New York bill targets workplace immigration discrimination

NEW YORK (AP) — New York’s attorney general wants to change state law to make clear that it’s illegal for employers to retaliate against workers by threatening to report them to immigration authorities.

State law currently bars employers from firing, threatening, penalizing or otherwise discriminating against workers who report or blow the whistle on wage violations.

Attorney General Letitia James’ legislation would expand the law’s definition of retaliatory conduct to include threats regarding a person’s immigration status.

Employers could face up to three months in jail and a $20,000 fine.

The Democrat’s proposal comes after a maid at President Donald Trump’s New Jersey golf club said a supervisor threatened her with deportation if she complained about working conditions.

The Trump Organization says it thoroughly investigated the woman’s allegations and that they are “absolutely false.”