Split Panel Upholds Suspension of Benefits to 'Retired' School Aide

A divided Commonwealth Court panel on Monday ruled that a workers' compensation judge did not err in suspending the payment of weekly compensation benefits to an instructional aide who was receiving pension and Social Security retirement income, even though her employer never formally requested a suspension on that basis.The issue of whether claimant Jean Fitchett had retired from the workforce was incidentally raised during cross-examination and was never the focus of the proceedings, which centered on whether Fitchett's injuries from a 2011 attack by a student had healed.President Ju...