SENATE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 2827, 3493 PRINTER'S NO. 3922
No. 2220 Session of 1978
INTRODUCED BY MRS. WISE, MRS. HARPER, MESSRS. IRVIS, MANDERINO,
REED, FLAHERTY, DAVIES, GLEESON, J. L. WRIGHT, MEBUS, BROWN,
HOEFFEL, KUKOVICH, COLE, RHODES, ITKIN, HASKELL, MILANOVICH,
COHEN, O'DONNELL, SWEET, ZEARFOSS, LEVIN, MRS. HONAMAN,
MRS. TAYLOR, MESSRS. PICCOLA, SCIRICA, COWELL, WILSON,
MRS. GEORGE, MRS. GILLETTE, MRS. KERNICK, MESSRS. POTT,
RICHARDSON AND WHITE, APRIL 3, 1978
SENATOR ARLENE, LABOR AND INDUSTRY, IN SENATE, REPORTED AS
AMENDED, NOVEMBER 13, 1978
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 2, 1915 (P.L.736, No.338), entitled, as
2 amended, "An act defining the liability of an employer to pay
3 damages for injuries received by an employe in the course of
4 employment; establishing an elective schedule of
5 compensation; providing procedure for the determination of
6 liability and compensation thereunder and prescribing
7 penalties," to provide for equal rights between widows and <--
8 widowers and further providing for workmen's compensation
9 referees.
10 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
11 hereby enacts as follows:
12 Section 1. Section 101, act of June 2, 1915 (P.L.736,
13 No.338), known as "The Pennsylvania Workmen's Compensation Act,"
14 reenacted and amended June 21, 1939 (P.L.520, No.281) and
15 amended December 5, 1974 (P.L.782, No.263), is amended to read:
16 Section 101. That this act shall be called and cited as The
17 Pennsylvania [Workmen's] Worker's Compensation Act, and shall
18 apply to all injuries occurring within this Commonwealth,
1 irrespective of the place where the contract of hiring was made,
2 renewed, or extended, and extraterritorially as provided by
3 section 305.2.
4 Section 2. The second paragraph of section 307 of the act, <--
5 amended December 5, 1974 (P.L.782, No.263), is amended to read:
6 Section 307. * * *
7 Compensation shall be payable under this section to or on
8 account of any child, brother, or sister, only if and while such
9 child, brother, or sister, is under the age of eighteen unless
10 such child, brother or sister is dependent because of disability
11 when compensation shall continue or be paid during such
12 disability of a child, brother or sister over eighteen years of
13 age or unless such child is enrolled as a full-time student in
14 any accredited educational institution when compensation shall
15 continue until such student becomes twenty-three. No
16 compensation shall be payable under this section to a [widow]
17 surviving spouse, unless [she] he was living with [her] his
18 deceased [husband] spouse at the time of his death, or was then
19 actually dependent upon [him] the deceased spouse and receiving
20 from [him] such deceased spouse a substantial portion of [her]
21 his support. [No compensation shall be payable under this
22 section to a widower, unless he be incapable of self-support at
23 the time of his wife's death and be at such time dependent upon
24 her for support.] If members of decedent's household at the time
25 of his death, the terms "child" and "children" shall include
26 step-children, adopted children and children to whom he stood in
27 loco parentis, and shall include posthumous children. Should any
28 dependent or surviving spouse of a deceased employe die or
29 remarry, [or should the widower become capable of self-support,]
30 the right of such dependent [or widower] or surviving spouse to
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1 compensation under this section shall cease except that if a
2 [widow] surviving spouse remarries, [she] he shall receive one
3 hundred four weeks compensation at a rate computed in accordance
4 with clause 2. of section 307 in a lump sum after which
5 compensation shall cease: Provided, however, That if, upon
6 investigation and hearing, it shall be ascertained that the
7 widow or widower is living with a man or woman, as the case may
8 be, in meretricious relationship and not married, [or the widow
9 living a life of prostitution,] the board may order the
10 termination of compensation payable to such widow or widower. If
11 the compensation payable under this section to any person shall,
12 for any cause, cease, the compensation to the remaining persons
13 entitled thereunder shall thereafter be the same as would have
14 been payable to them had they been the only persons entitled to
15 compensation at the time of the death of the deceased.
16 * * *
17 Section 3 2. Section 310 of the act is repealed. <--
18 Section 4 3. The first paragraph of section 401 of the act, <--
19 amended February 8, 1972 (P.L.25, No.12), is amended to read:
20 Section 401. The term "referee," when used in this article,
21 shall mean Workmen's Compensation Referee of the Department of
22 Labor and Industry, appointed by and subject to the general
23 supervision of the Secretary of Labor and Industry for the
24 purpose of conducting departmental hearings under this act. The
25 secretary may establish different classes of referees. No person
26 shall be eligible for appointment and no person currently
27 holding office shall be eligible to remain in office as a
28 referee if such person has been convicted of a felony or other
29 infamous crime in any State or Federal court. Any referee
30 holding such office on the effective date of this amendatory act
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1 and who has been so convicted shall immediately forfeit such
2 office. Every citizen of the Commonwealth shall have standing to <--
3 petition the Commonwealth Court for removal of any person who
4 has been so convicted and who has not been removed from office.
5 * * *
6 Section 5 4. This act shall take effect in 60 days. <--
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