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Showing posts sorted by date for query travelers. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Monday, October 31, 2022
Judge Erred in Finding a Conflict in Representation
Ameribuilt Contractors appealed the workers' compensation judge's February 1, 2022 order rejecting a proposed settlement and disqualifying its assigned insurance counsel, Brown & Connery, LLP (B&C), on the basis of a perceived conflict between Ameribuilt's workers' compensation carrier, Travelers Property Casualty Insurance Co. (Travelers), and Travelers' ostensible insured, respondent Robert Alam. The court concluded that the judge erred in finding that a conflict existed and, thus, there was no basis for the disqualification. Accordingly, the court is constrained to reverse.
Tuesday, August 23, 2022
US DOT Bill of Rights for Passengers with Disabilities
In its ongoing work to protect airline passengers, USDOT moves forward with pro-consumer actions.
Friday, April 30, 2021
NJ Governor Murphy Signs the Healthy Terminals Act
NJ Governor Phil Murphy today signed the Healthy Terminals Act (S989) which creates new minimum wage and benefits requirements for certain Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) and Newark Liberty International Train Station workers. The legislation will expand access to livable wages and affordable health care for workers at the airport and train station who often cannot afford employer-provided health care plans.
Monday, February 1, 2021
CDC issues mandate on wearing of face masks while on conveyances and at transportation hubs
Many of the nation’s employers and employees will be impacted by a recent mask mandate promulgated by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This national Order will establish a uniform science and medical evidence strategy to prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV2 (coronavirus) and the emerging spread of variants of the disease.
Friday, January 22, 2021
Is the workers' compensation system ready for the COVID-19 [coronavirus] virus? Live Updates
It seems that every decade a new pandemic emerges on the world scene, and complacency continues to exist in the workers’ compensation arena to meet the emerging challenges of infectious disease.
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
Federal Preemption of State Medical Billing Schedules
Medical benefits are a significant factor in the overall costs of of most state workers compensation programs. The ability to contain those costs is at the very heart of the viability of most workers’ compensation systems. Federal preemption of state medical fee schedules and regulations are a prevailing challenge to the patchwork of non-uniform state benefit programs.
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
NJ Supreme Court Holds Subrogation Conflict Does Not Exist Between Workers’ Compensation and the Auto Insurance Statute
In a PER CURIAM opinion, the NJ Supreme Court held that there is no conflict between the Workers’ Compensation Act and Automobile Insurance Laws. Subrogation was permitted.
Tuesday, February 25, 2020
CDC Coronavirus Guidance Sets a Standard for Employer Responsibility and Liability
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] has issued an interim guidance based on what is currently known about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The guidance sets out a plan of containment initially, and if that fails, mitigation of the spread of this very contagious and potentially fatal disease. If employers follow the guidance, in all likelihood workers' compensation issues will arise as to the payment of temporary and medical benefits following from occupational exposure at work to the COVID-19.
Thursday, December 26, 2019
Public Policy and Multi-Jurisdictional Claims
A NJ appellate court has ruled that public policy favors litigation in the State of New Jersey were there exists a dispute over multi-jurisdictional choice of law issues governing workers’ compensation insurance coverage in NJ.
Monday, March 21, 2016
Garlock reaches $480 Million settlement on asbestos claims
Garlock plans to emerge from bankruptcy and establish a trust in the amount of $480 Million to pay asbestos claimants and their families. Garlock a member of the EnPro Industries consortium had made asbestos gaskets.Asbestos is a known carcinogen and causally connected with lung cancer, mesothelioma and other malignancies as well as asbestosis.
Sunday, November 29, 2015
Drivers' Protected From Being Forced to Violate Safety Regulations
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today announced the publication in the Federal Register of a Final Rule to help further safeguard commercial truck and bus drivers from being compelled to violate federal safety regulations. The Rule provides FMCSA with the authority to take enforcement action not only against motor carriers, but also against shippers, receivers, and transportation intermediaries.
“Our nation relies on millions of commercial vehicle drivers to move people and freight, and we must do everything we can to ensure that they are able to operate safely,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “This Rule enables us to take enforcement action against anyone in the transportation chain who knowingly and recklessly jeopardizes the safety of the driver and of the motoring public.”
