On November 21, 2014, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a major shakeup at the NYC Commission on Human Rights, replacing all eight Bloomberg-appointed Commissioners and the Commission Chair.
The Mayor’s action comes less than a month after New York City’s Public Advocate, Letitia James, sharply criticized the NYC Commission, which she characterized as having “moribund agency culture that results in lax enforcement.”
The new Commission Chair is Carmelyn P. Malalis, an attorney at a prominent plaintiff-side employment law firm in New York City.
The NYC Commission on Human Rights is charged with enforcing the New York City Human Rights Law, one of the most expansive human rights laws in the nation. Given the circumstances of the appointment of Malalis and the new Commissioners, New York employers can expect a more aggressive enforcement effort from the Commission under the de Blasio administration.