Regular Session 2023-2024 House Bill 1446 P.N. 2726

PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 1630

PRINTER'S NO. 2726

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1446

Session of

2023

INTRODUCED BY R. MACKENZIE, CONKLIN, FREEMAN AND M. MACKENZIE,

JUNE 20, 2023

AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND INDUSTRY, HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, MARCH 18, 2024

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," in compensation,

further providing for ineligibility for compensation.

PROVIDING FOR ELIGIBILITY RELATED TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Section 402(b) of the act of December 5, 1936

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

Compensation Law, amended November 3, 2022 (P.L.2153, No.156),

is 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,

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

defined in this act: Provided, That 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 employe shall

be deemed to be ineligible under this section for voluntarily

leaving work if the individual reasonably believes that due to a

domestic violence situation the individual's continued

employment would jeopardize the safety of the individual, and in

that case, the domestic violence situation shall be verified by

reasonable and confidential documentation as determined by the

department in consultation with the Office of Victim Advocate,

to include a statement supporting the existence of recent

domestic violence from a qualified professional from whom the

individual has sought assistance, such as a counselor, shelter

worker, member of the clergy, attorney or health care worker or

any type of evidence that reasonably proves domestic violence,

but the department may not require an active or recently issued

protective or other order documenting domestic violence, or a

police record documenting recent domestic violence, although a

claimant may present that documentation as evidence: 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

20230HB1446PN2726 - 2 -

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 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:

Provided further, That a claimant shall not be disqualified for

voluntarily leaving work if the claimant left such work to

accompany a spouse who is on active duty with the United States

Armed Forces and is required to relocate due to permanent change

of station orders, activation orders or unit deployment orders

and such relocation would make it impractical or unreasonably

difficult, as determined by the department, for the claimant to

continue employment with the claimant's employer. 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

20230HB1446PN2726 - 3 -

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).

* * *

Section 2. The Department of Labor and Industry shall

consult with the Office of Victim Advocate when implementing the

amendment of section 402(b) of this act, including updates to

the application for unemployment compensation and the

development of any forms related to documentation of a domestic

violence situation.

Section 3. This act shall take effect in six months.

SECTION 1. THE ACT OF DECEMBER 5, 1936 (2ND SP.SESS., 1937

P.L.2897, NO.1), KNOWN AS THE UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION LAW, IS

AMENDED BY ADDING A SECTION TO READ:

SECTION 402.7. ELIGIBILITY RELATED TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.--

(A) AN EMPLOYE SHALL NOT BE DEEMED TO BE INELIGIBLE UNDER

SECTION 402(B) FOR VOLUNTARILY LEAVING EMPLOYMENT OR SECTION

402(E) FOR FAILURE TO ATTEND WORK IF, DUE TO A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

SITUATION, THE INDIVIDUAL'S CONTINUED EMPLOYMENT WOULD

JEOPARDIZE THE SAFETY OF THE INDIVIDUAL OR A MEMBER OF THE

INDIVIDUAL'S FAMILY OR HOUSEHOLD.

( B) VERIFICATION OF A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SITUATION MAY BE

PROVIDED ON THE INITIAL APPLICATION FOR BENEFITS THROUGH ANY ONE

OF THE FOLLOWING WHICH DOCUMENTS RECENT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE:

(1) AN ACTIVE OR RECENTLY ISSUED PROTECTIVE ORDER OR OTHER

ORDER, COURT RECORDS, A POLICE RECORD, MEDICAL TREATMENT

RECORDS, SOCIAL SERVICES RECORDS OR CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES

RECORDS.

(2) A STATEMENT SUPPORTING THE EXISTENCE OF RECENT DOMESTIC

20230HB1446PN2726 - 4 -

<--

VIOLENCE FROM A QUALIFIED PROFESSIONAL FROM WHOM THE INDIVIDUAL

HAS SOUGHT ASSISTANCE, SUCH AS A COUNSELOR, SHELTER WORKER,

MEMBER OF THE CLERGY, ATTORNEY OR HEALTH CARE WORKER, OR A

SIMILAR STATEMENT FROM A FRIEND OR RELATIVE FROM WHOM THE

INDIVIDUAL HAS SOUGHT ASSISTANCE.

