Labor in New York State

With limited options and access to employment and transportation, rural communities in New York experience many worker justice issues such as employers committing wage theft and getting away with it due to the lack of sufficient employment alternatives for workers, and the restrictions migrant farmworkers face when they are rarely able to leave the farms where they live and work.

In response, New York State’s progressive movement has accomplished legislative wins for workers in recent years, such as:

• The Driver’s License Access and Privacy Act (Green Light NY) allows all New Yorkers to obtain a driver’s license, regardless of their immigration status.
• The Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act protects farmworkers' rights to overtime pay, unemployment benefits, disability coverage, and other labor protections.