PRINTER'S NO. 2950

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

2043

Session of

2018

INTRODUCED BY THOMAS, DEAN, DRISCOLL, SIMS, YOUNGBLOOD, KINSEY,

V. BROWN, MURT, STURLA, W. KELLER, DeLUCA, DONATUCCI, ROEBUCK

AND HILL-EVANS, JANUARY 30, 2018

Advisory Board and defining its powers and duties; conferring

powers and imposing duties upon the Department of Labor and

Industry; imposing duties on employers; and providing

penalties," further providing for definitions and for minimum

wages; providing for tipped employees; further providing for

minimum wage advisory board and for enforcement and rules and

regulations; providing for rules and regulations; and further

providing for civil actions and for preemption.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

(d) "Wages" mean compensation due to any employe by reason

of his or her employment, payable in legal tender of the United

States or checks on banks convertible into cash on demand at

full face value, subject to such deductions, charges or

allowances as may be permitted by regulations of the secretary

under section [9] 9.1.

"Wage" paid to any employe includes the reasonable cost, as

determined by the secretary, to the employer for furnishing such

employe with board, lodging, or other facilities, if such board,

lodging, or other facilities are customarily furnished by such

the fair value of such board, lodging, or other facilities for

defined classes of employes and in defined areas, based on

average cost to the employer or to groups of employers similarly

situated, or average value to groups of employes, or other

appropriate measures of fair value. Such evaluations, where

applicable and pertinent, shall be used in lieu of actual

measure of cost in determining the wage paid to any employe.

[In determining the hourly wage an employer is required to

pay a tipped employe, the amount paid such employe by his or her

employer shall be an amount equal to: (i) the cash wage paid the

effect under section 4 of this act. The additional amount on

account of tips may not exceed the value of tips actually

received by the employe. The previous sentence shall not apply

with respect to any tipped employe unless:

(1) Such employe has been informed by the employer of the

provisions of this subsection;

(2) All tips received by such employe have been retained by

the employe and shall not be surrendered to the employer to be

and regularly receive tips.]

* * *

(i) ["Gratuities"] "Gratuity" or "tip" means a voluntary,

monetary [contributions] contribution received by an employe

from a guest, patron or customer for services rendered.

(j) "Tipped employe" means an employe who customarily and

regularly receives a gratuity during the course of the employe's

employment.

Section 2. Section 4(a) introductory paragraph of the act is

amended, the subsection is amended by adding paragraphs and the

* * *

(9) Fifteen dollars ($15.00) an hour beginning January 1,

2019.

(10) Beginning January 1, 2020, and for each succeeding

January 1 thereafter, the minimum wage shall be increased by an

annual cost-of-living adjustment calculated by the secretary

using the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All

Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Pennsylvania, New Jersey,

nearest multiple of five cents (5¢), shall be determined by the

secretary. The secretary shall, within ten days following the

determination, forward a notice of the determination to the

Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the next

Pennsylvania Bulletin.

* * *

(a.2) A municipality may enact an ordinance which requires

an employer to pay each of his or her employes wages for all

hours worked at a rate higher than the rate imposed under

subsection (a). A copy of an ordinance adopted by a municipality

(1) Four dollars and fifty cents ($4.50) an hour upon the

effective date of this section.

(2) Beginning January 1, 2020, and for each succeeding

January 1 thereafter, the minimum wage shall be increased by an

annual cost-of-living adjustment calculated by the secretary

using the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All

Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Pennsylvania, New Jersey,

Delaware and Maryland area. In calculating the adjustment, the

secretary. The secretary shall, within ten days following the

determination, forward a notice of the determination to the

Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the next

Pennsylvania Bulletin.

(b) The following shall apply:

(1) Each tipped employe shall be informed in writing by the

employer, no later than twenty days after the effective date of

this section, that the tipped employe will be paid not less than

the appropriate minimum wage under subsection (a).

(2) Each gratuity received by the employe shall be retained

gratuity shall become the property of the tipped employe and

shall not be used by the employer to satisfy the requirement to

pay the wage then in effect.

Section 4. Sections 6(e)(2) and 9 of the act are amended to

read:

Section 6. Minimum Wage Advisory Board.--* * *

(e) The board shall have the power and duty to:

* * *

Section 9. [Enforcement; Rules and Regulations.--The

secretary shall enforce this act. The secretary shall make and,

from time to time, revise regulations, with the assistance of

the board, when requested by the secretary, which shall be

deemed appropriate to carry out the purposes of this act and to

safeguard the minimum wage rates thereby established. Such

regulations may include, but are not limited to, regulations

defining and governing bona fide executive, administrative, or

professional employes and outside salespersons, learners and

apprentices, their number, proportion, length of learning

relationship.] Enforcement.--(a) The secretary shall have the

authority to investigate claims of violations of this act and to

assess administrative penalties under section 12 of this act.

(b) The Attorney General and the district attorneys of the

several counties shall have concurrent jurisdiction to bring

action for a criminal violation of this act under section 12 of

this act. A person charged by the Attorney General does not have

standing to challenge the authority of the Attorney General to

board, to carry out the purposes of this act and to safeguard

the payment of the wage rates established under this act.

(b) The regulations may include regulations defining and

governing any of the following:

(1) Bona fide executive, administrative or professional

employes and outside salespersons.

(2) Learners and apprentices and the number, proportion,

length of learning period and other working conditions of

learners and apprentices.

(3) Handicapped workers.

(8) Allowances for gratuities.

(9) Allowances for other special conditions or circumstances

that may be incidental to a particular employer-employe

relationship.

Section 6. Sections 13 and 14.1 of the act are amended to

read:

Section 13. Civil Actions.--(a) If any employe is paid by

his or her employer less than the minimum wages provided by

work for less than such minimum wage shall be no defense to such

action.

(b) At the request of any employe paid less than the minimum

wage to which such employe was entitled under this act and

regulations issued [thereunder] under this act, the secretary

may take an assignment of such wage claim, in trust for the

assigning [worker] employe and may bring any legal action

necessary to collect such claim, and the employer shall be

required to pay the cost and such reasonable attorney's fees as

may be allowed by the court.

January 1, 2006, and which remained in effect on January 1,

2006.

Section 7. The amendment or addition of sections 4(a.2) and

14.1 shall apply to contracts entered into or renewed on or

after the effective date of this section.

Section 8. This act shall take effect as follows:

section 3(d) of the act and the addition of section 4.1 of

the act shall take effect in six months.

immediately.