Nearly two full years after COVID-19 briefly shut down the Pennsylvania workers’ compensation system, and then created a dramatic shift in how litigation was done, the PA Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has announced measures to return to some level of our prior (the old “normal”) operation. It has been since…
The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry recently announced that the “statewide average weekly wage” (SAWW) for 2022 will be $1,205.00. This represents a 6.6% increase over the SAWW for 2021 of $1,130.00. Under the PA Workers’ Compensation Act, the SAWW represents the maximum workers’ compensation rate which can be…
As we have noted previously, all hearings in Pennsylvania workers’ compensation matters have been held virtually, either by telephone or video, since last Spring. We have now been told that the hearing offices within the PA Bureau of Workers’ Compensation will be reopening as of August 16, 2021. However, this…
The Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has announced that The Honorable Ashley Drinkwine will be a new Workers Compensation Judge (WCJ) assigned to the Philadelphia Workers’ Compensation Hearing Office. Judge Drinkwine will be taking the place of Judge Scott Olin, who has retired after many successful years on the bench. …
We apologize for having such infrequent posts these past several months. Like much of society, things have slowed down since the pandemic arrived. There seem to be fewer appellate decisions coming down, and those that do seem more frequently to be unreported decisions. This makes it more difficult to find…
As happens every year around this time, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has released the Statewide Average Weekly Wage (SAWW) for the coming year. For 2021, the SAWW is $1,130.00, an increase over the $1,081.00 of 2020. The SAWW represents the maximum weekly workers’ compensation rate an injured worker…
The Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation rarely announces the coming or going of Workers’ Compensation Judges (WCJs). Recently, the Bureau veered from its normal procedure and announced the following release: “The Workers’ Compensation Office of Adjudication is pleased to announce the hiring of two new Judges: Anthony Salvino, Esq. and…
As we noted in our June 2020 update, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation began to (technically) allow limited in-person hearings, in counties which have been declared to be in the “Green” phase by Governor Wolf. This announcement was made on June 12, 2020, to take effect June 19, 2020. …
As more counties across Pennsylvania reach the “Green” phase in the COVID-19 recovery process, attorneys involved in the PA workers’ compensation process were curious to know how this will impact the operations of the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. Yesterday, we were advised by the Bureau that, “(t)he designation of counties…
Yesterday, our attorneys participated in a webinar dealing with the continuing impact the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) is having on the Pennsylvania workers’ compensation system. We have already participated in hearings using Skype for Business, and understand some Workers’ Compensation Judges (WCJs) are experimenting with the WebX platform. Zoom had been…