What KCA contractors should consider before bidding or sending crews into Allegheny County
By Brenda Reigle, DIG Prevention Consulting
Your company does not necessarily have to maintain an office in Allegheny County to fall under its paid parental leave requirements. Performing construction work within the county could bring your company and eligible employees within the ordinance’s coverage.
If your company’s office is located within Allegheny County, read Part 1 for information about the construction-union exclusion and related employee coverage questions. This article focuses on contractors based outside the county who perform projects within its boundaries.
Allegheny County Council approved the measure on October 20, requiring covered employers to provide eligible employees with 12 weeks of paid parental leave. Championed by County Executive Sara Innamorato, employers have approximately one year to implement the requirements.
An outside headquarters does not necessarily prevent coverage
The posted regulation generally defines a covered employer as an entity situated or doing business within Allegheny County that employs 15 or more people. Its employee definition generally includes individuals who perform at least 80 hours of work within the county in a year, subject to exclusions.
Winning a bid alone does not establish an employee’s entitlement to parental leave. However, performing the contract could establish the business activity and employee work hours relevant to coverage.
The posted employer definition does not expressly require all 15 employees to work inside Allegheny County. Contractors should obtain legal advice on employee counting rather than assume that a small county crew avoids the requirements.
A crew could reach the county-hours threshold in two weeks
Consider a contractor headquartered in Dauphin County with 25 employees that wins a four-month Allegheny County project. The company assigns six permanent, nonunion employees to the jobsite.
Each employee could reach 80 county work hours after two 40-hour workweeks. Having only six employees on that project would not necessarily prevent coverage.
Reaching 80 hours does not automatically qualify an employee for paid parental leave. The employee must also meet the employment-duration, qualifying-event and other eligibility requirements.
Your longtime employees may already meet the employment waiting period
The posted Exhibit A requires full-time employees to have at least 180 continuous days of employment with the employer. Part-time employees must have 180 continuous days of employment and at least 625 hours worked during that period.
The language concerns employment with a company—not six months working on an Allegheny County project. A long-term employee could therefore meet the employment-duration requirement before arriving at the county jobsite.
The 80-hour geographic requirement is expressed as an annual threshold rather than a separate threshold for each project. Contractors should track county work hours by employee across their projects.
Employees who work entirely outside the county would not automatically become covered merely because their employer performs a county project.
Do obligations end when the crew leaves the county?
Contractors should not assume that potential leave obligations disappear when a project is completed or an employee returns to an assignment outside Allegheny County.
The posted regulation uses an annual county-hours threshold but does not clearly explain how parental-leave coverage continues after an employee leaves the county assignment. This is an important question for contractors whose crews regularly move among counties.
Similarly, assigning a permanent employee to a short project does not automatically make that person a temporary employee. The regulation’s temporary and seasonal exclusions have specific definitions and written-notice conditions.
Review exclusions before assigning crews
Certain construction-union employees may be excluded, but the exclusion does not automatically cover every employee of a union contractor. Nonunion employees require separate review.
Read Part 1 for the detailed discussion of collective bargaining coverage, registered apprenticeship requirements and unresolved questions affecting experienced union workers. Those issues also matter to contractors bringing crews into Allegheny County from elsewhere.
Consider the cost before bidding
Covered parental leave would generally be paid at the employee’s base rate, subject to a $4,200 weekly benefit maximum. Established employment benefits would continue, and job-restoration protections would apply.
For illustration, 12 weeks at $1,200 in weekly base wages equals $14,400, before continued employer benefit costs and replacement staffing or overtime.
For an outside contractor, these potential costs deserve consideration when estimating labor expenses, assigning crews and scheduling work that could extend into the implementation period. Contractors should also review the package’s changes to paid sick leave.
Before bidding or beginning a county project:
- Identify employees likely to reach 80 county work hours during the year.
- Obtain advice on the 15-employee threshold and applicable exclusions.
- Establish a system for tracking county hours across projects.
- Review existing leave policies, benefit coverage and available insurance.
- Consider potential wage, benefit and replacement staffing costs.
- Review contract provisions addressing changes in law, reimbursement and schedule adjustments.
Do not assume the project owner must reimburse additional costs or extend the completion date. Those questions depend on the contract and applicable law.
Particular attention should be given to employee counting, county work-hour tracking, employee exclusions, obligations after a county assignment ends and the final implementation deadline.
This article reflects the posted regulation reviewed as of October 21, 2026. Confirm the final signed language and subsequent county guidance before revising policies or making coverage decisions.
This article is provided for general information and should not be considered legal advice. KCA members should consult their attorney for legal interpretation of Allegheny County Council Ordinance 14083-26 and attached Exhibit A, including how its requirements and construction-union exclusion apply to their company and employees.
Consult your attorney before making coverage decisions
This article is provided by DIG Prevention Consulting for general information and is not legal advice. KCA members should consult their attorney for legal interpretation of Allegheny County Council Ordinance 14083-26 and attached Exhibit A, including how its requirements apply to contractors based outside the county. ChatGPT was used to review the Allegheny County Ordinance as it reads it, not as DIG Prevention Consulting reads the ordinance.
