On July 16, on the same day that Governor Cuomo signed a bill that increases investigations of wage violations by nail salons, the Governor also announced a sweeping new task force that will expand these investigations to other industries. The Governor stated that he is targeting fourteen industries that systematically take advantage of undocumented immigrant workers.
While not exhaustive, the list of targeted industries includes: farms, restaurants, retail, construction, landscaping, supermarkets, nail salons, child care services, cleaning services, home health care, laundry, car washes, janitorial services, and waste disposal drivers.
When the New York Times reported on its discoveries of widespread wage and worker safety violations by nail salons in May, Governor Cuomo immediately proposed legislation that would increase investigations in the industry and created stricter regulations to follow. Concerned that undocumented workers are discouraged from reporting their employers’ unlawful activities, the Governor is focusing on industries that have the highest rates of noncompliance, even if no claims have formally been filed against the particular employer. Additionally, a hotline has been created that allows workers to anonymously report their employers for violations.
The task force is comprised of ten New York agencies, totaling more than 700 investigators. The team of investigators will speak a wide variety of languages to enable communication with all workers that do not speak English. In addition to wage theft and safety violations, the task force will be searching for incidents of human trafficking, retaliation, and excessive work hours.