The Final Rule addresses three key areas concerning driver coercion: procedures for commercial truck and bus drivers to report incidents of coercion to the FMCSA, steps the agency could take when responding to such allegations, and penalties that may be imposed on entities found to have coerced drivers.
“Any time a motor carrier, shipper, receiver, freight-forwarder, or broker demands that a schedule be met, one that the driver says would be impossible without violating hours-of-service restrictions or other safety regulations, that is coercion,” said FMCSA Acting Administrator Scott Darling. “No commercial driver should ever feel compelled to bypass important federal safety regulations and potentially endanger the lives of all travelers on the road.”
In formulating this Rule, the agency heard from commercial drivers who reported being pressured to violate federal safety regulations with implicit or explicit threats of job termination, denial of subsequent trips or loads, reduced pay, forfeiture of favorable work hours or transportation jobs, or other direct retaliations.
Some of the FMCSA regulations drivers reported being coerced into violating included: hours-of-service limitations designed to prevent fatigued driving, commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements, drug and alcohol testing, the transportation of hazardous materials, and commercial regulations applicable to, among others, interstate household goods movers and passenger carriers.
Commercial truck and bus drivers have had whistle-blower protection through the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) since 1982, when the Surface Transportation Assistance Act (STAA) was adopted. The STAA and OSHA regulations protect drivers and other individuals working for commercial motor carriers from retaliation for reporting or engaging in activities related to certain commercial motor vehicle safety, health, or security conditions. STAA provides whistleblower protection for drivers who report coercion complaints under this Final Rule and are then retaliated against by their employer.
In June 2014, FMCSA and OSHA signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen the coordination and cooperation between the agencies regarding the anti-retaliation provision of the STAA. The Memorandum allows for the exchange of safety, coercion, and retaliation allegations, when received by one agency, that fall under the authority of the other.
For more information on what constitutes coercion and how to submit a complaint to FMCSA, see: www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety/coercion. Please note: the Final Rule takes effect 60 days following its publication in the Federal Register.
This rulemaking was authorized by Section 32911 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) and the Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984 (MCSA), as amended.
For a copy of today’s Federal Register announcement, see: www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/11/30/2015-30237/prohibiting-coercion-of-commercial-motor-vehicle-drivers.
“Our nation relies on millions of commercial vehicle drivers to move people and freight, and we must do everything we can to ensure that they are able to operate safely,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “This Rule enables us to take enforcement action against anyone in the transportation chain who knowingly and recklessly jeopardizes the safety of the driver and of the motoring public.”
The Final Rule addresses three key areas concerning driver coercion: procedures for commercial truck and bus drivers to report incidents of coercion to the FMCSA, steps the agency could take when responding to such allegations, and penalties that may be imposed on entities found to have coerced drivers.
“Any time a motor carrier, shipper, receiver, freight-forwarder, or broker demands that a schedule be met, one that the driver says would be impossible without violating hours-of-service restrictions or other safety regulations, that is coercion,” said FMCSA Acting Administrator Scott Darling. “No commercial driver should ever feel compelled to bypass important federal safety regulations and potentially endanger the lives of all travelers on the road.”
In formulating this Rule, the agency heard from commercial drivers who reported being pressured to violate federal safety regulations with implicit or explicit threats of job termination, denial of subsequent trips or loads, reduced pay, forfeiture of favorable work hours or transportation jobs, or other direct retaliations.
Some of the FMCSA regulations drivers reported being coerced into violating included: hours-of-service limitations designed to prevent fatigued driving, commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements, drug and alcohol testing, the transportation of hazardous materials, and commercial regulations applicable to, among others, interstate household goods movers and passenger carriers.
Commercial truck and bus drivers have had whistle-blower protection through the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) since 1982, when the Surface Transportation Assistance Act (STAA) was adopted. The STAA and OSHA regulations protect drivers and other individuals working for commercial motor carriers from retaliation for reporting or engaging in activities related to certain commercial motor vehicle safety, health, or security conditions. STAA provides whistleblower protection for drivers who report coercion complaints under this Final Rule and are then retaliated against by their employer.
