Pennsylvania Employer's Guide: A Handbook of Employment Laws and Regulations

The Pennsylvania Employer’s Guide is an authoritative and accessible book that provides the “lay of the land” about employment law. The Guide integrates federal and Pennsylvania laws that affect the employer-employee relationship, plus it includes valuable information about managing employees, developing employment policies, and avoiding liability for employment law violations. The Pennsylvania Employer’s Guide is written and updated annually by an employment law attorney. We have eliminated legal jargon, offering clear and concise explanations of today’s complex labor laws, regulations, and court decisions. Relevant state and federal agencies are listed at the end of each of the ten chapters, along with citations for the information discussed. A valuable resource for business owners, managers, and human resource professionals, the Pennsylvania Employer’s Guide includes discussion of these and other topics: ;New Pennsylvania “Mini-COBRA” law, which requires small employers to offer continuation of group health insurance coverage to former employees and their dependents ;Updated sections on employment discrimination under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, including a new discussion of race discrimination ;Updated sections on Pennsylvania law regarding arbitration agreements, unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, and prevailing wages ;U.S. Supreme Court decisions regarding reverse race discrimination, age discrimination, arbitration, and more ;Federal Trade Commission (FTC) red flag rules requiring certain businesses to respond to the “red flags” of identity theft ;New discussions of improving employee morale and alternatives to layoffs ;New telephone service to verify employee Social Security numbers and new iCERT electronic system for foreign labor certifications ;IRS regulations on Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) retirement plan amendments and notices and an IRS guidance on correcting certain tax reporting errors ;Department of Labor regulations establishing a safe harbor and clarifying when benefit plan contributions received or withheld by employers from wages are considered plan assets ;Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations covering personal protective equipment standards and proposed changes to the Hazard Communication Standard ;Department of Defense regulations expanding whistleblower protections for government contractors ;Coverage of the H1N1 virus (“swine flu”) outbreak and disaster readiness