On Friday, September 24, 2021, NJ Governor Phil Murphy signed A-2617/S-2998 [P.L.2021, c.228.], requiring employers to provide hiring preference to employees who have reached maximum medical improvement following a work-related injury.
Showing posts with label Return to Work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Return to Work. Show all posts
Monday, September 27, 2021
Friday, June 19, 2020
COVID Predictions Now Estimating Second Wave Beginning Sept 15 in US and 200,000 deaths
The Sun-Belt States, lead by Florida, are now reporting a huge upswing in US-COVID reinfection rates. Implementation of rapid return to work scenarios, and lackadaisical attitudes by 14-50 year olds in failing to adhere to social distancing and use of face masks, is now causing a massive increase in COVID hospitalizations and deaths. The new modeling prediction is going to create further uncertainty as to financial stability in the workers' compensation arena going forward.
Thursday, May 21, 2020
National COSH Releases Guidelines for “A Safe and Just Return to Work”
Workers must be included in safety plans, say health experts, as wave of walkouts leads to new protections.
“My co-workers are getting sick and we know this disease can be fatal,” says Sofia, a pseudonym for a worker at a Case Farms poultry plant. “We want to do our jobs and help feed people during this crisis. But we need to know our employer is listening to us and doing everything possible to make our workplace safe. Right now, that is not happening.”
To ensure safety for Sofia – and millions of others who are still working or will return to work in the coming weeks and months -- the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH) released a new report today: “A Safe and Just Return to Work.”
“The United States is far from being ready to open for business without putting not only workers but entire communities at grave risk of illness and death,” states the report introduction. “Only the most essential businesses should be open, and even those must only be allowed to operate if critical safety measures are in place - that are monitored and enforced.”
The document, with comprehensive guidelines for workplace safety, worker participation and fair compensation for sick, injured and at-risk workers, was prepared by experts convened by National COSH. Writers and contributors include certified industrial hygienists, academicians, attorneys, physicians and leaders of non-governmental and nonprofit organizations.
“The post-COVID world will be different in many ways,” said Jessica Martinez, MPH, co-executive director of National COSH. “One difference we insist on: Workers must be at the table, actively involved in decisions about workplace safety -- at their own workplaces and when creating local, state and federal guidelines.”
U.S. workers are at high risk in workplaces identified as hot spots for the spread of COVID-19, including slaughterhouses, nursing homes and prisons. “A Safe and Just Return to Work” calls for the inclusion of workers and their unions on all task forces, commissions and advisory boards established by governors, mayors and other public officials to establish rules and procedures for workplaces currently operating and those scheduled to re-open.
“Unfortunately, both before and during the current crisis, an unequal balance of power in the workplace means that safety often takes a back seat – especially for workers of color, immigrants and others in marginalized communities,” said Martinez. “Fortunately, working people are not accepting the status quo. The risk and horrible consequences of COVID-19 have led to an unprecedented number of walk-outs and other job actions – and in most cases, workers have been successful in winning protections to reduce risks to themselves, co-workers, their families and the public at large.”
“COVID 19 is highly contagious and can be deadly,“ said Sherry Baron, MD, MPH, a professor of public health at Queens College in New York City who assisted in the preparation of the National COSH report. “Employers who adopt a ‘business-as-usual’ approach could cause workers and their family members to become sick or even die. The right way to reduce risk and limit harm is to include workers in making the plan and implementing effective safety programs, based on the best available scientific evidence.”
“We need stronger laws -- and strong action to enforce our existing right to a safe workplace,” said Jora Trang, managing attorney at Worksafe in Oakland and president of the National COSH board of directors. “In addition to protective measures that must be in place now for all essential workers, bold measures are urgently needed to address the underlying disparities and injustices that were laid bare by the pandemic.”
The report emphasizes that a safe, just return to work – now and into the future – requires, at a minimum, the following elements:
- Effective and stringent health and safety protections, informed by science, backed by robust enforcement, and designed with meaningful input by workers, worker center/COSH groups, unions and employers.
- A planned, detailed and meaningful system of screening, testing, contact tracing, proper isolation and epidemiological surveillance.
- Guaranteed job protection and just compensation for those working, and for those who can’t.
- Inclusion of and respect for meaningful worker and union involvement in all planning, protocols and decision-making regarding safety in the workplace and return-to-work.
- Measures to ensure equity, inclusion and a path to end health and economic disparities.
“A Safe and Just Return to Work” report stresses that Covid-19 safety protections must align with the “hierarchy of controls” recommended by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The hierarchy emphasizes system-wide engineering and process controls – such as improved ventilation – which reduce exposure most effectively across an entire workplace in addition to life-saving personal protective equipment.
“A Safe and Just Return to Work” is available on the National COSH website at tinyurl.com/safeandjustreturn. It is the latest addition to Coronavirus Resources for Workers, available in English and Spanish with resources in multiple languages, including specific industry and occupational guidelines for grocery workers, health care workers, poultry workers, seafood workers, warehouse workers and others.
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Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author of NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thomson-Reuters) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thomson-Reuters). For over 4 decades the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com has been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.
Blog: Workers ' Compensation
Twitter: jongelman
LinkedIn: JonGelman
LinkedIn Group: Injured Workers Law & Advocacy Group
Author: "Workers' Compensation Law" West-Thomson-Reuters
Friday, March 4, 2016
The National Association of Workers’ Compensation Judiciary March 2016 Newsletter
I strongly urge you to read The National Association of Workers’ Compensation Judiciary March 2016 Newsletter for cutting edge information concerning national workers' compensation issues.
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