Pennsylvania Contractors to Ring in the New Year with New Employment Eligibility Verification Requirements

By Jacquelyn S. Bryan & Hayes C. Stover, K&L Gates, Pittsburgh

Effective January 1, 2013, all contractors and subcontractors working on Pennsylvania public works projects will be required to verify the employment eligibility of any newly hired workers through the federal E-Verify program.  Designed to preserve local jobs, this new legislative measure will impose new burdens on contractors and subcontractors and will subject them to potentially stiff penalties in the event of non-compliance.

The Public Works Employment Verification Act was signed into law by Governor Tom Corbett on July 5, 2011.  As a precondition to being awarded a public works contract, contractors and subcontractors will be required to supply the Pennsylvania public agency that awarded the contract with a signed verification certifying that they have verified or will verify the employment eligibility of any “new” employee to be assigned to the public work using the federal E-Verify program.

To view the complete alert online, click here.