Reforming the Scaffold Law

Laura Nahmias of The Capitol writes:

“A new coalition eyes reforms to a workers’ safety statute

New York is the last state in the nation to hold employers entirely liable for work-site injuries. A coalition of powerful business groups and tort-reform advocates aims to change that.

This is not the first time tort-reform advocates have tried to change the law, which has been in place in its current incarnation since 1969. But a new coalition that includes the powerful Business Council of New York State could inject new life into negotiations on reform, advocates suggested.

“We have been trying to repeal this law for 30-plus years,” said Tom Stebbins, executive director of the Lawsuit Reform Alliance of New York. “One of the things we’re doing this year is pushing a reform of the law rather than a repeal.”

Under a bill sponsored by Assemblyman Joseph Morelle, the law would change to a “comparative negligence” standard. That means plaintiffs would have to prove they weren’t inebriated and were compliant with the site’s safety regulations in order to hold their employer liable for injuries sustained on site.

The amendment is getting top billing as part of a package of proposed reforms that are supposed to help New York grow its economy, which Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said is his top priority for the rest of his term in office. The coalition members, including Unshackle Upstate, the Business Council and the New York State Association of Realtors, are also part of the Committee to Save New York, which helped push Cuomo’s legislative agenda last spring.”

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