NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY PASS HEALTHY TERMINALS ACTS
June 17, 2021
The original Healthy Terminals Act of 2020 (S.6266D), signed by Governor Cuomo in December 2020, provided that starting September 1, 2021, local government would begin calculating a prevailing wage for different classes of covered airport workers at in their locality for any airports in NY operating under the authority of PANYNJ. Then in March 2021, Cuomo signed the Healthy Terminals Act of 2021 (S.4001), which further amended the labor law in relation to airport workers, but repealed certain provisions of the “Healthy Terminals Act of 2020”. Now, the law appears only to apply to JFK and LGA, instead of any airport under PANYNJ’s authority. Additionally, the new law also requires airport employers to submit a sworn statement to the Commissioner of Labor with the following information:
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The total number of workers employed by the employer at a covered airport location to perform cleaning and related services, security related services, in terminal and passenger handling services, airline catering, or airport lounge services, at the covered airport location on December 30, 2020;
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The number equal to 80% of the total number of employees above (as the December 30, 2020 benchmark); and
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An affirmation that the employer will ensure that the number of covered airport workers it employs at a covered airport location between July 1, 2021 and December 31, 2022 is no less than the December 30, 2020 benchmark;
Following New York’s lead, on April 29, 2021, Governor Murphy of New Jersey signed the NJ Healthy Terminals Act which also created new minimum wage and benefits requirements for certain Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) and Newark Liberty International Train Station workers, and goes into effect on September 1, 2021. Under the NJ law, every covered airport or related located employer must pay a covered airport or related location worker the applicable prevailing wage for that worker.
We will continue to provide updates as these laws further develop, and please contact us if you have any further inquiries concerning compliance under either the NY or NJ law.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com or 202-659-6622); Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com or 202-659-6665), or Andy Orr (aorr@eckertsemans.com or 202-659-6625).
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