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(c) 2010-2026 Jon L Gelman, All Rights Reserved.

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Lung screening looks for lasting health effects from Hurricane Sandy

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from www.nj.com

Denise Hansen says that ever since Hurricane Sandy struck 10 months ago, she’s always tired, has had a lung infection and contracted a cough she never had before.

Exposed to mold for 7½ months even while she was displaced from her storm-ravaged home in Ortley Beach, Hansen wonders whether she’s developed what some are calling "Sandy Lung," from breathing in all kinds of unknown irritants unleashed by the storm.

So Hansen, along with more than 100 others, showed up at Toms River High School East yesterday to participate in an extensive screening for potential respiratory problems suspected of being brought on or exacerbated by Sandy.

"What also makes me nervous is they’re knocking homes down around me. I wonder what’s in the air," said Hansen, who was assured her lungs are clear. "Ten years from now, who knows? That’s what’s scary."

Because thousands of people like Hansen who are rebuilding post-Sandy may have been exposed to mold, asbestos and other potential toxins, the Deborah Heart and Lung Center — with a $625,000 grant from the Robin Hood Relief Fund — has been conducting free respiratory screenings in Ocean County to try to head off serious illness in the future.

After filling out a questionnaire, participants were directed to one of two folding tables where staff waited to take their blood pressure and slip a device on their index finger that uses light waves to measure the level of oxygen in their...
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Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson). 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.

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Workers’ Compensation No Longer The Exclusive Remedy: RICO On The Radar

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from www.insurancethoughtleadership.com


It appears that the exclusive remedy provision for workers' compensation will no longer serve to prevent costly civil litigation.

Workers' Compensation origins can be traced to the late Middle Ages and Renaissance times in the Unholy Trinity of Defenses, the doctrine that first outlined that work-related injuries were compensable. 

This doctrine began in Europe and made its way to America with the Industrial Revolution.  There were so many restrictions with it that changes occurred and led to the doctrine of Contributory Negligence which outlines that employers are not at fault for work-related injuries.

This principle was established in the United States with the case Martin vs. The U.S. Railroad. In this case, faulty equipment caused the injuries, but the employee did not receive compensation, as it was deemed that inspection of equipment was part of his job duties.

Additionally, the case Farnwell vs. The Boston Worchester Railroad Company led to the "Fellow Servant Rule" where employees did not receive compensation if their injuries were in any way related to negligence from a co-worker.

For a while, in the United States, we had the Assumption of Risk Doctrine that held employers were not liable for injuries because employees knew of job hazards when they signed their work contracts. By agreeing to work, they assumed all risks. These...
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Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson). 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.

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Friday, August 30, 2013

Texting a Message to A Driver Imposes Liability for an Accident

In an unanimous decision a NJ Appellate Court held a texter potentially liable for causing a motor vehicle accident:

"The issue before us is not directly addressed by these
statutes or any case law that has been brought to our attention.
"We must determine as a matter of civil common law whether one
who is texting from a location remote from the driver of a motor
vehicle can be liable to persons injured because the driver was
distracted by the text. We hold that the sender of a text
message can potentially be liable if an accident is caused by
texting, but only if the sender knew or had special reason to
know that the recipient would view the text while driving and
thus be distracted.

"In this appeal, we must also decide whether plaintiffs have
shown sufficient evidence to defeat summary judgment in favor of
the remote texter. We conclude they have not. We affirm the
trial court's order dismissing plaintiffs' complaint against the
sender of the text messages, but we do not adopt the trial
court's reasoning that a remote texter does not have a legal
duty to avoid sending text messages to one who is driving.

"We conclude that a person sending text messages has a 
duty not to text someone who is driving if the texter knows, or 
has special reason to know, the recipient will view the text 
while driving. But we also conclude that plaintiffs have not 
presented sufficient evidence to prove that Colonna had such 
knowledge when she texted Best immediately before the accident.

 LINDA KUBERT AND DAVID
KUBERT,
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
KYLE BEST, SUSAN R. BEST,
EXECUTRIX OF THE ESTATE OF
NICKOLAS J. BEST, DECEASED,
Defendants,
and
SHANNON COLONNA,

Defendant-Respondent.
SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY
APPELLATE DIVISION
DOCKET NO. A-1128-12T4
August 27, 2013
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Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson). 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.

 Read more about "texting" and workers' compensation:
Working While Texting: The New Workers Compensation Defense
Jul 31, 2009
New technology encroaching upon the workplace has been both a help and a hindrance. Recent studies add to the growing volumes of data reporting that the use of cell phones while driving provides a significant distraction ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Distracted Driving Workers Compensation Claim Draws Major Public
Feb 11, 2011
A workers compensation claim filed by a state trooper for injuries he sustained while texting and speeding 126 miles per hour that resulting in a fatal accident with oncoming teenagers, a driver and a passenger, has drawn ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
CDC Urges Employers to Prohibit Cell Phone Use While Driving
Apr 29, 2011
CDC urged employers to prohibit texting while driving. A safety initiative by employers will go along way to reducing workers' compensation costs. "What is already known on this topic? Highway transportation crashes are the ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Workers' Compensation: OSHA To Fine Employers for Distracted ...
Apr 18, 2011
Following the policy announced by President Obama in his Executive Order banning texting while driving, OSHA is calling upon all employers to ban texting while driving. It is the intention of OSHA to provide education and ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

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Social Media Passwords Off Limits to Employers

NJ Governor Chris Christie signed legislation that prohibits requirement to disclose user name, password, or other means for accessing account or service through electronic communications device by employers.

