PRINTER'S NO. 1976
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1745
Session of
2021
INTRODUCED BY RYAN, FEE, KAUFFMAN, KEEFER, CAUSER, METCALFE,
COX, MOUL AND GLEIM, JULY 30, 2021
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND INDUSTRY, JULY 30, 2021
AN ACT
Amending the act of August 15, 1961 (P.L.987, No.442), entitled
"An act relating to public works contracts; providing for
prevailing wages; imposing duties upon the Secretary of Labor
and Industry; providing remedies, penalties and repealing
existing laws," further providing for definitions and for
specifications; and providing for protection of workmen.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Sections 2 and 3 of the act of August 15, 1961
(P.L.987, No.442), known as the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage
Act, are amended to read:
Section 2. Definitions.--As used in this act--
(1) "Department" means Department of Labor and Industry of
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
(2) "Locality" means any political subdivision, or
combination of the same, within the county in which the public
work is to be performed. When no workmen for which a prevailing
minimum wage is to be determined hereunder are employed in the
locality, the locality may be extended to include adjoining
political subdivisions where such workmen are employed in those
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crafts or trades for which there are no workmen employed in the
locality as otherwise herein defined.
(3) "Maintenance work" means the repair of existing
facilities when the size, type or extent of such facilities is
not thereby changed or increased. The term includes the
following actions taken on roads:
(i) Replacement in kind, or compliance with current
Department of Transportation design criteria and standards, of
guide rails, curbs, pipes, line painting and other related road
equipment.
(ii) Repair of pavement surface by:
(A) laying bituminous material up to three and one-half
inches thick or up to four hundred twenty pounds per square yard
on asphalt pavement, cement concrete or other hard surface,
including associated milling, and related work raising existing
paved shoulders to new grade; or
(B) patching of cement concrete surface to include joint
spalling and repair work.
(iii) Widening of existing alignment which does not result
in additional lanes or new shoulders.
(iv) Bridge cleaning, washing, resurfacing with blacktop,
minor nonstructural repairs or improvements and painting, except
when combined with complete bridge rehabilitation.
(4) "Public body" means the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
any of its political subdivisions, any authority created by the
General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and any
instrumentality or agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
(5) "Public work" means construction, reconstruction,
demolition, alteration and/or repair work other than maintenance
work, done under contract and paid for in whole or in part out
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of the funds of a public body where the estimated cost of the
total project is in excess of twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000), but shall not include work performed under a
rehabilitation or manpower training program. The term includes
combination maintenance/rehabilitation/reconstruction road
projects on existing alignment in which nonmaintenance items
exceed fifteen percent (15%) of the total project cost.
(6) "Secretary" means the Secretary of Labor and Industry or
his duly authorized deputy or representative.
(7) "Workman" includes laborer, mechanic, skilled and semi-
skilled laborer and apprentices employed by any contractor or
subcontractor and engaged in the performance of services
directly upon the public work project, regardless of whether
their work becomes a component part thereof, but does not
include material suppliers or their employes who do not perform
services at the job site.
(8) "Work performed under a rehabilitation program," means
work arranged by and at a State institution primarily for
teaching and upgrading the skills and employment opportunities
of the inmates of such institutions.
(9) "Advisory Board" means the board created by section 2.1
of this act.
(10) "Appeals Board" means the board created by section 2.2
of this act.
Section 3. Specifications.--(a) The specifications for
every contract for any public work to which any public body is a
party, shall contain a provision stating the minimum wage rate
that must be paid to the workmen employed in the performance of
the contract.
(b) No person shall intentionally divide a construction
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project into multiple parts for the purposes of circumventing
this act.
Section 2. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
Section 13.1. Protection of Workmen.--(a) No contractor or
subcontractor may discharge, threaten or otherwise discriminate
or retaliate against a workman regarding the employe's
compensation, terms, conditions, location or privileges of
employment because the workman exercised his rights under
section 11(b) or 13.
(b) No contractor or subcontractor may discharge, threaten
or otherwise discriminate or retaliate against an employe
regarding the employe's compensation, terms, conditions,
location or privilege of employment because the employe is
requested by the secretary to participate in an investigation,
hearing or inquiry held by the secretary or in a court action.
(c) (1) A workman who alleges a violation of this act may
bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction for
appropriate injunctive relief or damages, or both, within one
hundred eighty days after the occurrence of the alleged
violation.
(2) It shall be a defense to an action under this section if
the defendant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that the
action by the employer occurred for separate and legitimate
reasons, which are not merely pretextual.
(d) A court, in rendering a judgment in an action brought
under this act, shall order, as the court considers appropriate,
reinstatement of the employe, the payment of back wages, full
reinstatement of fringe benefits and seniority rights, damages
or a combination of the remedies. A court may also award the
complainant all or a portion of the costs of litigation,
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including reasonable attorney fees and witness fees, if the
court determines that the award is appropriate.
Section 3. The amendment of section 2 of the act shall apply
to contracts entered into on or after the effective date of this
section.
Section 4. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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