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★ Pennsylvania · workplace

Workplace settlements
in Pennsylvania.

By Reviewed by Abd Shanti, Founder9 min read

Pennsylvania pays injured workers two thirds of their wages up to $1,394 a week in 2026. A general contractor can share the employer’s immunity, and in 2025 the Supreme Court refused to overturn that rule in a case where a roofer fell through a hole and won $5 million.

Facts that decide a workplace claim in Pennsylvania

Weekly benefit, 2026Maximum $1,394, equal to the statewide average weekly wage for injuries from 1 January 2026; the rate is 66 2/3% of wages.Department of Labor & Industry, statewide average weekly wage
Statutory employerA general contractor that hires a subcontractor is treated as a statutory employer and shares the tort immunity of the injured worker’s own employer, under decades of precedent the Court declined to overrule.Yoder v. McCarthy Construction (Pa. 2025)
Deadline to sueTwo years for personal injury claims, with the discovery rule deciding when the clock starts in some cases.42 Pa.C.S. § 5524, as applied in Varner-Mort v. Kapfhammer (Pa. Super. 2015)
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★ PA · reported workplace outcomes

What Pennsylvania courts have awarded.

Real Pennsylvania decisions and verdicts, each linked to the court record or official report.

  • Yoder v. McCarthy Construction
    Pennsylvania Supreme Court · 2025
    $5 million verdict vacated; remanded

    Jason Yoder, who worked for a roofing subcontractor, fell through an uncovered hole while roofing a borough library and suffered severe, permanent injuries requiring lifelong pain management. He won a $5 million verdict against the general contractor. The Supreme Court refused to overrule its statutory employer precedents, reversed the Superior Court, vacated the judgment and sent the case back to decide whether the contractor met the test for immunity.

  • McManamon v. Washko
    Pennsylvania Superior Court · 2006
    $20,264,255.20 judgment, affirmed

    Teresa McManamon, a 41 year old single mother of three, was working as a flag person on a paving project near the Airport Beltway in Hazle Township when a courier driving for a health system hit her. She was left needing daily care for the rest of her life. The jury awarded $19,098,341, including $10,000,000 for pain and suffering and $1,000,000 for disfigurement; with $1,165,914.20 in delay damages the judgment was $20,264,255.20, and the Superior Court affirmed.

★ PA · workplace · in practice

What changes the number here.

What actually moves a workplace settlement in Pennsylvania.

  1. 1

    On construction sites, the general contractor may be immune. Yoder’s $5 million verdict was vacated because the contractor may qualify as his statutory employer.

  2. 2

    Your workers’ compensation claim can be used against you. The lower court found Yoder bound by his successful claim that he was an employee of the subcontractor.

  3. 3

    Other parties, such as property owners, equipment makers or drivers, may still be sued in tort. McManamon, a road worker, recovered more than $20 million from the courier’s employer that struck her.

★ PA · statute of limitations
2 years from date of injury

42 Pa.C.S. § 5524

★ PA · fault rule
Modified comparative, 51% bar

Modified comparative, recovery barred at 51% claimant fault under the Fair Share Act (2011).

★ workplace · same region & fault regime

Compare to like jurisdictions.

How Pennsylvania's fault rule and limitation period compare to jurisdictions in the same US region and to those running the same fault rule for workplace claims.

JurisdictionFault ruleLimitationWorkplace page
Pennsylvania · you are hereModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injury—
Rhode IslandPure comparative negligence3 years from date of injuryRI · workplace →
VermontModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryVT · workplace →
ConnecticutModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryCT · workplace →
DelawareModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryDE · workplace →
District of ColumbiaPure contributory negligence3 years from date of injuryDC · workplace →
MaineModified comparative, 50% bar6 years for personal injury, longest in the USME · workplace →
South CarolinaModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injurySC · workplace →
TexasModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryTX · workplace →
West VirginiaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryWV · workplace →
WisconsinModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryWI · workplace →
South DakotaSlight versus gross negligence3 years from date of injurySD · workplace →
TennesseeModified comparative, 50% bar1 year from date of injury, among the shortest in the USTN · workplace →
★ PA · workplace · frequently asked

Common questions.

Each answer is independently coherent and references the relevant statute or authority document.

united states · sister site
Hurt at work in Pennsylvania? See what your own claim could be worth.

FairSettlement, our US sister site, gives you a free estimate in about two minutes. No cost and no obligation.

Check my case

Sources

Checked 2026-09-29.

★ all of PA
Pennsylvania overview

Fault rule, statute, caps, and key facts for Pennsylvania as a whole.

★ national frame
Workplace in United States

Workplace band structure and severity tiers at the US level.

★ all 15 countries
Workplace · everywhere

Cross-jurisdiction comparison of workplace bands.

★ editorial note

Figures on this page are not quotes for any specific case. For representation, consult an attorney admitted in Pennsylvania. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.