Pennsylvania Employment Lawyer & Attorney : Russell Krafft & Gruber Law Firm : Lancaster, York, Harrisburg

 In 2007, Pennsylvania's minimum wage is slated to increase in two steps. On January 1, 2007 the minimum wage will increase from its current level of $5.15 an hour to $6.25 an hour. Then on July 1, 2007, the rate will rise to $7.15 an hour.

Increases are delayed for small employers with 10 or fewer full time employees. Small employers must increase minimum wage to $5.65 an hour on January 1, 2007, $6.65 an hour on July 1, 2007 and $7.15 an hour on July 1, 2008.

A sixty day training wage rate, based on the Federal $5.15 an hour, is permitted for employees under 20 years of age. To utilize the training wage, employers must notify workers at the time of hire of both the training wage and the workers right to receive the Pennsylvania minimum wage after 60 calendar days of employment. The law also makes it clear that other workers may not be displaced to allow hiring of training wage workers.

The minimum wage credit for tipped employees will remain at $2.83 per hour. However, an employer will have to make up the difference if the employee’s tips and the $2.83 per hour do not meet the full Pennsylvania minimum wage. The tip credit applies only if an employee received more than $30.00 in tips during a month. If an employee does not receive more than $30.00 per month in tips, the employer must pay the regular minimum wage.

The competitive market for employees has most companies paying more than the state minimums; however, employers of all sizes should evaluate the impact of these increases on their budgets and compensation systems.

If you have more questions, the Department of Labor and Industry has published a FAQ related to the new wages.

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'Tis the season for human resources professionals to fret over an employer's liability for alcohol-related mishaps stemming from too much holiday cheer at the office party. Before you say "bah humbug" to the whole idea, you might want to weigh your return on investment from a year end boost in employee morale versus the specter of alcohol induced accident or incident.

Mixing alcohol and employees can result in a wide spectrum of possible outcomes ranging from mildly embarrassing to catastrophic. Like all good lawyers, we'll focus on the catastrophic: the automobile accident and the discrimination lawsuit.

In Pennsylvania, there is little difference in liability between an employer/host and the social host of a private party in a home. Whether the party is thrown by an employer or an individual, there is generally no liability for an adult host when an adult employee, guest or someone else is injured by an adult drunk driver who may have been served at the party. Courts reason that "it is the consumption of alcohol rather than the furnishing thereof, that is the proximate cause of any subsequent damage". However, there is liability for any host (whether an employer or a private person) who knowingly serves alcohol to anyone under age 21.

Employer's may also face claims from employees injured by the consumption of alcohol under employee benefit programs like workers' compensation insurance, medical and accident policies. Employee benefit plan and insurance exclusion for injuries arising from operating a vehicle while intoxicated are generally upheld. 

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A few weeks ago when we made the decision to launch the Pennsylvania Employment Law Blog, we knew this was not the usual manner in which lawyers communicate with their clients, friends and associates.  However, we were pleased to have the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a growing trend in the legal community.  We did not anticipate the most frequently asked question as we started telling everyone about our exciting new project - "What's a Blog?" 

For those of you who are already a card carrying member of the Blogosphere, please skip to the last paragraph of this posting, for all others we will share what we learned during development of this blog.  Wikipedia defines a blog as "a user generated website where entries are made in journal style and displayed in a reverse chronological order."  Blog readership has grown 60 fold in the last three years capturing more than 30% of all internet users. A blog is a web page with frequent, short postings on a particular subject matter. You may be familiar with this concept as it relates to personal blogs that are used to keep family and friends updated, but we learned that most people were unfamiliar with how it could be used professionally.  It provides us an additional opportunity to serve our clients and the business community.    We chose this medium because it will allow us to communicate with you in real time.  Many of you don't have time to browse paper or even electronic newsletters to determine if there is an article that is of interest to you, and it sometimes takes too long for us to publish the information.  Enter the Business Blog. 

Employment Law can be a complex subject.  The Pennsylvania Employment Law Blog will provide you practical information to help you negotiate the maze of employment law and apply it to your situation.  Some postings will relate to current events, a new court decision, changes in law or discussions regarding a local or national news story.  Other postings will be on issues that clients have asked about or that we feel will be of interest.  We will also provide links to other internet resources.  All postings are searchable by topic or text, allowing you to view our blog at your convenience and perform a search on the subject that is of interest to you at that time.  Postings will be relatively brief so we hope that you will bookmark the site and check back on a regular basis.  You may also use the link to subscribe via email so that you will be informed when there is a new posting.  For our technologically savvy readers, subscribe using RSS/XML.  Also, please post questions and comments.  Our goal is to make this site an interactive way to stay in touch with all of our clients and associates.  Please join us as we venture into the Blogosphere.

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