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Maria Gomez

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Maria Gomez is an associate in the Labor and Employment Practice Group in the firm's New York office.

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On September 6, 2023, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation amending the New York Penal Law making wage theft a criminal larceny. Under the penal code, “[a] person steals property and commits larceny when, with intent to deprive another of property or to appropriate the same to himself or to a third person, he wrongfully takes, obtains or withholds such property from an owner thereof.” N.Y. Penal Law § 155.05(1). The amendment adds “compensation for labor services” to the definition of “property” applicable to larcenies. Id. § 155.00(1).…

Continue Reading New York Makes Wage Theft a Criminal Larceny in New Amendment to Its Penal Law

On February 6, 2023, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed the Temporary Workers’ Bill of Rights, significantly expanding the rights and protections afforded to the 127,000 temporary workers in New Jersey. The new law, which will largely take effect on August 5, 2023, though certain provisions already took effect on May 7, 2023, sets new requirements for “temporary help service firms” that employ “temporary laborers” in a “designated classification placement.”…

Continue Reading New Jersey Significantly Expands Rights and Protections of Temporary Workers Through the Recently Enacted Temporary Workers’ Bill of Rights

On March 18, 2022, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) issued “Web Accessibility Guidance” for state and local governments and public accommodations under Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) (the “Guidance”). The Guidance, however, does not offer any new insights from the DOJ on the issue of website accessibility for state and local governments and public accommodations, and does not provide any specific technical standards for compliance. Instead, as the DOJ explained in the accompanying press release, the Guidance is merely intended to “offer[] plain language and user-friendly explanations to ensure that it can be followed by people without a legal or technical background.”
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Continue Reading The Department of Justice Issues “Web Accessibility Guidance”

UPDATE: this law became effective on December 24, 2021, retroactive to November 2, 2021.

As previously discussed in our December 10, 2021 article, the New York City Council passed a bill requiring New York City employers to provide employees who are parents or legal guardians of a child with four hours of paid COVID-19 child vaccination time, per injection and per child (“Child Vaccination Leave”).  The bill amended New York City’s Earned Sick and Safe Time Act, and became effective on December 24, 2021.  The bill went into effect 30 days after it was passed by the New York City Council on November 23, 2021, and is retroactive to November 2, 2021 when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention voted to authorize the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for use in children aged 5 to 11 years old.…

Continue Reading UPDATED: NYC Council Passes Bill Granting Paid Sick Leave to Parents Vaccinating Children Against COVID-19

On November 23, 2021, the New York City Council passed a bill requiring New York City employers to provide employees who are parents or legal guardians of a child with four hours of paid COVID-19 child vaccination time, per injection and per child (“Child Vaccination Leave”).  The bill amends New York City’s Earned Sick and Safe Time Act, and is currently awaiting Mayor de Blasio’s signature.  The legislation is retroactive to November 2, 2021 when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention voted to authorize the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for use in children aged 5 to 11 years old.
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Continue Reading NYC Council Passes Bill Granting Paid Sick Leave to Parents Vaccinating Children Against COVID-19