Our DOL July 2021

Rob cut his teeth in sports radio before leaping into law school, but it was the wild world of mixed martial arts that captured his attention as a young man. Now the Litigation Director for the DOL, Rob gets to participate in the sport in the way that suits him best—as a fight judge.  

In the wake of New York’s significant progress in administering COVID-19 vaccinations, and the decline of new COVID-19 cases, the New York State Department of Health has issued updated guidance for state agencies and authorities. The new guidance represents the minimum requirements necessary to operate in a manner that is consistent with the current public health situation. 

Below is updated guidance for our DOL family:

• Fully vaccinated individuals do not need to wear face coverings or socially distance. However, they may choose to do so. 
• Unvaccinated individuals should continue to maintain six feet of social distance.
• Any time an unvaccinated employee must come within six (6) feet or less of another person, they must wear acceptable face coverings which cover the nose and mouth, if an appropriate physical barrier is not present (e.g. plexiglass, partition, etc.). 
• Unvaccinated employees must be prepared to wear an acceptable face covering if another person unexpectedly comes within six (6) feet or less. 
• Staff should continue to clean and disinfect shared objects before and after use (e.g. touched surfaces of shared materials, vehicles, and touchscreens). Employees should also wipe down their own workspace regularly. 
• Daily Health Screenings are no longer required. However, employees are not to report sick and should contact the DOL Office of Employee Relations at 518-457-6651 or [email protected] for any COVID-19-related symptoms or absence. 

Check the DOL intranet for updates. If you have any questions, please contact the DOL Office of Employee Relations at [email protected]. 

Let’s do our part to keep our DOL family healthy and safe. 

With the expiration of COVID-19 State of Emergency in New York State, businesses are starting to resume normal operations, a positive sign of a new benchmark in the pandemic. While this is welcomed progress, our economy cannot successfully turn the corner without the support of a strong, resilient and skilled workforce. Which is why the NYS DOL has launched a new media campaign to highlight the many resources available to connect unemployed New Yorkers with their new post-pandemic career. Over the next several weeks you will notice an uptick in messaging and videos on the NYS DOL’s social media, encouraging unemployed New Yorkers to be part of New York’s COVID-19 economic rebound by utilizing our many job search, educational and skill-building resources, to help them find their next career. 

Did you know that New York State continues to have one of the largest apprenticeship programs in the country with over 960 programs across the state, in both construction and non-construction trades? In fact, we approved thirteen new trades during the pandemic and we have more on the horizon.

As we build back from the COVID-19 pandemic, our Registered Apprenticeships are more critical than ever, as we seek to meet the needs of an evolving workforce and employers across the state. 

Registered Apprenticeship Programs provide a proven pathway to job success through well-paying jobs and long-term careers, all while providing a sustainable pipeline for a skilled workforce, and they are a win-win for our employers and our workers. 

Businesses get a direct pool of valuable talent while affording local members of their community an opportunity to learn and work from day one. And when employers invest in a locally trained workforce, they build loyalty and dedication among those workers.

Our partnership with SUNY has been vital to growing apprenticeship programs in New York State and to the success of the New York Registered Apprenticeship Program.

The DOL continues to partner with SUNY, and we recently launched a campaign to engage more employers to work with us to establish additional Registered Apprenticeship Programs throughout New York State.

Our DOL Commissioner Roberta Reardon, SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras, and President of MVCC Randy VanWagoner recently visited Fiber Instrument Sales (FIS) in Oriskany to learn about its newest apprenticeship program. FIS CEO Frank Giotto gave us an inside look into what we hope will serve as a model for other employers as we face a new world of work, and adapt our training to meet these shifting and future demands.

By Daniel Gorman 

The Boston Tea Party is the most famous act of defiance by colonists to British rule and signaled the eruption of the independence movement in America. The protest captured the spirit of rebellion growing in the colonies and was a catalyst in rallying patriots to unite and fight for independence. The colonists were angry over unfair taxation, but why were taxes suddenly becoming a problem? It all has to do with the British East India Company, a famine in India, Dutch tea smugglers, and a very expensive war. 

At the close of the Seven Years’ War, the British were deeply in debt. At roughly the same time, the British East India Company, an enormously powerful company and one of Britain’s most important commercial institutions, was suddenly struggling to stay afloat. Trade was down in Europe following the war, and their disastrous handling of the Bengal Famine of 1770 cost millions of lives in India and put a strain on the Company’s profits in that region. In addition, smugglers were cutting into their profits in the colonies by importing Dutch tea. Almost too big to fail, the British East India Company needed a bailout. 

Britain responded with the Townshend Acts, a series of taxes on the American colonies to increase revenue and help prop up their struggling shipping giant. Colonists protested, arguing that this was “taxation without representation”, meaning they couldn’t be taxed in such a way because they were not represented in British Parliament. Merchants united and organized a non-importation agreement, calling on businesses to stop importing British goods and purchase from only local suppliers. Pledges were made to abstain from drinking British tea, which had the side effect of popularizing coffee in the colonies. Still others chose to buy more smuggled Dutch tea. 

Three years later, the Tea Act would give the British East India Company even more power to sell in the colonies, giving them a monopoly on tea as the only legal distributor in America. The Tea Act led directly to the Boston Tea Party, and from there the dominoes to revolution began to fall. By the summer of 1776, independence had been declared and towns throughout the country celebrated by holding mock funerals for the king, making his ‘death’ a symbol of the end of monarchy. Through the years, Independence Day would evolve, dropping the morbid funerals and adopting customs still relevant today, like parades and public speeches given by political leaders celebrating the birth of our new nation. 

After such a tumultuous year, we hope that everyone in our DOL family was able to get together with family and friends, and had a fun and safe Independence Day. And we hope, as you celebrated, however you celebrated, you took a moment to give thanks to the founders of this nation, who envisioned a land free of tyranny, who had the strength of will to see it through, and whose spirit of independence lives on in each of us today.

By Aaron Fallon

The summer travel season is upon us and this year you can be part of the COVID-19 recovery by vacationing in New York State. From the beautiful beaches of Long Island, to the High Peaks of the Adirondacks, to the sprawling vineyards of the Finger Lakes, to majestic Niagara Falls, to the bright lights of Broadway, there is something for everyone to enjoy in the Empire State. By choosing to vacation here, you are choosing to directly help revive local economies and bring a boost to businesses as they continue to recover from the pandemic.

I Love NY (https://www.iloveny.com) has several resources to help you plan trips (https://www.iloveny.com/travel-tools) of any scale, be it an intimate weekend getaway (https://www.iloveny.com/things-to-do/weekend-getaways), or a family-friendly trip (https://www.iloveny.com/blog/post/family-friendly-summer-getaways-in-new-york-state) to one of the State’s many attractions. A great way to see New York without breaking your budget is by staying at one of the campgrounds operated by New York State Parks (https://parks.ny.gov) and the Department of Environmental Conservation (https://www.dec.ny.gov). The State has 120 campgrounds featuring 15,000 campsites for tents and RVs, and more than 800 cabins, cottages, yurts, and a lighthouse. Many campgrounds are conveniently located near parks, trails, historic sites, golf courses and other family-friendly destinations.