Hernandez v State of New York (2019 NY Slip Op 04065) Hernandez v State of New York 2019 NY Slip Op 04065 Decided on May 23, 2019 Appellate Division, Third Department Clark, J., J. Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the Official Reports. Decided and Entered: May 23, 2019 526866 [*1]CRISPIN HERNANDEZ et al., Appellants, vSTATE OF NEW YORK et al., Appellants, and NEW YORK FARM BUREAU, INC., Respondent. Calendar Date: February 11, 2019 Before: Garry, P.J., Lynch, Clark, Devine and Pritzker, JJ. New York Civil Liberties Union Foundation, New York City (Erin Beth Harrist of counsel), for Crispin Hernandez and others, appellants. Letitia James, Attorney General, Albany (Joseph M. Spadola of counsel), for State of New York and another, appellants. Bond Schoeneck & King PLLC, Syracuse (Brian J. Butler of counsel), for respondent. Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland (Naomi B. Campbell of counsel), for Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. and others, amici curiae. Powers and Santola, LLP, Albany (Michael J. Hutter of counsel) and Jonathan Wood, Arlington, Virginia, admitted pro hac vice, for Pacific Legal Foundation, amicus curiae. OPINION AND ORDER Clark, J. Appeal from an order of the Supreme Court (McNally Jr., J.), entered January 17, 2018 in Albany County, which granted a motion by defendant New York Farm Bureau, Inc. to dismiss the complaint against it. In 1937, through the enactment of the State Labor Relations Act — later renamed the New York State Employment Relations Act (hereinafter SERA) (see Labor Law § 718, as renum and amended by L 1991, ch 166, § 251) — the Legislature granted employees a statutory right to organize and collectively bargain and established a comprehensive administrative framework that protects those rights, regulates the collective bargaining process and provides a forum in which employers and employees can resolve labor disputes (see Labor Law §§ 700-718; L 1937, ch 443, § 1). However, SERA's rights and protections extend to only those persons who fit within SERA's definition of "employees" (Labor Law § 701 [3] [a]). Excluded from that definition are, among others, "any individuals employed as farm laborers" (hereinafter referred to as the farm laborer exclusion) (Labor Law § 701 [3] [a]). In May 2016, plaintiffs commenced this action against defendants State of New York and Governor Andrew Cuomo (hereinafter collectively referred to as the State defendants) seeking, among other things, a declaration that the farm laborer exclusion is unconstitutional. Specifically, plaintiffs alleged that the farm laborer exclusion violates several provisions of the NY Constitution, including the right to organize and collectively bargain guaranteed to "[e]mployees" by article I, § 17 (first cause of action), the right to equal protection (second cause of action) (see NY Const, art I, § 11), the right to due process under the law (third cause of action) (see NY Const, art I, § 6), and the right to freedom of association (fourth ...
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