THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY MILLER, PERRY, AUMENT, BEAR, BLOOM, BOBACK, BOYD, CAUSER, COX, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, DELOZIER, DENLINGER, EVANKOVICH, EVERETT, GABLER, GILLEN, GILLESPIE, GINGRICH, GRELL, GROVE, HARRIS, HICKERNELL, KAMPF, KAUFFMAN, F. KELLER, M. K. KELLER, KNOWLES, LAWRENCE, MAJOR, MARSICO, METCALFE, METZGAR, MOUL, OBERLANDER, PICKETT, PYLE, RAPP, ROCK, SAYLOR, CULVER, SONNEY, SWANGER, TALLMAN AND TURZAI, JUNE 29, 2011

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND INDUSTRY, JUNE 29, 2011  

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

ineligibility for compensation; and providing for

applicability.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 402(b) and (e) of the act of December 5,

1936 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1), known as the

Unemployment Compensation Law, amended August 24, 1953

(P.L.1397, No.396) 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--

* * *

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

work without cause of a necessitous and compelling nature

attributable to his employment, irrespective of whether or not

such work is in "employment" as defined in this act: Provided,

That a voluntary leaving work because of a work-related 

disability if the employer is able to provide other suitable

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

compelling nature attributable to his employment: And provided

further, That no employe shall be deemed to be ineligible under

this subsection where the Federal Unemployment Tax Act requires

eligibility, and provided that no employe shall be deemed

ineligible under this subsection if the employe is a spouse of a

full-time member of the United States Armed Forces or a full-

time member of any of its reserve components, including the

Pennsylvania National Guard, and the employe is leaving

employment due to the reassignment of the military member to a

different geographical location: And provided further, That 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

attributable to his employment, 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 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

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 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 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).

* * *

(e)  In which his unemployment is due to his discharge or

temporary suspension from work for [willful] misconduct

connected with his work, irrespective of whether or not such

work is "employment" as defined in this act[; and]. For purposes

of this subsection, the term "misconduct" shall include the

violation of any reasonable workplace rule or work-related

government regulation or law of which the employe was aware;

failure to maintain a valid license or certificate that has been

issued by a Federal or Commonwealth agency or political

subdivision and which is a requirement of employment; the

deliberate damage to property of the employer or another employe

or the theft of an employer's or another employe's property;

reporting to work in possession of or under the influence of

drugs or alcohol; threatening a coworker or supervisor with

physical harm or threatening to harm the interests of the

employer; disregard of supervisor's reasonable directives or

orders or an act of negligence which indicates substantial

disregard for employer's interests.

* * *

Section 2.  The amendment of section 402(b) and (e) of the

act shall apply to initial claims filed on or after January 1,

2012.

Section 3.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.