A recently passed New York state law is intended to better protect employees who are prone to assault. Keep reading to find out who’s affected, and why the Empire State took action.
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The bill, signed into law last month by Governor Andrew Cuomo, elevates an assault on some public workers from a misdemeanor to a felony. Three categories are affected: utility workers, station and terminal cleaners, and process servers (court employees who deliver summons to those involved in legal cases). Cuomo stated, “These workers perform tasks that are vital to the operation of New York institutions and have increasingly become the targets of aggression and assaults.”
Several laws have previously been enacted to extend protections to other employee groups, including other transit workers, emergency medical service providers, and emergency medical service technicians. The bill was sponsored by State Senator William Larkin after he was contacted by a utility worker who was violently attacked while on the job.
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