In June 2014, FMCSA and OSHA signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen the coordination and cooperation between the agencies regarding the anti-retaliation provision of the STAA. The Memorandum allows for the exchange of safety, coercion, and retaliation allegations, when received by one agency, that fall under the authority of the other.
For more information on what constitutes coercion and how to submit a complaint to FMCSA, see: www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety/coercion. Please note: the Final Rule takes effect 60 days following its publication in the Federal Register.
This rulemaking was authorized by Section 32911 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) and the Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984 (MCSA), as amended.
For a copy of today’s Federal Register announcement, see: www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/11/30/2015-30237/prohibiting-coercion-of-commercial-motor-vehicle-drivers.
….
Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author of NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson-Reuters) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson-Reuters). For over 4 decades the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.
Monday, January 5, 2015
Asbestos Judgement Final: Second Circuit confirms asbestos judgment against Travelers
| Congratuations to Motley Rice for successfully concluding a long and arduous fight on behalf of asbestos victims. U.S. COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT CONFIRMS ASBESTOS JUDGMENT AGAINST TRAVELERS MT. PLEASANT, SC – (January 5, 2015) – Today the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, by denying a request for rehearing and a rehearing en banc, confirmed that the Settlement Agreements Travelers agreed to in 2004 were binding and enforceable contracts between the parties, that all conditions had been satisfied, and that, in an attempt to avoid its obligation to thousands of asbestos victims, whatever Travelers’ “private hopes and dreams were,” they were not supported by the language of the agreement. “Travelers now has to finally live up to its commitment and provide rightful compensation to asbestos victims who waited more than a decade for this to be settled and done with,” says Motley Rice co-founder Joe Rice. “We are gratified that perseverance by all involved has resulted in this positive, and now, final ruling.” Attorneys with Motley Rice LLC have played a central role in the litigation against Travelers for its alleged breach of duty to the injured asbestos victims for more than 20 years. This litigation was spearheaded out of the consolidated asbestos litigation in West Virginia State Court and then transferred... |
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Monday, December 1, 2014
Notable Absence of New Ebola Quarantines at New York Area Airports
Today's post is shared from nytimes.com/
A day after a doctor who had returned from Guinea about a week earlier became New York’s first Ebola case, the governors of New York and New Jersey announced that they would begin quarantining travelers who had been in contact with Ebola patients in West Africa.
The move, which went beyond federal policy, drew protests from medical aid groups and the Obama administration, who said it would penalize people who were trying to contain Ebola and discourage others from doing so.
But since Kaci Hickox, a nurse, flew into Newark’s airport on Oct. 24 and was kept at a hospital for three days, no one else has been caught up in the quarantine dragnet at the New York and New Jersey airports.
The absence of quarantines is striking, not only because both governors emphatically defended the policy as a necessary precaution, but also because most people returning from Ebola-stricken countries arrive in the United States through Kennedy and Newark Liberty International Airports. Several aid organizations have American health care workers in West Africa, a handful of whom return every week. But New York and New Jersey officials say no one coming through the two airports since Ms. Hickox has reported direct contact with Ebola patients.
“I don’t think we can speculate on whether or not it’s out of the ordinary,” Monica Mahaffey, a spokeswoman for the New York State Health Department, said.
Possible explanations, based on interviews with several doctors who...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
A day after a doctor who had returned from Guinea about a week earlier became New York’s first Ebola case, the governors of New York and New Jersey announced that they would begin quarantining travelers who had been in contact with Ebola patients in West Africa.
The move, which went beyond federal policy, drew protests from medical aid groups and the Obama administration, who said it would penalize people who were trying to contain Ebola and discourage others from doing so.
But since Kaci Hickox, a nurse, flew into Newark’s airport on Oct. 24 and was kept at a hospital for three days, no one else has been caught up in the quarantine dragnet at the New York and New Jersey airports.
