Perhaps at no time in modern history have employers seemingly had less of a grip on their workforce. The amorphous, pre-COVID, practices of “flex time” and work-from-home have been stretched and snapped back to a point of...more
Pittsburgh City Council voted to enact a program that will require registration, fees and inspections for all residential rentals within City limits, starting in May. This same program was proposed and put to vote years ago,...more
With billions in Federal infrastructure improvement funding set to pour into Pennsylvania in coming years, privately owned land across the state will be impacted by thousands of “public purpose” projects. In terms of...more
The PA Supreme Court has extended the Workers’ Comp application of the “traveling employee” doctrine to include an employee’s attendance at happy hours, holiday parties and other social gatherings that are sponsored by the...more
If you operate a construction business in Pennsylvania, and hire independent contractors, who you pay via 1099s, you could face criminal charges, and be forced to pay fines and restitution if these workers are not properly...more
Effective November 1, 2021 the Emergency Order that extended the CDC Eviction Moratorium in Allegheny County expired. The Emergency Order was in place since July, and impacted only residential landlord tenant actions in which...more
11/2/2021
/ Alabama Association of Realtors v Department of Health and Human Services ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Municipalities ,
Relief Measures ,
Rental Assistance Programs ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants ,
Time Extensions
On August 26th, the Supreme Court ended the nationwide eviction moratorium that began in September, 2020, and was set to expire on October 3, 2021. In an unsigned majority opinion, the Court ruled that the CDC exceeded its...more
Just two days before the nationwide eviction moratorium was set to expire on March 31st, the Biden administration re-extended it through June 30th. The extension allows tenants who continue to struggle financially during the...more
4/7/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants ,
Time Extensions
As the COVID summer of 2020 drew to a close, the Centers for Disease Control issued a nationwide moratorium on evicting tenants from residential properties, in an effort to promote public health and stem the tide of the...more
3/5/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Distress ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants ,
Time Extensions
The new pandemic aid legislation was eight months in the making, includes 5,600 pages, and $2.3 trillion in aid and spending. With national unemployment at a record high, and moratoriums on evictions, and utility shutoff...more
After a seemingless endless wait, news of COVID vaccine distribution has business owners, government offices and school district administrators faced with a legal question they could not have foreseen at the beginning of...more
12/11/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Waivers ,
Workers' Compensation Claim ,
Workplace Safety
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an Order that temporarily halts evictions for most renters through the end of 2020. Given its unexpected issuance and broad scope, we have put together...more
9/9/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants
While everyone works through this anything-but-normal time in our country, it is important for employers to note that Pennsylvania Courts have generally included work-from-home injuries as compensable claims. However, there...more
Over the past two weeks of non-stop news coverage, featuring medical expert reports on the spread of the coronavirus, we have all learned the risks associated with human contact, and contact with things upon which the virus...more
Just a few short weeks ago, the Center for Disease Control’s Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases warned that the spread of coronavirus in the U.S. was “not a question of if, but when.” As...more
The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court recently ruled that an employer cannot use a Compromise and Release Agreement (C&R) settling a Workers’ Compensation claim to avoid making payments to a medical care provider who rendered...more
For three decades in Pennsylvania, employers and Workers’ Compensation insurance carriers could seek an independent review of the “impairment rating” of an injured worker, in order to determine the percentage of disability,...more
Pennsylvania, like many other states, has a statutory section of its Workers’ Compensation law that is devoted to the designation of an impairment rating for an injured worker who is collecting Workers’ Compensation benefits....more
The initial report of a possible work injury must be handled carefully by the employer and/or its insurance carrier in order to avoid a scenario where an “accepted” claim should have been “denied” and vice versa. For decades,...more
Every employer has a drug testing policy – even if that policy is to not test its employees or prospects. Performing drug testing on current or prospective employees requires specific criteria, and proper handling of the...more
While it seems the members of our state legislature have been busy doing nothing but arguing about the budget for the past year – one young state rep has proposed a bill that may have a positive effect on employers seeking...more
The costs of civil litigation, and uncertainties of a jury trial, have turned mediation into its own cottage industry. Now more than ever, parties involved in civil suits will voluntarily agree to mediate the dispute, with...more
Long term medical care related to workplace injuries can be a costly and frustrating proposition for employers and/or their Workers’ Compensation insurance carriers. In many cases, the injured workers’ medical care continues...more
A largely sedentary/stationary workforce is a luxury in the world of Workers’ Compensation law because the idea of a disabling work injury, or a nagging, high cost medical recovery period, seems to be a remote possibility. ...more