Repeal or Reform of New York's Scaffold Law
Issue Overview: In a legitimate effort to protect workers building skyscrapers more than a century ago, New York passed the Scaffold Law. But what once was a necessary statute to protect workers has now been twisted to create a standard of absolute liability for employers whose workers experience gravity-related injuries on the job -- with no consideration whatsoever of the worker's own potential liability or failure to follow established safety procedures.
New York is the only state in the nation with such an unfair and outmoded statute on the books. This job-killing law places a tremendous financial burden on businesses in New York, driving up the cost of liability insurance and in some cases making it impossible to even secure liability coverage. By some estimates, it adds $10,000 to the cost of building a house in upstate New York, punishing not just builders but consumers as well. This financial burden puts New York businesses at a tremendous competitive disadvantage, and gives trial lawyers a deep set of pockets to target with personal injury lawsuits. It must be scrapped in its current form and be replaced with a fair standard negligence comparative to other states.
NFIB Position: We're seeking the repeal or significant reform of this law. Striking the law would have a dramatic impact on liability insurance rates for business and would lower the cost of doing business in for our members.
Issue Status: Legislation has been introduced in both houses of the Legislature that would provide for a reduction in workers' compensation and employees' liability insurance rates for certain work subject to section 240 (scaffolding law) or 241 (construction, demolition, repair) of the labor law. Unfortunately, this year reform of the Scaffold Law was once again killed by the Assembly Labor Committee. We will continue to strongly advocate remedy this fundamentally unfair statute.
