Int. No. 1122
By Council Member Riley and Farías
A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to facilitating the organization of employee resource groups at city agencies and mayoral offices
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section 1. Chapter 2 of title 12 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new section 12-223 to read as follows:
§ 12-223 Facilitating organization of employee resource groups. a. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
Department. The term “department” means the department of citywide administrative services.
Employee resource group. The term “employee resource group” means any employee-led group that is comprised of people with shared experiences or common identities, the purpose for which is to provide resources for its members, and for which participation is voluntary. The term “employee resource group” does not include any groups convened for the purpose of engaging in or representing employees in collective bargaining negotiations.
Member. The term “member” means any member of an employee resource group.
Organizer. The term “organizer” means any individual who holds a primary leadership role in an employee resource group, regardless of whether such individual was present when the employee resource group was initially created.
b. Assessment of existing employee resource groups. No later than 60 days after this law takes effect, and every 5 years thereafter, the department shall conduct an assessment of existing employee resource groups to identify best practices for organizing and maintaining such employee resource groups. Such assessment shall, at minimum, include outreach to known organizers of employee resource groups and a survey to all employees of city agencies and mayoral offices.
1. The department shall conduct outreach to the organizers of no less than 5 existing employee resource groups, each representing a separate city agency or mayoral office, to request information about their experience of establishing an employee resource group. To the extent practicable, the department shall conduct outreach to employee resource groups that serve a diverse range of individuals with shared experiences or common identities. Responding organizers shall have the option to engage with the department through in-person meetings, remote meetings, or written communication. The information requested by the department shall include:
(a) The steps taken to establish an employee resource group and the length of time it took for such employee resource group to become formalized;
(b) The length of time such employee resource group has been active;
(c) The common identity or shared experience that each employee resource group is based on;
(d) A description of the organizational structure of each employee resource group;
(e) The number of employees who are currently affiliated with each employee resource group;
(f) The frequency with which such employee resource groups meet;
(g) The format of each employee resource group meeting;
(h) The types of resources made available to employees, and the means through which such resources can be accessed;
(i) Any challenges faced by organizers during the course of establishing their employee resource group;
(j) Any challenges faced by organizers to link members with resources; and
(k) The types of feedback the employee resource group has received from its members.
2. The department shall create a voluntary survey to be administered online to all employees of city agencies and mayoral offices, which shall be designed to elicit information related to participation in employee resource groups. A link to such survey shall be distributed to all employees of city agencies and mayoral offices, and shall include questions designed to understand:
(a) Whether the employee is an organizer or member of an employee resource group;
(b) The number of employee resource groups the employee is affiliated with;
(c) The common identity or shared experience that each employee resource group the employee is affiliated with is based on;
(d) The perceived benefits of membership in an employee resource group;
(e) The types of resources available through employee resource groups, and whether the employee has successfully utilized any such resources; and
(f) Feedback on how the employee’s employee resource group is effective and how it might be improved.
c. Distribution of guidance on establishing employee resource groups. No later than 6 months after receiving the most recent employee resource group assessment described in subdivision b of this section, the department shall create and distribute materials providing guidance for employees to establish an employee resource group at their respective city agency or mayoral office. Such materials shall be made available on the department’s website in all citywide designated languages and be distributed to all city agencies and mayoral offices annually. Materials shall include descriptions of:
1. How an employee can create and establish an employee resource group;
2. How employee resource group organizers can find and offer resources to members;
3. How employee resource group organizers can coordinate with relevant collective bargaining units to collaborate on the provision of resources;
4. How employee resource group organizers can coordinate with the department to offer professional trainings and other employee resources for members; and
5. Any other information the department deems relevant.
d. Publication of existing employee resource groups. No later than 60 days after this law takes effect, the department shall post and maintain a list of existing employee resource groups across all city agencies and mayoral offices on its website, to be updated annually. Such list shall include the name of each employee resource group’s organizer and contact information, and a link to each employee resource group’s website, if available.
§ 2. This local law takes effect 60 days after it becomes law.
RO
LSR #17267
8/25/26