Workers' Compensation

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Workers’ Compensation Task Force meets

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from delaware.newszap.com

The Workers’ Compensation Task Force reconvened Friday to kick off a series of monthly meetings designed to further address the state of Delaware’s workers compensation premiums.

Four months earlier, the task force presentation an 18-point plan to reform the state’s increasing workers’ compensation. The plan was translated to legislation and signed into law in June.

“We have had some developments since we issued our report,” said Lt. Gov. Matthew Denn, the chairman of the 20-member task force.

Since 2007, the state has been working to cut back on high premium rates. Insurance legislation enacted in 2007, Senate Bill 1, included provisions to create a Health Care Advisory Panel (consisting mostly of health care personnel) to reform the payment system and develop practice guidelines for the most common workplace injuries, as well as create a Data Collections Committee. The reforms passed helped the state facilitate nearly a 40 percent decrease in rates, jumping from having the nation’s third most expensive workers compensation premiums in 2006 to the 34th most expensive by 2010, according to the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Premium Rate Ranking Summary.

But, the premium rate has skyrocketed since then, rising over 40 percent in two years.

The legislation, House Bill 175, addresses the task force’s four major workers compensation concerns.
Curbing the high workers compensation medical costs was a priority, so the...

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The uneven playing field of workers' compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Report Recommends Raising Workers' Compensation Premiums (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Will Labor's Marriage With Industry Result in A Major Workers' Compensation Opt-Out Movement? (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Workers compensation hike on California employers proposed (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
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ILO domestic worker rights treaty enters into force

The International Labor Organization [official website] Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189) [text] came into force [ILO press release] on Thursday, extending basic labor rights to workers in signatory countries. The convention became binding international law to a number of countries, prompting many to begin implementing legislative reforms aimed at improving domestic workers' labor and social rights. Approximately 53 million workers will be affected by the convention, which gives employees the right to claim basic rights, including days off each week, set hours and a minimum wage.

ILO member states Bolivia, Italy, Mauritius, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Philippines, South Africa and Uruguay have already ratified the convention. Costa Rica and Germany have begun the ratification process, while a number of other countries, including the US, have begun implementing labor laws and regulations.

According to a January ILO study [JURIST report], entitled Domestic Workers Across the World [text, PDF], domestic workers working for private households are vulnerable due to a lack of clear terms of employment, as well as their exclusion from labor legislation. Rights of domestic workers has been a controversial issue for years. Last September the Domestic Workers Convention was ratified [JURIST report] by enough countries to qualify to go...

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from jurist.org

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Domestic Workers Treaty Goes Into Force (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
ILO domestic worker rights treaty enters into force (jurist.org)
Domestic workers celebrate treaty (theguardian.com)
Domestic Workers Around The World To Get Labor Rights, But Not In The U.S. (thinkprogress.org)
Immigration Reform Can and Should Advance Labor Rights (prweb.com)
Domestic Workers Treaty Goes Into Force (hrw.org)

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Federal arbitration board orders FEMA to pay New Orleans Katrina responders

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from jurist.org

The US Civilian Board of Contract Appeals [official website] has ordered [text, PDF] the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)to pay the City of New Orleans [official websites] $10.8 million in connection to Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive] in 2005. The decision, issued last week, comes in response to a June 2012 request for arbitration by the City of New Orleans following a May 2012 decision by FEMA regarding:

The money reimbursement of one third of the city's regular time salary costs for its police, fire, and emergency medical services (EMS) first responders who performed emergency disaster response work during the first four months after Hurricane Katrina struck the city.

FEMA contended in a February 2012 e-mail to the City of New Orleans, and in a May 2012 decision letter, that according to pre-existing agency policy and procedure it was unable to provide funding. The Board rejected FEMA's argument, concluding that FEMA policy does not prohibit FEMA from providing reimbursement of regular pay incurred following a disaster. Numerous legal issues have sprung up in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. In 2012 the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit [official website] ruled [JURIST report] that the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) [official website] was not liable for damages caused by canal breaches that occurred during Hurricane Katrina.The ruling overturned a March decision by the same Fifth Circuit panel, which held that...

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Facing Fire Over Challenge to Louisiana's Oil Industry (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Government workers' compensation payments surge in New Orleans (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
BP ordered to pay $130 million to oil spill claims administrator (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
ILO domestic worker rights treaty enters into force (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Protective Equipment for Workers in Hurricane Flood Response (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Fashion Safety -- Mandating Sweat-Free Garment Labels: Feasible Under the First Amendment (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

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California bill limiting workers' comp claims by athletes advances

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

An effort by the National Football League and owners of other professional sports teams to limit workers' compensation claims by out-of-state athletes is close to final passage in the California Legislature.

The measure cleared the state Senate on Friday on a 34-2 vote. In May, it passed the Assembly on a 61-4 tally.

The proposal is expected to win final passage next week in the Assembly and to be on the governor's desk shortly after the scheduled Sept. 13 legislative recess.

