New York § 318 - 318Policy of the state

§ 318. 318Policy of the state

§ 318. Policy of the state. 1. It is hereby declared to be the policy of the state that citizens and residents of the state should not be discriminated against because they are subject to military duty pursuant to this chapter or the laws of the United States or both; and that persons doing business in the state should not refuse to employ such persons because they are so subject to military duty. 2. (a) No person shall solicit, require, demand or otherwise request that a person waive any of his or her rights under this article, whether existing at that time or thereafter to accrue. (b) Any person who shall knowingly violate paragraph (a) of this subdivision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by imprisonment not to exceed one year, or by fine not to exceed one thousand dollars, or both such imprisonment and fine, and shall be further subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed five thousand dollars for each occurrence. Such penalty may be recovered in an action brought by the attorney general in any court of competent jurisdiction. (c) Any waiver entered into in violation of this subdivision shall not be deemed to be binding on any person in military service who executed such waiver.