On Sept. 4, 2024, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Workplace Violence Prevention Law (Labor Law §27-e) (the "Violence Law"), which requires employers with ten or more retail employees to implement a written violence prevention plan and correlated training; and employers with 500 or more employees to install panic buttons.

The Violence Law applies to any "store that sells consumer commodities at retail and which is not primarily engaged in the sale of food for consumption on the premises," thus excluding restaurants and delis which also sell food products." Assuming no successful legal challenges, the first requirement will go into effect on March 3, 2025, whereas the latter will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

The Violence Law reflects the New York Legislature and Governors' efforts to expand the reach of its state-level employee protections. New York has a state plan for OSHA, but it only covers public employees. New York's worker protection laws impacting private employers have been established outside of OSHA. For example, in 2021, in response to pandemic workplace infectious disease risk, New York passed the Hero Act, which requires private employers to adopt and publish an "airborne infectious disease exposure prevention plan." Labor Law §218-b. Governor Hochul also has antiviolence initiatives in areas including school violence, domestic violence and hate crimes.