New York Legislation Targets ‘Ghost Job’ Advertisements

On June 2, 2026, New York State lawmakers passed Senate Bill S8877 (the “Bill”), a bill requiring certain mandatory disclosures for printed and digital job postings by employers or third-party job posting entities. The purpose of the Bill is to address “ghost jobs,” which are jobs that are advertised without the intent to fill the position or no longer exist.

Key Takeaways

Under the Bill, employers with 100 or more employees and third-party job posting platforms must disclose the expected timeframe for hiring an individual for a posted position. A third-party job posting entity is defined as “a person or entity that is not the employer and that posts multiple job vacancies or listings on behalf of or independently of employers for job seekers to search and apply to job postings on one platform.” Specifically, the Bill would impose the following requirements:

• If the employer intends to fill the position within 90 days, then the advertisement must state that it is for a current vacancy and include the date by which the employer intends to fill the position;
• If the employer intends to fill the position more than 90 days from the date of advertising, then the advertisement must state that it is for a current vacancy and that the position will be filled “no sooner than” a specified date; and
• If “there is no expectation that the job is to be filled,” then the advertisement must state that there is no current vacancy and the employer is seeking resumes for when positions become available.

The new mandatory language must appear in the covered job advertisements in bold, capital letters. In addition to the requirements stated above, once an advertised position has been filled, the employer must remove the listing within two weeks of the position being filled. Similarly, third-party job posting entities must remove the job posting within two weeks of the date that it knows or has reason to know that the job has been filled.

A violation would result in a $2,500 fine for each print publication or digital platform where the advertisement appears. The employer or third-party job posting entity must rectify the violation within 30 days and failure to implement corrections within the specified time period will result in the penalty increasing to $5,000. Afterwards, the fine amount doubles for every subsequent 30-day period of noncompliance.

Next Steps

The Bill was passed by the New York Senate and Assembly, and the legislation is currently awaiting action from Governor Kathy Hochul. If signed into law, the Bill would impact all New York employers with 100 or more employees effective immediately. While it is still unclear, we anticipate that if enacted, the Bill could have an impact on the mandatory advertisements in connection with the PERM labor certification process. We will continue to monitor the developments on this Bill and recommend that employers evaluate job-posting practices in anticipation of potential compliance obligations in the meantime.

For additional information, please contact your designated Gibney representative or email info@gibney.com.

Danisa Foote