The absence of quarantines is striking, not only because both governors emphatically defended the policy as a necessary precaution, but also because most people returning from Ebola-stricken countries arrive in the United States through Kennedy and Newark Liberty International Airports. Several aid organizations have American health care workers in West Africa, a handful of whom return every week. But New York and New Jersey officials say no one coming through the two airports since Ms. Hickox has reported direct contact with Ebola patients.
“I don’t think we can speculate on whether or not it’s out of the ordinary,” Monica Mahaffey, a spokeswoman for the New York State Health Department, said.
Possible explanations, based on interviews with several doctors who...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
Thursday, October 30, 2014
CDC Issues Revised Interim U.S. Guidance for Monitoring and Movement of Persons with Potential Ebola Virus Exposure
CDC Issues Revised Interim U.S. Guidance for Monitoring and Movement of Persons with Potential Ebola Virus Exposure
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued today revised Interim U.S. Guidance for Monitoring and Movement of Persons with Ebola Virus Exposure. This guidance (hyperlink to the guidance here) provides new information public health authorities and other partners can use to determine appropriate public health actions based on Ebola exposure risk factors and clinical presentation. It also includes criteria for monitoring exposed people and for when movement restrictions may be needed.
In determining the right approach, we have put the health and safety of Americans first and foremost, and our deliberations have been informed by our most knowledgeable and experienced public health and homeland security professionals. As with everything we have done to respond to the threat of Ebola both at home and abroad, we have been guided by the best science available.
Coordinated public health actions are essential to stop and reverse the spread of Ebola virus. CDC announced last week that public health authorities will begin active post-arrival monitoring of travelers whose travel originates in Liberia, Sierra Leone, or Guinea and arrive at one of the five airports in the United States doing enhanced screening. The revised interim guidance released today is intended to guide state and local health officials with decisions about managing the movement of individuals being monitored, including travelers from the countries with widespread transmission and others who may have been exposed in the United States.
Active post-arrival monitoring means that travelers without febrile illness or symptoms consistent with Ebola will be contacted daily by state and local health departments for 21 days from the date of their departure from Liberia, Sierra Leone, or Guinea. Six states (New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, and Georgia), where approximately 70% of incoming travelers are headed, will start active monitoring today, with the remainder of the states starting in the days following.
This guidance also outlines appropriate public health actions for those individuals classified as “some risk.” These include health care workers who are providing direct care to Ebola patients in West Africa or others, such as observers, who enter an Ebola treatment area where Ebola patients are being cared for. Additional precautions, such as direct active monitoring, are recommended for those classified as “some risk.” In addition, the guidance recommends public health authorities determine on an individualized case-by-case basis whether additional restrictions, such as controlled movement, workplace exclusions, or restrictions on other activities, are appropriate. This daily health consultation will give additional confidence to the community that a returning health care worker is asymptomatic and therefore not contagious.
Returning health care workers should be treated with dignity and respect. They, along with our civilian and military personnel in the region, are working tirelessly on the frontlines against Ebola, and their success is what ultimately will enable us to eliminate the threat of additional domestic Ebola cases. We must not prevent or unduly discourage them from undertaking this indispensable and selfless work.
Guidance for returning health care workers from West Africa should be distinguished from health care workers providing care for Ebola patients in the United States. There are important differences between providing care or performing public health tasks in Africa versus in a U.S. hospital. A U.S. hospital provides a more controlled setting than a field hospital in West Africa. A U.S. healthcare worker would be able to anticipate most procedures that would put them at risk of exposure and wear additional personal protective equipment as recommended. In some places in Africa, the same may not be true and workers may not have the ability to prepare for potential exposures.
This guidance is interim guidance and could be updated or changed as new information becomes available.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued today revised Interim U.S. Guidance for Monitoring and Movement of Persons with Ebola Virus Exposure. This guidance (hyperlink to the guidance here) provides new information public health authorities and other partners can use to determine appropriate public health actions based on Ebola exposure risk factors and clinical presentation. It also includes criteria for monitoring exposed people and for when movement restrictions may be needed.
In determining the right approach, we have put the health and safety of Americans first and foremost, and our deliberations have been informed by our most knowledgeable and experienced public health and homeland security professionals. As with everything we have done to respond to the threat of Ebola both at home and abroad, we have been guided by the best science available.
