amended previous labor law to require retail employers with 10 or more employees to adopt a workplace violence prevention policy. That policy must identify factors that put workers at risk of violence and outline violence prevention methods.

Other original provisions:

• Employees must be trained annually on de-escalation tactics, active shooter drills, emergency procedures, use of panic buttons and more.
• Panic buttons must be installed at easily accessible locations throughout the store or workers must be provided with wearable/cellphone-based panic buttons. (This provision applied to employers with 500 or more employees statewide.)

The act was signed into law Sept. 4. Under this latest bill, signed by Hochul on Feb. 14 and set to go into effect June 2, the requirement for panic buttons – which would have called 911 – has been replaced with a requirement for silent response buttons. The silent response buttons will alert a security officer, manager or supervisor.

Another amendment: Violence prevention training will now be required every two years, instead of annually.

Employers have until Jan. 1, 2027, to comply with the amended law.