Silca: New US DOL Rule to Protect Workers

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced a final rule to improve protections for workers exposed to respirable silica dust. The rule will curb lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease in America's workers by limiting their exposure to respirable crystalline silica.

US Supreme Court Reviews In The Course of Employment Issue

The US Supreme Court ruling in a recent wage and hour case solidified the principle that the time spent by workers to put on and remove safety equipment should be consider time "on the clock" and in the course of employment. This concept reaffirms basic workers' compensation case law that such activities are within the course of employment. The Supreme Court affirmed the lower court verdict awarding damages to the workers of $5.8 Million dollars for overtime wages.

Opting Out Creates Savings Reports Stanford Study

Today's post is shared from ssrn.com

The “grand bargain” of workers’ compensation, whereby workers relinquished the right to sue their employers in exchange for no-fault occupational injury insurance, was one of the great tort reforms of the Twentieth Century. However, there is one U.S. state that has always permitted employers to decline workers’ compensation coverage, and in which many firms (“nonsubscribers”) have chosen to do so: Texas. 

Expectations Must Adapt to Change

In the "old days" the US workers' compensation system,  meet or "exceeded exceptions." Looking backward we recognize an aggressive and dedicated work ethic, that the government, private industry and labor," managed to embrace into a "Grand Bargain" called Workers' Compensation. 

Times have changed. In the past the corporate and executive workplace was a formal "tie and jacket" environment. Seasoned member always gripe how things have changed for the worse and long for a return to the comforting and familiar "good old times." 

Water is Work - World Water Day March 22, 2016

Today's post is shared from .unwater.org and from cdc.gov Water is critical to work, health and safety.

World Water Day 2016, sponsored by the United Nations, is focused on water and jobs. Approximately half of workers around the world (1.5 billion persons) have jobs in water-related industries. Many industries rely on water to perform jobs, such as fishing, agriculture, manufacturing, and food service. Societies and economies depend on the men and women who work to keep the world’s drinking water safe.

OSHA: 50% of Employers Not Reporting Serious Injuries

Some employers are not reporting severe work-related injuries according to the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Over 50% or more are not being reported. 

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.