Coordinated public health actions are essential to stop and reverse the spread of Ebola virus. CDC announced last week that public health authorities will begin active post-arrival monitoring of travelers whose travel originates in Liberia, Sierra Leone, or Guinea and arrive at one of the five airports in the United States doing enhanced screening. The revised interim guidance released today is intended to guide state and local health officials with decisions about managing the movement of individuals being monitored, including travelers from the countries with widespread transmission and others who may have been exposed in the United States.
Active post-arrival monitoring means that travelers without febrile illness or symptoms consistent with Ebola will be contacted daily by state and local health departments for 21 days from the date of their departure from Liberia, Sierra Leone, or Guinea. Six states (New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, and Georgia), where approximately 70% of incoming travelers are headed, will start active monitoring today, with the remainder of the states starting in the days following.
This guidance also outlines appropriate public health actions for those individuals classified as “some risk.” These include health care workers who are providing direct care to Ebola patients in West Africa or others, such as observers, who enter an Ebola treatment area where Ebola patients are being cared for. Additional precautions, such as direct active monitoring, are recommended for those classified as “some risk.” In addition, the guidance recommends public health authorities determine on an individualized case-by-case basis whether additional restrictions, such as controlled movement, workplace exclusions, or restrictions on other activities, are appropriate. This daily health consultation will give additional confidence to the community that a returning health care worker is asymptomatic and therefore not contagious.
Returning health care workers should be treated with dignity and respect. They, along with our civilian and military personnel in the region, are working tirelessly on the frontlines against Ebola, and their success is what ultimately will enable us to eliminate the threat of additional domestic Ebola cases. We must not prevent or unduly discourage them from undertaking this indispensable and selfless work.
Guidance for returning health care workers from West Africa should be distinguished from health care workers providing care for Ebola patients in the United States. There are important differences between providing care or performing public health tasks in Africa versus in a U.S. hospital. A U.S. hospital provides a more controlled setting than a field hospital in West Africa. A U.S. healthcare worker would be able to anticipate most procedures that would put them at risk of exposure and wear additional personal protective equipment as recommended. In some places in Africa, the same may not be true and workers may not have the ability to prepare for potential exposures.
This guidance is interim guidance and could be updated or changed as new information becomes available.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Frustration building over lack of details on N.J. Ebola plan
Today's post is shared from northjersey.com/
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| Governor Christie is forcefully defending New Jersey’s mandatory quarantine policy for travelers or health workers who have come in contact with Ebola patients in West Africa, saying other states, the military and even a Nobel laureate are on his side, as a fierce national debate has ensued over how to best protect Americans from the disease. Yet four days after he and the governor of New York announced the 21-day quarantine for high-risk travelers, neither Christie nor state health officials have offered details about how this will be accomplished. If people are quarantined at home, can their families stay with them and still go out? If they are alone at home, is someone going to bring them food? What about high-risk travelers who are passing through the airport in Newark — should they be allowed to continue to their destination? Those and many other questions remain unanswered — Christie officials said specifics about how the mandate will be enforced are “internal documents” and are not public. What’s more, some of the agencies that are supposed to be enforcing the plan say they are uncertain about protocols because no policies have been presented. There is growing frustration, officials said. The Port Authority, for... |
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
US officials expected to announce Ebola screening at airports
| Employees at airports have a new problem to be worried about: Ebola. Today's post is shared from cidrap.umn.edu/ Federal officials are finalizing details on Ebola screening steps for travelers arriving at US airports, which may be announced in a few days and may resemble the kinds of questions that outbreak countries are asking departing passengers, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, said today.  The risk of another travel-linked Ebola case, such as the one in Texas, can never be reduced to zero until West Africa's outbreak is extinguished, he said at a media telebriefing today. But he said the CDC and other government agencies are taking a hard look at additional steps, focusing on ones that won't hamstring the response process underway overseas.The three main outbreak countries have so far screened about 36,000 people departing on airlines, with three fourths of them bound for destinations outside the United States. The CDC has trained airport screeners in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, which have flagged 77 people with fever and 3 people with other symptoms. As far as the CDC knows, none of the people with fever had Ebola, and most had malaria, a common illness in that part the world, Frieden said. "I can assure you we will take additional steps, and the details will be worked out and announced in a few days," he added. Senator suggests screening stepsUS Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., issued a statement today saying he spoke with Frieden about tougher screening at US airports and is pleased that the CDC is preparing to... |
