S 8795: Extends paid family leave benefits to certain construction employees who shall be eligible for family leave benefits if they were employed for at least twenty-six of the last thirty-nine weeks by any covered employer which is signatory to a collective bargaining agreement; relates to the effectiveness thereof.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8795  IN SENATE January 8, 2026 ___________ Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to extending paid family leave benefits to certain construction workers; and to amend a chapter of the laws of 2025 amending the workers' compensation law relating to extending paid family leave benefits, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 50 and A. 4727, in relation to the effec- tiveness thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 201 of the workers' compensation law is amended by 2 adding a new subdivision 25 to read as follows: 3 25. "Construction employee" means employees who perform construction, 4 demolition, reconstruction, excavation, rehabilitation, repairs, reno- 5 vations, alterations, or improvements for multiple employers pursuant to 6 a collective bargaining agreement. 7 § 2. Section 203 of the workers' compensation law, as amended by a 8 chapter of the laws of 2025 amending the workers' compensation law 9 relating to extending paid family leave benefits, as proposed in legis- 10 lative bills numbers S. 50 and A. 4727, is amended to read as follows: 11 § 203. Employees eligible for benefits under section two hundred four 12 of this article. Employees in employment of a covered employer for four 13 or more consecutive weeks and employees in employment during the work 14 period usual to and available during such four or more consecutive weeks 15 in any trade or business in which they are regularly employed and in 16 which hiring from day to day of such employees is the usual employment 17 practice shall be eligible for disability benefits as provided in 18 section two hundred four of this article. Employees in employment of a 19 covered employer for twenty-six or more consecutive weeks and employees 20 in employment during the work period usual to and available during such 21 twenty-six or more consecutive weeks in any trade or business in which 22 they are regularly employed and in which hiring from day to day of such 23 employees is the usual employment practice shall be eligible for family 24 leave benefits as provided in section two hundred four of this article. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00216-02-6 
 S. 8795 2 1 For purposes of this article, construction employees [who perform 2 construction, demolition, reconstruction, excavation, rehabilitation, 3 repairs, renovations, alterations, or improvements for multiple employ- 4 ers pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement] shall be eligible for 5 family leave benefits with the covered employer immediately preceding 6 the period of family leave if [they were employed] the employee was in 7 employment and worked the employer's normal work week for at least twen- 8 ty-six of the last thirty-nine weeks [by] with any covered employer 9 which is signatory to a collective bargaining agreement. Every such 10 employee shall continue to be eligible for family leave benefits only 11 during employment with a covered employer. Every such employee shall 12 continue to be eligible for disability benefits during such employment 13 and for a period of four weeks after such employment terminates regard- 14 less of whether the employee performs any work for remuneration or 15 profit in non-covered employment. If during such four week period the 16 employee performs any work for remuneration or profit for another 17 covered employer the employee shall become eligible for disability bene- 18 fits immediately with respect to that employment. In addition every such 19 employee who has previously completed four or more consecutive weeks in 20 employment with the covered employer for purposes of disability bene- 21 fits, or twenty-six or more consecutive weeks in employment with the 22 covered employer for purposes of paid family leave, and returns to work 23 with the same employer after an agreed and specified unpaid leave of 24 absence or vacation without pay shall become eligible for benefits imme- 25 diately with respect to such employment. For purposes of this article, 26 construction employees [who perform construction, demolition, recon- 27 struction, excavation, rehabilitation, repairs, renovations, alter- 28 ations, or improvements for multiple employers pursuant to a collective 29 bargaining agreement and] who became eligible for paid family leave 30 benefits by working in the employment of a covered employer and worked 31 the employer's normal work week for at least twenty-six of the last 32 thirty-nine weeks, and who return to work after an agreed and specified 33 unpaid leave of absence or vacation without pay with the same or differ- 34 ent employer, shall [become] be immediately eligible for family leave 35 benefits [immediately with respect to such employment] with the covered 36 employer immediately preceding the period of family leave. In the case 37 of construction employees [who perform construction, demolition, recon- 38 struction, excavation, rehabilitation, repairs, renovations, alter- 39 ations, or improvements for multiple employers pursuant to a collective 40 bargaining agreement] who are laid-off and receive unemployment bene- 41 fits, such employees shall be eligible for family leave benefits with 42 the covered employer immediately preceding the period of family leave 43 upon returning to work if they are otherwise qualified by having worked 44 in the employment of a covered employer and worked the employer's normal 45 work week for at least twenty-six of the last thirty-nine weeks. An 46 employee who during a period in which such employee is eligible to 47 receive benefits under subdivision two of section two hundred seven of 48 this article returns to employment with a covered employer and an 49 employee who is currently receiving unemployment insurance benefits or 50 benefits under section two hundred seven of this article and who returns 51 to employment with a covered employer shall become eligible for disabil- 52 ity benefits immediately with respect to such employment. An employee 53 regularly in the employment of a single employer on a work schedule less 54 than the employer's normal work week shall become eligible for disabili- 55 ty leave benefits on the twenty-fifth day of such regular employment and 56 for purposes of paid family leave an employer shall become eligible for 
 S. 8795 3 1 benefits on the one hundred seventy-fifth day of such regular employ- 2 ment. An employee who is eligible for disability and family leave bene- 3 fits in the employment of a covered employer shall not be deemed, for 4 the purposes of this article, to have such employment terminated during 5 any period such employee is eligible to receive benefits under section 6 two hundred four of this article with respect to such employment. 7 § 3. Section 203-c of the workers' compensation law, as added by 8 section 4 of part SS of chapter 54 of the laws of 2016, is amended to 9 read as follows: 10 § 203-c Health insurance during family leave. In accordance with the 11 Family and Medical Leave Act (29 U.S.C. §§ 2601-2654), during any period 12 of family leave the employer shall maintain any existing health benefits 13 of the employee in force for the duration of such leave as if the 14 employee had continued to work from the date [he or she] such employee 15 commenced family leave until the date [he or she] such employee returns 16 to employment. Notwithstanding the foregoing, construction employees 17 shall maintain any existing union health plan or fund benefits in force 18 for the duration of family leave as if the construction employee had 19 continued to work from the date they commenced family leave until the 20 date the construction employee returns to employment. Nothing herein 21 prevents parties to a collective bargaining agreement for construction 22 employees from providing additional terms including, but not limited to, 23 payment of health contributions for such employees on leave time, wheth- 24 er leave time is considered hours worked for purposes of eligibility in 25 the health plan or fund, or other terms that do not conflict with this 26 section. 27 § 4. Section 2 of a chapter of the laws of 2025 amending the workers' 28 compensation law relating to extending paid family leave benefits, as 29 proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 50 and A. 4727, is amended to 30 read as follows: 31 § 2. This act shall take effect [immediately] January 1, 2027. 32 § 5. This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same 33 manner as a chapter of the laws of 2025 amending the workers' compen- 34 sation law relating to extending paid family leave benefits, as proposed 35 in legislative bills numbers S. 50 and A. 4727, takes effect.