Because of its liberally interpreted workplace injury laws, California has become the de facto forum of last resort for so-called cumulative trauma claims, including head injuries, by retired players. Many of them may have participated in just a handful of games in California over the course of their careers.

The crackdown on athletes' workers' compensation claims has been the focus of a major lobbying campaign by the NFL and other pro-sports leagues. Former athletes have filed more than 4,400 claims involving head and brain injuries since 2006.

Such claims represent an estimated potential $1-billion liability for the NFL alone.

The bill, AB 1309 by Assemblyman Henry T. Perea (D-Fresno), does not affect players who spent their careers with California-based football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer teams.

However, it bans claims from athletes who played for California teams for less than two seasons, and those who played for California teams at least two seasons but spent seven...

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The uneven playing field of workers' compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Brain injuries a big problem for NFL in California (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Workers compensation hike on California employers proposed (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
OK's True Cost Control Feature (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Move Over: Obesity as a medical condition is coming to workers' compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Cost Shifting vs. Cost Fixing (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

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Facebook Delays New Privacy Policy

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from bits.blogs.nytimes.com

Karen Bleier/Agence France-Presse
Getty Images

Facebook's proposed new privacy policy contained a shift in legal language that appeared to put the burden on users to ask Facebook not to use their personal data in advertisements.

proposed new privacy policy contained a shift in legal language that appeared to put the burden on users to ask Facebook not to use their personal data in advertisements.

Facebook has apparently decided to delay a proposed new privacy policy after a coalition of privacy groups asked the Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday to block the changes on the grounds that they violated a 2011 settlement with the regulatory agency.

A spokeswoman for the F.T.C. confirmed Thursday that the agency had received the letter but had no further comment.

In a statement published by The Los Angeles Times and Politico on Thursday afternoon, Facebook said, “We are taking the time to ensure that user comments are reviewed and taken into consideration to determine whether further updates are necessary and we expect to finalize the process in the coming week.”

Asked about the delay, a Facebook spokesman said he was unaware of the latest developments.
When it first announced the changes on Aug. 28, Facebook told its 1.2 billion users that the updates were “to take effect on September 5.”

The changes, while clarifying how Facebook uses some information about its users, also contained a shift in legal language that appeared to put the...

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A Limit on Consumer Costs Is Delayed in Health Care Law (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Facebook Disclosure for 87 Class Action Plaintiffs? Federal Court Denies Discovery Request (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
On Access and Accountability - Two Supreme Court Rulings on Generic Drugs (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Long Overdue Silica Dust Rule Issued, Final Action Must Be Swift, Says Trumka (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Federal arbitration board orders FEMA to pay New Orleans Katrina responders (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Tacking Health Care Costs Onto California Farm Produce (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

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Bill to protect texters who send messages to drivers is promised

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

A Republican assemblywoman from Monmouth County plans to introduce legislation to protect texters from being sued if they send a distracting message to a driver who gets into an accident.
The bill, authored by Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande, comes in response to last week’s groundbreaking decision by two state appeals court judges who said texters who send messages to someone they know is driving have a responsibility to other drivers.

“It is a sad state of affairs when a court believes that someone sending a text message can be held accountable if they have a special reason to know the recipient will be driving a vehicle and then read the message,” Casagrande said. “This legislation puts the responsibility where it belongs – in the front seat with the driver – not with the sender who can be held culpable for something beyond their control.”

Last week’s ruling was the result of an appeal by a couple who were riding a motorcycle through Morris County in September 2009 when they collided with a pickup truck that had just crossed over a double center line. The couple, David and Linda Kubert, each lost a part of a leg in the crash.
They sued driver Kyle Best of Wharton and Shannon Colonna, who sent Best a text message moments before the accident.

A three-judge panel tossed out claims against Colonna, saying there was no evidence to suggest she knew Best was driving. However, two members of the appellate panel said...

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In California, Renewed Debate Over Home Care (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Truck Drivers Beware - Your Insurance May Not be What You Think (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Speed Camera Enforcement Will Begin on Sepember 9th, the First Day of School (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
3 Responses for "What the Recent Data Breach Says About the State of Health IT" (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Mexican Consulate, Labor Dept. Partner On Worker Protection (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Judge Says Search Warrants for E-mails Must Be 'Limited' (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Drivers Over Age 55 Far More Likely to Die in Job Accidents Than Younger (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

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Saturday, September 7, 2013

Will Labor's Marriage With Industry Result in A Major Workers' Compensation Opt-Out Movement?

The recent emergence of an effort to create mandatory plant representation by organized Labor might be just the thing that tips traditional workers' compensation programs into oblivion. Emerging out of a recent unwinding of the economy, and failed welfare and retirement programs, is an effort to reorganize the US manufacturing sector.

"Volkswagen is working with the United Automobile Workers at its Chattanooga, Tenn., assembly plant on how to unionize the plant and create a German-style works council there, the president of the labor union said on Friday."

Read the complete article, "VW and Its Workers Explore a Union at a Tennessee Plant" (NY Times)

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Sunday, September 8, 2013