PRINTER'S NO. 1213
No. 1038 Session of 2003
INTRODUCED BY FLEAGLE, CREIGHTON, EGOLF, GEIST, HARRIS,
HENNESSEY, HERSHEY, S. MILLER, NAILOR, O'NEILL, PICKETT,
ROHRER, SAYLOR AND E. Z. TAYLOR, APRIL 2, 2003
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LABOR RELATIONS, APRIL 2, 2003
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937
2 P.L.2897, No.1), entitled "An act establishing a system of
3 unemployment compensation to be administered by the
4 Department of Labor and Industry and its existing and newly
5 created agencies with personnel (with certain exceptions)
6 selected on a civil service basis; requiring employers to
7 keep records and make reports, and certain employers to pay
8 contributions based on payrolls to provide moneys for the
9 payment of compensation to certain unemployed persons;
10 providing procedure and administrative details for the
11 determination, payment and collection of such contributions
12 and the payment of such compensation; providing for
13 cooperation with the Federal Government and its agencies;
14 creating certain special funds in the custody of the State
15 Treasurer; and prescribing penalties," further providing for
16 rate and amount of compensation.
17 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
18 hereby enacts as follows:
19 Section 1. Section 404(d) of the act of December 5, 1936
20 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1), known as the Unemployment
21 Compensation Law, amended October 19, 1988 (P.L.818, No.109), is
22 amended to read:
23 Section 404. Rate and Amount of Compensation.--Compensation
24 shall be paid to each eligible employe in accordance with the
1 following provisions of this section except that compensation
2 payable with respect to weeks ending in benefit years which
3 begin prior to the first day of January 1989 shall be paid on
4 the basis of the provisions of this section in effect at the
5 beginning of such benefit years.
6 * * *
7 (d) (1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this
8 section each eligible employe who is unemployed with respect to
9 any week ending subsequent to July 1, 1980 shall be paid, with
10 respect to such week, compensation in an amount equal to his
11 weekly benefit rate less the total of (i) the remuneration, if
12 any, paid or payable to him with respect to such week for
13 services performed which is in excess of his partial benefit
14 credit [and]; (ii) vacation pay, if any, which is in excess of
15 his partial benefit credit, except when paid to an employe who
16 is permanently or indefinitely separated from his employment;
17 and (iii) severance pay.
18 (2) (i) In addition to the deductions provided for in
19 clause (1), for any week with respect to which an individual is
20 receiving a pension, including a governmental or other pension,
21 retirement or retired pay, annuity or any other similar periodic
22 payment, under a plan maintained or contributed to by a base
23 period or chargeable employer, the weekly benefit amount payable
24 to such individual for such week shall be reduced, but not below
25 zero, by the pro-rated weekly amount of the pension as
26 determined under subclause (ii).
27 (ii) If the pension is entirely contributed to by the
28 employer, then one hundred per centum (100%) of the pro-rated
29 weekly amount of the pension shall be deducted. If the pension
30 is contributed to by the individual, in any amount, then fifty
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1 per centum (50%) of the pro-rated weekly amount of the pension
2 shall be deducted.
3 (iii) No deduction shall be made under this clause by reason
4 of the receipt of a pension if the services performed by the
5 individual during the base period or remuneration received for
6 such services for such employer did not affect the individual's
7 eligibility for, or increase the amount of, such pension,
8 retirement or retired pay, annuity or similar payment. This
9 subclause shall not apply to pensions paid under the Social
10 Security Act (Public Law 74-271, 42 U.S.C. § 301 et seq.) or the
11 Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-445, 88 Stat.
12 1305) or the corresponding provisions of prior law. Payments
13 made under such acts shall be treated solely in the manner
14 specified by subclause (i) of this clause.
15 (3) The provisions of this subsection shall be applicable
16 whether or not such vacation pay, severance pay, retirement
17 pension or annuities or wages are legally required to be paid.
18 If such retirement pension or annuity payments deductible under
19 the provisions of this subsection are received on other than a
20 weekly basis, the amount thereof shall be allocated and pro-
21 rated in accordance with the rules and regulations of the
22 department. Vacation pay or other remuneration deductible under
23 the provisions of this subsection shall be pro-rated on the
24 basis of the employe's normal full-time weekly wage and as so
25 pro-rated shall be allocated to such period or periods of
26 unemployment as shall be determined by rules and regulations of
27 the department. Such compensation, if not a multiple of one
28 dollar ($1), shall be computed to the next lower multiple of one
29 dollar ($1).
30 (4) For purposes of this subsection, the term "severance
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1 pay" means a periodic or lump sum payment made as compensation
2 to an employe in excess of wages owed upon termination of an
3 employment relationship, regardless of whether the payment is
4 made prior or subsequent to the actual termination date.
5 * * *
6 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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