Monday, October 6, 2014
As U.S. Ebola Fears Widen, Reports of Possible Cases Grow
 Infections are a major issue in workers' compensation claims. As health workers continue to become exposed to Ebola virus the question remain what action the Federal government will take to ease the burden upon the nation's insurance industry. Today's post is shared from the njytimes.com/ DALLAS — In Washington, a patient who had traveled to Nigeria and who was suspected of having Ebola was placed in isolation at Howard University Hospital on Thursday. In New Haven, two Yale University graduate students plan to sequester themselves when they return this weekend from Liberia, where they have helped the government develop a system to track the Ebola epidemic. And at Newark Liberty International Airport on Saturday, a sick man who had just arrived from Brussels was rushed to a hospital amid concerns that he was showing Ebola-like symptoms, a fear later dismissed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With fears about Ebola widening across the United States, federal health officials said Saturday that they were receiving an escalating number of reports of possible Ebola infection, particularly after a Liberian man tested positive for the deadly disease in Dallas last week, the first Ebola case diagnosed in this country. Since the disease began spreading rapidly across West Africa this summer, the C.D.C. said, it has assessed more than 100 possible cases, but only the Dallas case has been confirmed. But increased attention about the virus has jangled nerves around the country, particularly among West African immigrant communities and recent travelers to that region, and placed health care workers on a kind of high alert. “We expect that we will see more rumors, or concerns, or possibilities of cases,” Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of... |
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Violence in the Workplace: Chicago Air Traffic Control
Today's post is shared from nytimes.com
Travelers lined up Friday to reschedule flights at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport after the region's air traffic control was sabotaged. More flights are resuming Saturday, but hundreds were also canceled.
The number of canceled flights in and out of Chicago crept toward 800 Saturday afternoon, as workers tried to restore one of the nation's busiest air traffic control systems. The system was crippled Friday, officials say, after a disgruntled employee set a fire in a federal radar center. (We updated the number of cancellations at 5 p.m. ET).
As we reported Friday, nearly 2,000 flights were canceled or delayed at Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports, throwing travelers' plans into chaos and disrupting flights that use the area as a hub. Today, flight-tracking websites show a few steady streams of air traffic in and out of Chicago — but the volume doesn't approach the area's normal swarm of activity.
Officials say the disruption was caused by a fire that forced the evacuation of a nearby federal air traffic control center and the declaration of a rare "ATC Zero" status — "shorthand for the inability to safely provide air traffic control," reports Air Transport World.
New details emerged late Friday about the suspect in the case, Brian Howard, 36, after the FBI filed a preliminary criminal complaint in federal court. It accuses Howard of sending a note to a relative Friday morning in which he bid them farewell and said he was taking down...
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Travelers lined up Friday to reschedule flights at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport after the region's air traffic control was sabotaged. More flights are resuming Saturday, but hundreds were also canceled.
The number of canceled flights in and out of Chicago crept toward 800 Saturday afternoon, as workers tried to restore one of the nation's busiest air traffic control systems. The system was crippled Friday, officials say, after a disgruntled employee set a fire in a federal radar center. (We updated the number of cancellations at 5 p.m. ET).
As we reported Friday, nearly 2,000 flights were canceled or delayed at Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports, throwing travelers' plans into chaos and disrupting flights that use the area as a hub. Today, flight-tracking websites show a few steady streams of air traffic in and out of Chicago — but the volume doesn't approach the area's normal swarm of activity.
Officials say the disruption was caused by a fire that forced the evacuation of a nearby federal air traffic control center and the declaration of a rare "ATC Zero" status — "shorthand for the inability to safely provide air traffic control," reports Air Transport World.
