THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY GERGELY, BELFANTI, BARBIN, BOYLE, BRENNAN, BRIGGS, BURNS, BUXTON, CALTAGIRONE, DALEY, DePASQUALE, DERMODY, EACHUS, FABRIZIO, GALLOWAY, GIBBONS, GOODMAN, HARHAI, HARKINS, W. KELLER, MANN, MATZIE, McCALL, McGEEHAN, MELIO, MUNDY, MURPHY, PARKER, PASHINSKI, READSHAW, SANTONI, SEIP, SIPTROTH, K. SMITH, SOLOBAY, STABACK, STURLA, WANSACZ, WHEATLEY, WHITE, YUDICHAK AND KOTIK, APRIL 12, 2010

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LABOR RELATIONS, APRIL 12, 2010  

AN ACT

Amending the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937

P.L.2897, No.1), entitled "An act establishing a system of

unemployment compensation to be administered by the

Department of Labor and Industry and its existing and newly

created agencies with personnel (with certain exceptions)

selected on a civil service basis; requiring employers to

keep records and make reports, and certain employers to pay

contributions based on payrolls to provide moneys for the

payment of compensation to certain unemployed persons;

providing procedure and administrative details for the

determination, payment and collection of such contributions

and the payment of such compensation; providing for

cooperation with the Federal Government and its agencies;

creating certain special funds in the custody of the State

Treasurer; and prescribing penalties," further providing for

definitions and for ineligibility for compensation.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 4(a) of the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd

Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1), known as the Unemployment

Compensation Law, amended July 10, 1980 (P.L.521, No.108), is

amended and the section is amended by adding subsections to

read:

Section 4.  Definitions.--The following words and phrases, as

used in this act, shall have the following meanings, unless the

context clearly requires otherwise.

(a)  "Base year" means:

(1)  Except as provided under paragraph (2), the first four

of the last five completed calendar quarters immediately

preceding the first day of an individual's benefit year.

(2)  If an individual's base year determined in accordance

with paragraph (1) contains insufficient wages to qualify the

individual for a weekly benefit rate or contains fewer than

sixteen (16) credit weeks, the individual's base year shall

consist of the most recent four completed calendar quarters

preceding the first day of the individual's benefit year. The

calendar quarters included in a base year under this paragraph

may not be used at any time after their inclusion for the

purposes of this paragraph in the calculation of benefits for a

subsequent benefit year.

(a.1)  "Abuse" means:

(1)  attempting to cause or causing physical harm;

(2)  placing another in fear of imminent serious physical

harm;

(3)  causing another to engage involuntarily in sexual

relations by force, threat or duress or engaging or threatening

to engage in sexual activity with a dependent child;

(4)  engaging in mental abuse, which includes threats,

intimidation or acts designed to induce terror;

(5)  depriving another of medical care, housing, food or

other necessities of life; and

(6)  restraining the liberty of another.

* * *

(h.2)  "Disability" means:

(1)  mental and physical disability;

(2)  permanent and temporary disability; and

(3)  partial and total disability.

(h.3)  "Domestic Violence" means abuse committed against a

claimant or member of the claimant's immediate family by:

(1)  a current or former spouse of the claimant;

(2)  a person with whom the claimant shares a child in

common;

(3)  a person who is cohabiting with or has cohabited with

the claimant;

(4)  a person who is related by blood or marriage to the

claimant; or

(5)  a person with whom the claimant has or had a dating or

engagement relationship.

* * *

(m.4)  "Immediate Family" means the claimant's spouse,

parents, grandparents, siblings and children.

* * *

(o.1)  "Sexual Assault" means sexual assault as described in

18 Pa.C.S. § 3124.1 (relating to sexual assault) against a

claimant or a member of the claimant's immediate family.

* * *

Section 2.  Section 402(a), (a.1) and (b) of the act, amended

or added July 10, 1980 (P.L.521, No.108) and October 22, 1981

(P.L.301, No.106), are amended to read:

Section 402.  Ineligibility for Compensation.--An employe

shall be ineligible for compensation for any week--

(a)  In which his unemployment is due to failure, without

good cause, either to apply for suitable work at such time and

in such manner as the department may prescribe, or to accept

suitable work when offered to him by the employment office or by

any employer, irrespective of whether or not such work is in

"employment" as defined in this act: Provided, That such

employer notifies the employment office of such offer within

seven (7) days after the making thereof[; however this]. This 

subsection shall not cause a disqualification of a waiting week

or benefits under any of the following circumstances: [when work

is offered by his employer and he is not required to accept the

offer pursuant to the terms of the labor-management contract or

agreement, or pursuant to an established employer plan, program

or policy: Provided further, That a claimant shall not be

disqualified for refusing suitable work when he is in training

approved under section 236(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974.] 

