By Ty Hyderally Esq. and Lorena Meza

April 8, 2025

The New York Retail Worker Safety Act (S8358B/A8947C) became law on September 4, 2024, to require retail employers to implement mandatory violence prevention protocols. The Act responds to increasing safety risks within the retail industry because more than 80 percent of workers fear active shooters, and almost two-thirds of employees have faced verbal abuse or intimidation during the previous year. The survey results from retail workers show that only 7% believe their employers have taken sufficient steps to improve safety after violent incidents, thus demonstrating the immediate necessity for this legislation.

Starting June 2, 2025, all retail companies with 10 or more workers need to create an extensive Workplace Violence Prevention Policy that handles dangerous work conditions at night.  Where the store is dealing with money transactions, it needs to have in place detailed safety plans and reporting systems. All employees need to receive written notification about the policy that is drafted in English and their native language. Employers have two options to follow: they can use the model policy from the New York Department of Labor or create their own version that satisfies every requirement stipulated by the law.  If a store decides to create their own policy, they should ensure it satisfies every requirement as reflected in the model policy.  There are certainly no issues with a store deciding to provide more safety tools than the law requires.

All employers, who are covered by the law, must establish interactive training programs for de-escalation techniques and active shooter response and emergency procedures by June 2, 2025.  The training must include specific site safety measures and evacuation protocols. Similar to the requirements outlined above, employers need to make their training materials accessible in English and every employee’s native language. Each retail location needs security-focused training that addresses its unique security issues according to the new law.

Retail establishments with 500 or more employees across the state will need to implement silent emergency alert systems starting from January 1, 2027, through either stationary panic buttons or wearable devices that directly connect to emergency services.  These security systems need to track locations accurately in emergencies but must safeguard employee privacy when operations are normal. These requirements do not extend to food service businesses.  The requirements do pertain to all retail operations, except for state-run entities and their political subdivisions, public authorities, and governmental agencies.  The training frequency depends on company size because organizations with fifty or more employees need to train new hires and repeat training once per year, but businesses with ten to fifty employees must train new hires initially, followed by training every two years. The system uses multiple training requirements that match the business size to available resources to provide necessary safety information to all retail workers.

The new legislation transforms advisory guidelines into binding protocols to address specific retail industry risks stemming from late operating hours, cash handling, and numerous customer interactions. This legislation stands as one of the nation’s most extensive retail worker safety protocols because it recognizes the growing risks faced by essential retail employees. Retail businesses must start their preparations now to achieve complete compliance by the June 2, 2025, deadline, according to safety professionals who advise recording all training sessions to show compliance and enhance safety procedures.

If you have any questions regarding your rights as an employee, you should seek out an experienced attorney who concentrates in employment law. Our firm has been concentrating in employment law for over twenty-two (22) years!

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