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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

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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.

Penn State graduate assistants file to unionize

04/06/2017
The Coalition of Graduate Employees has teamed with the Pennsylvania Education Association to seek representation for an estimated 3,724 graduate student employees in the Penn State system.

Harassment victims get new lawsuit option

04/06/2017
Employees who miss the deadline for filing EEOC complaints may get a second chance following a 3rd Circuit decision in a case involving sexual harassment in Pennsylvania.

Conflict: OK to hold boss to higher standard

04/06/2017
When a supervisor and subordinate don’t get along, most of the onus for resolving the conflict falls on the supervisor. If he or she doesn’t rise to the occasion, the appropriate course of action might be to fire the boss.

Mental health accommodations addressed in EEOC guidance

03/03/2017
The ADA only covers mental health conditions if they constitute disabilities, meaning they substantially limit a major life activity.

State legislature may kill Philly’s pay ordinance

03/03/2017
Legislative action in Harrisburg could moot the new law banning employers from asking potential hires about their salary histories.

Engineer sues Amtrak, claiming derailment resulted from attack

03/03/2017
The engineer of the passenger train that derailed in Philadelphia in May 2015, killing eight people, has sued Amtrak, claiming it failed to provide a safe work environment.

No EPA claim if the jobs weren’t actually equal

03/03/2017
To win an Equal Pay Act claim, an employee must show that a similarly situated employee of the opposite sex was paid more. It’s not enough to merely claim that one sex generally earned more.

The one time it’s good for your handbook to be a contract

03/03/2017
An employer has won the right to pursue a contract counterclaim against a former employee based on a provision in the employee handbook.

Beware individual liability for wrongful terminations under Pennsylvania state law

03/03/2017
Under the Pennsylvania Human Rights Act, employees who are actively involved in termination decisions may be deemed personally liable for aiding and abetting violations of the law.

Termination? Consider offering severance in exchange for waiving right to sue

03/03/2017
Just letting an employee sign a resignation letter instead of being terminated won’t always prevent her from suing you.