Bill Text: PA HB1754 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Further providing for definitions, for relief from charges and for ineligibility for compensation; and providing for applicability.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 46-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-05-02 - Laid on the table [HB1754 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2011-HB1754-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 2248
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 1754 Session of2011
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
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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
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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.
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