New details emerged late Friday about the suspect in the case, Brian Howard, 36, after the FBI filed a preliminary criminal complaint in federal court. It accuses Howard of sending a note to a relative Friday morning in which he bid them farewell and said he was taking down...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Uber sued for allegedly refusing rides to the blind and putting a dog in the trunk
The Uber app is shown in this Feb. 14, 2013, file photo in Washington, D.C. (AFP) An advocacy group for the blind is suing the app-based ride-sharing service Uber, alleging the company discriminates against passengers with service dogs. The federal civil rights suit filed Tuesday by the California chapter of the National Federation of the Blind cites instances in California and elsewhere when blind Uber customers summoned a car only to be refused a ride once the driver saw them with a service dog. In some cases, drivers allegedly abandoned blind travelers in extreme weather and charged cancellation fees after denying them rides, the complaint said. The complaint filed in a Northern California District Court cites one instance where a California UberX driver put a service dog in the trunk and refused to pull over when the blind passenger realized where the animal was. On another occasion a passenger was trying to explain that his dog was not a pet but a service animal when the driver allegedly cursed at him and accelerated abruptly, nearly injuring the dog and striking the passenger’s friend, who is also blind, with an open car door. The group said it’s aware of more than 30 times blind customers were denied rides in violation of the American with Disabilities Act and California state law. As a result, blind passengers are confronting unexpected delays and “face the degrading experience of being denied a basic service that is available to all other... |
Friday, July 25, 2014
Court Orders Travelers Insurance to Pay $500 Million Asbestos Settlement
Today's post is shared from the wsj.com
Travelers Cos. reported an 18% decline in second-quarter operating profit as insurance claims from wind and hail storms eroded earnings, which were below analyst estimates and a catalyst for a sharp drop in the company's shares Tuesday.
Separately, the company was hit with an adverse ruling in a long-running case involving asbestos-related claims of more than $500 million tied to the insurer's coverage of Johns-Manville Corp. decades ago.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed a 2012 ruling by a lower court. The ruling by the federal appellate court in New York directed Travelers to make the $500 million payment, plus interest.
"We are still reviewing the decision, but this is a matter we have disclosed for more than 10 years and we have contemplated this as a potential outcome in our reserving, although we do not have a provision for interest," a Travelers' spokesman said. The company estimated the interest at approximately $75 million, before taxes.
In afternoon trading, Travelers shares were down 4.3% at $91.15 amid gains in the broader equities market. With the decline, Travelers shares are up 0.7% in 2014.
One of the country's largest property-casualty insurers, Travelers often sets the tone for industry earnings that will be announced by its peers in the coming weeks. Analysts watch closely how it is maneuvering through a competitive price environment while low interest rates continue to put pressure on...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
Click here to read the Court Decision In Re: Johns-Manville Corporation et al, decided 7/22/2014
Travelers Cos. reported an 18% decline in second-quarter operating profit as insurance claims from wind and hail storms eroded earnings, which were below analyst estimates and a catalyst for a sharp drop in the company's shares Tuesday.
Separately, the company was hit with an adverse ruling in a long-running case involving asbestos-related claims of more than $500 million tied to the insurer's coverage of Johns-Manville Corp. decades ago.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed a 2012 ruling by a lower court. The ruling by the federal appellate court in New York directed Travelers to make the $500 million payment, plus interest.
"We are still reviewing the decision, but this is a matter we have disclosed for more than 10 years and we have contemplated this as a potential outcome in our reserving, although we do not have a provision for interest," a Travelers' spokesman said. The company estimated the interest at approximately $75 million, before taxes.
In afternoon trading, Travelers shares were down 4.3% at $91.15 amid gains in the broader equities market. With the decline, Travelers shares are up 0.7% in 2014.
One of the country's largest property-casualty insurers, Travelers often sets the tone for industry earnings that will be announced by its peers in the coming weeks. Analysts watch closely how it is maneuvering through a competitive price environment while low interest rates continue to put pressure on...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
Click here to read the Court Decision In Re: Johns-Manville Corporation et al, decided 7/22/2014
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