§ 184 — Recruitment of domestic or household employees who are residents of other states; findings and policy

§ 184. Recruitment of domestic or household employees who are\nresidents of other states; findings and policy. The acute shortage of\ndomestic or household employees in this state has led to extensive\nrecruitment of such employees from other states in the continental\nUnited States. Social, economic and community problems occur in the\nprocess of recruiting and relocating unskilled employees from outside\nthe state for such household employment. It is hereby declared to be\nthe public policy of the state to encourage the recruitment of such\nemployees from outside the state only under circumstances and conditions\nwhich will safeguard and protect the interests of such employees, their\nemployers and the public at large. Incident to such recruiting are\nfactors and considerations which do not exist in the recruitment of\nworkers from within the state which impose certain responsibilities upon\nemployment agencies engaged in such recruiting. Likewise, such\nemployment agencies incur costs in the recruiting and placement of\nemployees from without the state which are not entailed in recruiting\nresidents of the state. Therefore, in order to provide sound and\nresponsible practices and procedures for such recruitment and adequate\nregulation thereof, the following provisions of this section are deemed\nto be in the interest of the public safety and welfare.\n 1. No employment agency, directly or indirectly, shall accept\napplications from persons who reside in a state outside New York,\nprocure or offer to procure employment of persons as domestic or\nhousehold employees who are residing in states outside of this state\nprevious to their application for employment, except as provided in this\nsection and in the applicable provisions of other sections of this\narticle. As used in this section, the term "state" applies to the\nforty-eight states on this continent, and the District of Columbia, but\ndoes not include the state of Alaska.\n 2. An employment agency which engages in such recruitment, offer or\nprocurement as described in subdivision one, directly or indirectly,\nshall furnish to the commissioner a written list containing the name and\naddress of all emigrant agents from whom it accepts job applicants. If\nsuch emigrant agents are required to be licensed in the places in which\nthey are recruiting employees, no employment agency, directly or\nindirectly, shall accept applicants from persons other than duly\nlicensed emigrant agents.\n 3. No employment agency shall, directly or indirectly, procure or\noffer to procure domestic or household employment for a person who is\nunder the age of eighteen years and resides outside of the state.\n 4. If an employment agency engages in the recruitment of domestic or\nhousehold employees from outside of the state, it shall:\n (a) Enter into its register the following information, in addition to\nthe register entries prescribed in section one hundred seventy-nine of\nthis article: (1) the last home address and birth date of all applicants\nfor such employment whom the employment agency is responsible for\nbringing into New York state; (2) the name and address of the emigrant\nagent, if any, through whom such applicant was obtained; (3) the name\nand address of all persons to whom the employment agency has made\npayments in connection with the recruitment of the applicant and amounts\nof such payments; (4) the total charges made by the agency to the\napplicant include, to be separately designated: (A) agency fee; (B) any\ncharges for transportation, and (C) any other charges in connection with\nplacement.\n (b) Respecting applicants from out of the state for whom the agency is\nresponsible, directly or indirectly, for bringing into New York state,\nthe agency shall have the following additional obligations: (1) direct\nthat the transportation of such applicants shall be by duly licensed\ncommon carrier for passengers where transportation to New York is\narranged for or authorized, directly or indirectly, by the employment\nagency; (2) provide solely at agency expense suitable lodging and meals\nfor the applicant if he or she is not placed in employment the day he or\nshe arrives at the office of the employment agency, from the time he or\nshe reports at such agency until he or she is placed, or is returned to\nthe place from which he or she was recruited, or is given the option of\nreturning to such place as provided in part (3) hereof, and provide\nsolely at the agency's expense meals and lodging for the applicant at\nany time the applicant is not employed during the thirty-day period\nfollowing the day the applicant arrives at the office of the employment\nagency unless the applicant unreasonably refuses to accept comparable\nemployment offered by the agency; (3) provide the return fare and\nreasonable allowance for one day's meals to the applicant or employee\nshould the employment terminate within thirty days and such applicant or\nemployee is without employment, or should no placement be made, and the\nemployee desires to return to the place from which he was recruited. The\nbond pursuant to section one hundred seventy-seven of this article shall\nsecure performance of the aforementioned undertaking and that required\nby provision (2) above and the provisions of section one hundred\nseventy-eight concerning actions on bonds shall be applicable thereto;\n(4) give an applicant before being brought to this state a written\nstatement on a form approved by the commissioner showing the nature and\nduties of the job for which the applicant is recruited, the anticipated\nwages, the amount of the agency fee based on such wages, the amount for\ntransportation that the applicant will have to repay if such amount has\nbeen advanced by the agency, and the amount of any other advances or\ncharges. The statement also shall indicate when such amounts are payable\nto the agency. A copy of such statement shall be kept on file by the\nagency, and the copy shall have indicated on it when and by whom the\noriginal statement was given to the applicant; (5) communicate from New\nYork state with the reference with which the agency is required to\ncheck, and no worker shall be induced, encouraged, invited or requested\nto come to New York state for employment unless communication shall have\nbeen made at least one day prior thereto; and (6) not require an\napplicant to pay the agency fee and any advances or charges at a rate\ngreater than in four equal installments payable at the end of the first,\nsecond, third, and fourth weeks following the employment,\nnotwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions two and three of section\none hundred eighty-five, or any other provision of this chapter.\n 5. Notwithstanding the maximum fee schedule provided for in section\none hundred eighty-five of this article, the maximum fee to be charged a\njob applicant for placement in employment under this section shall not\nexceed, as a percentage of the first full month's salary or wages the\nfollowing:\nwhere no meals or lodging are provided ............................ 15 %\nwhere one meal per work day is provided ........................... 18 %\nwhere two meals per work day are provided ......................... 21 %\nwhere three meals per work day and lodging are provided and\nwhere the first full month's salary or wages is:\nless than $130 .................................................... 26 %\nat least $130 but less than $150 .................................. 28 %\nat least $150 or more ............................................. 30 %\n 5. Subsequent placement. If employment terminates within thirty days,\nand the agency is responsible for the placement of the employee with\nanother employer within such thirty-day period, the agency may charge\nthe maximum fee provided by subdivision four of this section. If such\nsubsequent placement is made after such thirty-day period, the fee\nprovisions of section one hundred eighty-five shall apply.\n