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Pennsylvania

Employment Lawyer Network:
Pennsylvania

Susan K. Lessack (Editor)

Pepper Hamilton LLP
Pennsylvania Employment Law

LessackS@PepperLaw.com
(610) 640-7806

Click for Full Bio

Susan K. Lessack is a partner in the Berwyn and Philadelphia offices of Pepper Hamilton LLP. She concentrates her practice in employment counseling and employment litigation. Ms. Lessack’s experience includes counseling employers on matters related to compliance with federal and state labor and employment laws, counseling regarding employee discipline and terminations, conducting investigations of employee conduct, including harassment, training employers on their obligations under employment laws and litigation avoidance, and developing employment policies. She defends employers in litigation of employment discrimination claims, wrongful discharge claims, and claims under federal and state employment-related statutes, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Pennsylvania Wage Payment and Collection Law.

Traumatic event can trigger workers’ comp benefits

08/01/2006

Pennsylvania employers that don’t adequately protect their employees from dangers associated with their jobs, take note. If your employees suffer post-traumatic stress disorder or depression following an armed robbery or other unusual violent act, they may be eligible for workers’ compensation for the "psychic injury" …

OK’ing medical leave won’t equal acceptance of disability

08/01/2006

If you’ve ever wondered whether allowing an employee to take medical leave will tie your hands if it comes time to challenge that employee’s disability claim, take heart. Just because you didn’t ask for medical proof of disability once, that doesn’t mean you can’t later …

Subjective fear of discipline no reason to quit

08/01/2006

To make a "constructive discharge" claim, employees must show that their working conditions were so intolerable that they had no choice but to quit and that those conditions amounted to discrimination based on age, race, sex or some other protected characteristic. But, as a new ruling shows, an employee’s subjective "fear of future discipline" isn’t grounds for a lawsuit under this constructive-discharge theory …

Consider criminal check for problem employees

08/01/2006

When you’re thinking about discharging a problem employee, consider running a criminal background check. In many cases, discovering a serious crime conviction can provide additional justification …

Drug-Test Policy Should Include Off-Duty Prohibition

08/01/2006

Pennsylvania employers that want to make sure their employees don’t come to work under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs should establish a random drug-testing program. State law makes employees ineligible for unemployment compensation anytime an organization bases its firing on employees’ "failure to submit [to] and/or pass a drug test conducted pursuant to an employer’s established substance abuse policy" …

Making Transfers: Prepare to Prove New Job Isn’t a Dead-End

08/01/2006

When it’s time to restructure your workplace, beware the potential legal dangers of transferring employees to jobs that have no growth potential. That could be viewed as an adverse action that triggers a discrimination lawsuit …

New Pa. law restricts use of Social Security numbers

08/01/2006

Pennsylvania employers will have to go to greater lengths to keep employees’ and customers’ Social Security numbers private in the wake of new legislation signed by Gov. Rendell this summer …

Earn a new tax break for giving paid leave for organ donation

08/01/2006

A new law signed last month by Gov. Rendell, The Organ and Bone Marrow Donor Act, grants employers a tax credit if they offer paid organ-donor leave to their employees. State Rep. Robert Godshall (R-Montgomery) proposed the bill (HB 153) after hearing how some would-be organ donors would be deterred by potential economic losses from missing work …

Erie representative proposes universal health coverage

08/01/2006

State Rep. Linda Bebko-Jones (D-Erie) has proposed a 10 percent payroll tax on businesses and a 3 percent personal income tax to provide universal health care coverage to Pennsylvanians. State Sen. Jim Ferlo, (D-Allegheny) proposed a companion bill earlier in the session …

South Philly cheesesteak icon hit with discrimination charge

08/01/2006

Geno’s, one of the two self-proclaimed creators of the Philly Cheesesteak, has been charged with discrimination by the Philadelphia Commission on Human Rights. The charge stems from a sign in the restaurant stating "This is America … When Ordering Speak English" …