 See A2878

Read more about "social media" and workers' compensation:
Workers' Compensation: Facebook Disclosure for 87 Class Action ...
Aug 15, 2013
Social media accounts, typically Facebook, are currently a hot-button issue for plaintiff ESI production in civil litigation. Most courts (but not all!) require a threshold showing that the public account has relevant information that ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Workers' Compensation: Privacy, Clients and Social Media Discussion
Apr 14, 2011
Social networking has become a popular topic within the workers' comp community. In this edition of Workers' Comp Matters, host Attorney Alan S. Pierce, welcomes Attorney Jon L. Gelman, to take a look a social networking ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Workers' Compensation: Using Social Media to Expand Your ...
Jul 02, 2012
The Workers' Compensation and Workplace Injury Section, invites you to the 2012 AAJ (American Association for Justice) Annual Convention in Chicago. A goal of the Section is to provide for our members the best ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Why Injured Workers Should Deactivate Their Social Media Accounts
Dec 03, 2012
Recently, it seems as though everyone is connected through social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. These tools have become a great way to keep in touch with friends and family scattered all over the world.
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

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Recommended Reading for Back to School: APHA Publishes New Book on Bullying Prevention

Bullying `in the workplace leads to both emotional and traumatic residuals. Recently some high school athletic coaches and instructors were charged with such activity. Today's post was shared by RWJF PublicHealth and comes from www.rwjf.org


DoSomething.org, a service and information website aimed at getting teens involved in their communities, has some startling statistics on bullying:
  • About 160,000 teens skip school each year because of bullying
  • More than 3.2 million students are victims of bullying each year
  • 1 in 7 students in grades K-12 are either a bully or a victim of bullying
  • 71 percent of students report incidents of bullying as a problem at their school
Which is why a new book on bullying prevention, "A Public Health Approach to Bullying Prevention" from the American Public Health Association (APHA), is a welcome addition as the school year starts back up. The new book is intended as a resource for both parents and educators to help stem the problem of bullying at school.

“With its public health perspective and approach, this book can lead us steps closer to eliminating the physical and mental anguish that bullying has on our nation’s children and communities,” said Georges Benjamin, MD, executive director of the APHA. “The book’s collection of various perspectives offers a comprehensive tool for parents and professionals to ensure healthy and safe schools.”

The book includes successful bullying prevention efforts implemented in southwestern Pennsylvania schools and essays by professionals working to develop approaches that might implement similar success in other U.S. school communities. Authors include psychologists, educators, social workers and public health program...

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Read more about "bullying" and workers' compensation:
Legal Avenues Exist for Dealing with Workplace Bullying - Workers ...
Jan 17, 2013
Bullying isn't limited to the schoolyard. Bullying in the workplace is also a hot topic among employment lawyers and human-resource professionals. One study states that 35 percent of employees are bullied at work. In general ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Workers' Compensation: Bullying Shouldn't Be Taught in Schools
Nov 20, 2011
Schools systems are an essential source of education for our nation's future workforce. They become a farce when bullying is taught. The following is an editorial from the Star Ledger newspaper: Wayne Hills puts bullies ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/
Workers' Compensation: Student Athletes Should be Covered by ...
Apr 03, 2013
Bullying isn't limited to the schoolyard. Bullying in the workplace is also a hot topic among employment lawyers and human-resource professionals. One study states that 35 percent of employees are bullied at work. In general ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

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Why Are Fast Food Workers Walking Out Again?

Today's post was shared by Mother Jones and comes from www.motherjones.com


On Thursday, fast food workers around the country will walk off their jobs in what is expected to be the largest strike the $200 billion industry has ever seen.

Workers at McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, and KFC will strike in 50 cities—from Boston to Denver to Los Angeles—demanding a wage increase to $15 an hour. They will be joined by retail workers at stores like Macy’s, Victoria’s Secret, and Walgreens, and members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
The strikes follow a massive walkout by fast-food workers in July, and are the latest in an escalating series of strikes hitting the industry.

As we noted last month:

Many fast-food workers are paid at, or just above, the minimum wage. The federal minimum wage is $7.25, though it's higher in 18 states and the District of Columbia. Fast-food wages have fallen 36 cents an hour since 2010, even as the industry has raked in record profits.

This is part of an economy-wide problem; the bottom 20 percent of American workers—some 28 million employees—earn less than $9.89 an hour, or $20,570 a year for a full-time employee. Their income fell five percent between 2006 and 2012. Meanwhile, average pay for chief executives at the country's top corporations leaped 16 percent last year, averaging $15.1 million...

The mobilization of fast-food workers is a pretty new thing, because the industry has traditionally had high turnover. But the slow economic recovery, which has been...

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Two California Firms and Owner Agree to Settle Clean Air Act Violations Stemming From Illegal Import of Vehicles

Today's post was shared by US EPA News and comes from yosemite.epa.gov


Two Los Angeles-based consulting firms, MotorScience Inc., and MotorScience Enterprise Inc., (MotorScience) and their owner, Chi Zheng, have agreed to settle alleged Clean Air Act (CAA) violations stemming from the illegal import of 24,478 all-terrain, recreational vehicles into the U.S. from China without testing to ensure emissions would meet applicable limits on harmful air pollution, announced the Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Air Resources Board (ARB).

MotorScience and Zheng have agreed to have a stipulated judgment entered against them for a $3.55 million civil penalty and to pay an additional $60,000 civil penalty within six months. The United States will receive 80 percent of collected penalties, and California will receive the remaining 20 percent.


“This illegal importation of over 20,000 vehicles evaded federal emission standards, jeopardizing human health,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Engines operating without proper emissions controls can emit excess carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen which can cause respiratory illnesses, aggravate asthma and contribute to the formation of ground level ozone or smog.”

“Vehicles and engines that are...
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