(1)  The work is offered by his employer and he is not

required to accept the offer pursuant to the terms of the labor-

management contract or agreement, or pursuant to an established

employer plan, program or policy.

(2)  The claimant is in training approved under section

236(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974.

(3)  The average number of hours of work per week offered to

the claimant exceeds twenty hours, if the claimant worked less

than his full-time work for a majority of the weeks in the base

year in which the claimant worked.

[(a.1)  In which his unemployment is due to failure to accept

an offer of suitable full-time work in order to pursue seasonal

or part-time employment.]

(b)  In which his unemployment is due to voluntarily leaving

work [without cause of a necessitous and compelling nature],

irrespective of whether or not such work is in "employment" as

defined in this act, except as follows: [Provided, That] 

(1)  A claimant shall not be disqualified for voluntarily

leaving work for cause of a necessitous and compelling nature.  

For purposes of this paragraph, a voluntary leaving work because

of a disability if the employer is able to provide other

suitable work, shall be deemed not a cause of a necessitous and

compelling nature[: And provided further, That no].

(2)  No employe shall be deemed to be ineligible under this

subsection where as a condition of continuing in employment such

employe would be required to join or remain a member of a

company union or to resign from or refrain from joining any bona

fide labor organization, or to accept wages, hours or conditions

of employment not desired by a majority of the employes in the

establishment or the occupation, or would be denied the right of

collective bargaining under generally prevailing conditions, and

that in determining whether or not an employe has left his work

voluntarily without cause of a necessitous and compelling

nature, the department shall give consideration to the same

factors, insofar as they are applicable, provided, with respect

to the determination of suitable work under section four (t)[:

And provided further, That the].

(3)  The provisions of this subsection shall not apply in the

event of a stoppage of work which exists because of a labor

dispute within the meaning of subsection (d). [Provided further,

That no]

(4)  No otherwise eligible claimant shall be denied benefits

for any week in which his unemployment is due to exercising the

option of accepting a layoff, from an available position

pursuant to a labor-management contract agreement, or pursuant

to an established employer plan, program or policy[: Provided

further, That a].

(5)  A claimant shall not be disqualified for voluntarily

leaving work, which is not suitable employment to enter training

approved under section 236(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974. For

purposes of this [subsection] paragraph the term "suitable

employment" means with respect to a claimant, work of a

substantially equal or higher skill level than the claimant's

past "adversely affected employment" (as defined in section 247

of the Trade Act of 1974), and wages for such work at not less

than eighty per centum of the worker's "average weekly wage" (as

defined in section 247 of the Trade Act of 1974).

(6)  A claimant shall not be disqualified for voluntarily

leaving work due to the need to address the physical,

psychological or legal effects of domestic violence or sexual

assault. For the purposes of this paragraph, the claimant shall

not be required to provide a protective order or police record

to verify domestic violence or sexual assault.

(7)  A claimant shall not be disqualified for voluntarily

leaving work to care for a member of the claimant's immediate

family who requires care by another individual due to an illness

or disability.

(i)  For purposes of this paragraph, the department may not

require verification of the illness or disability by a medical

doctor if other sources of verification are available.

(ii)  If the claimant terminates his employment, this

paragraph shall apply to the claimant only if the claimant made

a reasonable effort to maintain the employment relationship

prior to terminating employment.

(8)  A claimant shall not be disqualified for voluntarily

leaving work due to the need to accompany the claimant's spouse

to a place from which it is impractical for the claimant to

commute and due to a change in location of the spouse's

employment.

* * *

Section 3.  The following shall apply:

(1)  The amendment of section 4(a) of the act shall apply

to claimants whose benefit years begin on or after July 1,

2010.

(2)  The following provisions shall apply to

determinations of eligibility for weeks of unemployment

beginning on or after July 1, 2010:

(i)  The addition of section 4(a.1), (h.2), (h.3),

(m.4) and (o.1) of the act.

(ii)  The amendment of section 402(a), (a.1) and (b)

of the act.

Section 4.  This act shall take effect immediately.