Legislative Alert: February 21, 2025
President's Message
New York Must Act to Protect Highway Workers from Unsafe Conditions and Careless Drivers
New York State has a responsibility to protect highway workers who are put in danger by unsafe conditions and careless drivers. One of the most basic labor protections is the prevention of bodily harm on the job. Working people have a right to return home from work in the same condition as when they left for their shift. Highway workers put their lives at risk every day to maintain our state’s infrastructure, guarantee the safety of drivers and vehicles on our roadways, and keep New Yorkers moving.
We support Part Q of S3008/A3008 in the Governor’s budget proposal, which would make the work zone speed camera program permanent and extend photo monitoring of speed violations to the New York State Bridge Authority and the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. This proposal would also increase penalties for repeat offenders. We also support Part R of S3008/A3008, which proposes increasing the penalties for assaults on construction and maintenance workers on state highways and other transportation workers.
We also urge the Legislature and the Governor to include the following bills in a final budget agreement:
• S4648/A4010, which would double the number of work zone speed cameras.
• S4646/A4011, which would suspend the registration of any vehicle that receives four or more work zone speed camera violations in an 18-month period.
• S4647/A4015, which would enact higher speeding violations issued by law enforcement officers in work zones that are not covered by speed cameras.
• S4649/A4016, which would strengthen violations for failing to move over when legally required.
These bills are common-sense solutions to the threats roadway workers face daily from dangerous driving behaviors.
Highway work is inherently dangerous, with narrow lanes, altered roadways, and an increasing number of drivers distracted by their phones. Serious action needs to be taken to hold motorists who fail to obey traffic laws accountable and protect those who maintain our transportation infrastructure.
We strongly urge the Legislature and the Governor to include these proposals in the final budget agreement.
Mario Cilento, President
Upcoming Meetings
LABOR LOBBYISTS MEETING
Monday, February 24, 2025, 1 p.m.
This event will be located at the Albany office of the NYS AFL-CIO,
100 South Swan St. Albany, NY.
This meeting is for labor representatives only.
TAYLOR LAW & PENSION TASK FORCE MEETING
Monday, February 24, 2025, 2 p.m.
This event will be located at the Albany office of the NYS AFL-CIO,
100 South Swan St. Albany, NY.
This meeting is for labor representatives only.
Please RSVP to Nagma Singh at [email protected] for the meetings listed above.