February 28, 2022
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Cryptocurrency as Wages? NYC Mayor Eric Adams Buys In, But It’s Not That Simple.

         

When New York City Mayor, Eric Adams, announced he was taking his first three paychecks in the form of Bitcoin, it might have been a publicity stunt, and one that backfired as Bitcoin prices took a nosedive, but it has highlighted a new means of employee compensation that is potentially on the horizon. 

Mayor Adams was not alone in this stunt. The mayor of Miami also took compensation in the form of Bitcoin and has been pushing to pay city employees in the digital currency as a bid to make Miami a cryptocurrency hub, similar to New York’s Adams. 

But, if you dig a little deeper, you’ll see that things aren’t as clear cut as these mayors are making it out to be. For one, the City of New York did not purchase Bitcoin and pay the mayor. Instead, Adams transferred his paycheck and into a “digital wallet” with Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange, and then bought Bitcoin and another cryptocurrency, Ethereum.

Why did Adams make a big deal out of being paid in cryptocurrency only to get a traditional paycheck? PR aside, it’s due to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which prohibits employers from paying base salaries in anything other than a fiat currency, that is, a currency issued by a sovereign government. 

Things like bonus compensation could be distributed in a non-fiat currency, such as Bitcoin or Doge Coin, but experts recommend making it clear in writing to employees wanting said payment to understand that these currencies are subject to market forces and potential huge losses, like those which Adams experienced. Additionally, employees should know that cryptocurrency is subject to the same IRS codes that govern securities and similar financial instruments.

Employees in New York State Given Leave for Vaccination

April 1, 2021
Leave
All public and private employees in New York may use paid time off to receive Covid-19 vaccinations. According to the language of the bill, employees are eligible for up to four hours of excused leave for each injection they receive. This excused leave does not affect any other accrued leave an employee might have already.

Cuomo’s Textbook Violations of His Own Sexual Harassment Law

March 29, 2021
Sexual Harassment
Governor Cuomo, who boasted that “we are sending a strong message that time is up on sexual harassment in the workplace” doesn’t appear to have thought his own message applied to him. Read all about it in Senior Associate Alex Berke’s piece “Cuomo’s Textbook Violations of His Own Sexual Harassment Law” in the Daily Beast.

Berke-Weiss Law PLLC Releases Training Video Focused on Family and Medical Leave

March 22, 2021
Paid Family Leave
If you need to brush up on FMLA and other questions pertaining to leave, including how FMLA works with New York State Paid Family Leave, we have a new training video from an event with Park Slope Parents that provides answers to many issues about family and medical leave and what you need to know.

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