(3) A SELF-AFFIRMATION THAT THE INDIVIDUAL'S CONTINUED

EMPLOYMENT WOULD JEOPARDIZE THE SAFETY OF THE INDIVIDUAL OR A

MEMBER OF THE INDIVIDUAL'S FAMILY OR HOUSEHOLD DUE TO THE

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SITUATION.

(4) ANY OTHER TYPE OF EVIDENCE THAT REASONABLY PROVES

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.

CONFIDENTIAL, AND THE DEPARTMENT MAY NOT DISCLOSE THE EXISTENCE

OF A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SITUATION IN ANY NOTICE PROVIDED TO AN

EMPLOYER REGARDING THE CLAIM FOR COMPENSATION.

(D) IF AN INDIVIDUAL WHO SUBMITS A SELF-AFFIRMATION UNDER

SUBSECTION (B)(3) IS OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE UNDER SECTION 401, THE

INDIVIDUAL SHALL BE CONSIDERED ELIGIBLE, AND THE DEPARTMENT

SHALL EXPEDITE A DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY UNDER SECTION 501.

THIS SUBSECTION SHALL NOT BE CONSTRUED TO PROHIBIT

REDETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY WITHIN EIGHTEEN (18) MONTHS OF

THE APPLICATION FOR BENEFITS IF THE DEPARTMENT RECEIVES

INFORMATION WITHIN EIGHTEEN (18) MONTHS OF THE APPLICATION FOR

BENEFITS INDICATING THAT THE SELF-AFFIRMATION SUBMITTED UNDER

SUBSECTION (B)(3) INCLUDED FALSE INFORMATION.

(E) IF THE DEPARTMENT HAS REASONABLE CAUSE TO SUSPECT THAT A

SELF-AFFIRMATION SUBMITTED UNDER SUBSECTION (B)(3) INCLUDED

FALSE INFORMATION, THE DEPARTMENT MAY REQUIRE ADDITIONAL

DOCUMENTATION UNDER SUBSECTION (B)(1), (2) OR (4) TO VERIFY THE

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SITUATION WHEN CONSIDERING A REDETERMINATION

20230HB1446PN2726 - 5 -

OF ELIGIBILITY.

(F) THE DEPARTMENT SHALL GRANT RELIEF FROM CHARGES UNDER

SECTION 302.1 TO BASE YEAR EMPLOYERS FOR BENEFIT CHARGES RELATED

TO A CLAIM THAT IS DETERMINED ELIGIBLE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS

SECTION, UNLESS THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES THAT THE DOMESTIC

VIOLENCE SITUATION IS ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE EMPLOYMENT WITH THE

BASE YEAR EMPLOYER. RELIEF FROM CHARGES SHALL BE PROVIDED

WITHOUT A REQUEST FROM THE EMPLOYER.

(G) SUBJECT TO SUBSECTION (C), IF AN EMPLOYER WILL BE

GRANTED RELIEF FROM CHARGES WITHOUT A REQUEST UNDER SUBSECTION

(F), THE DEPARTMENT SHALL NOTIFY THE EMPLOYER THAT RELIEF FROM

CHARGES SHALL BE GRANTED WITHOUT THE NEED FOR THE EMPLOYER TO

SUBMIT A REQUEST. NOTICE UNDER THIS SUBSECTION MAY BE INCLUDED

ON THE ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION PROVIDED TO THE EMPLOYER OR ON

OTHER RELEVANT CLAIM DOCUMENTATION DELIVERED TO THE EMPLOYER.

SECTION 2. THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND INDUSTRY SHALL

CONSULT WITH THE OFFICE OF VICTIM ADVOCATE AND RELEVANT ADVOCACY

GROUPS WHEN IMPLEMENTING THE ADDITION OF SECTION 402.7 OF THE

ACT, INCLUDING UPDATES TO THE APPLICATION FOR UNEMPLOYMENT

COMPENSATION, UPDATED NOTICES TO CLAIMANTS AND EMPLOYERS AND THE

DEVELOPMENT OF ANY FORMS RELATED TO DOCUMENTATION OF A DOMESTIC

VIOLENCE SITUATION.

SECTION 3. THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT IN SIX MONTHS.

20230HB1446PN2726 - 6 -