Are Driving Distractions Within the Course of the Employment?

The US Department of Transportation recently held a national summit on the issues arising from distracted driving. The facts presented were certainly convincing that distracted driving is a leading cause of accidents.   

• Distracted driving is dangerous. Distraction from cell phone use while driving (hand held or hands free) delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. (University of Utah)
• Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent. (Carnegie Mellon)
  
• 80 percent of crashes are related to driver inattention. There are certain activities that may be more dangerous than talking on a cell phone. However, cell phone use occurs more frequently and for longer durations than other, riskier behaviors. Thus, the #1 source of driver inattention is cell phones. (Virginia Tech 100-car study for NHTSA)
  
• Drivers that use handheld devices are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
  
• Nearly 6,000 people died in 2008 in crashes involving a distracted or inattentive driver, and more than half a million were injured. (NHTSA)
• Research shows that the worst offenders are the youngest and least experienced drivers: men and women under 20 years of age. (NHTSA)
  
• On any given day in 2008, more than 800,000 vehicles were driven by someone using a hand-held cell phone. (National Safety Council)

Kristin Backstrom, AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, testified that, “People who wouldn't get drunk and drive somehow think it's OK to text and drive - which is just as dangerous.

Public policy has always swayed the direction of the legislature. The facts surrounding distracted driving  will probably no exception. Whether this activity can be considered by the courts, as "arising out of and in the course of the employment," or whether the legislature will merely bar compensability if distracted driving is a cause of an accident, has yet to be determined. 
.........
For more on "distracted driving" please click here.

Distracted Driving Accidents Echo Intoxication Caused Injuries

The New England Journal of Medicine reports that the activism against driving while intoxicated is beginning to be mirrored in distracted driving crashes. This parallel will probably cause workers' compensation courts and state legislature to shortly revisit the compensability of certain claims caused by employees who engage in distracted driving and will likely bar them from eligibility as workers compensation claims.


"As cell phone technology improved, texting while driving, which necessitates taking one’s eyes off the road, also became a major concern. The new term 'distracted driving' encompasses many behaviors that divert attention from driving, hampering awareness and performance and increasing risk."


The moral outrage being generated from distracted driving behavior will most likely mandate the imposition of technological changes to restrict cell phone use in moving vehicles. While that technology is being developed and deployed, workers and their employers should take heed of the growing public policy against such conduct.

Related articles

• When the Boss Calls (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Risks Increase From Cell Phone Use (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Face Liability For Cell Phone Accidents (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• National Cell Phone Ban Proposed by Congress (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Police ticket 29 distracted drivers in Alberta over long weekend (calgaryherald.com)

Employers Face a Triple Legal Threat for Distracted Driving Claims

Employers usually make an "after the fact" reaction to cell phone use that the result in distracted driving accidents. The mounting liability for employers, a triple economic threat, may soon change their attitude to adopt an improved cell phone safety culture.

Employers who have no policy in-place or enforcement protocol, passive or active, seem to be in the majority according to a recently released survey conducted by ZoomSafer Inc. The company offers several products to actively stop cellphone use while driving. Their survey of over 500 business managers reveals that 32% of companies have knowledge or evidence of vehicle cashes that have occurred as a result of distractions stemming from employee use of cell phone while driving.  Of  the 54% of the companies with a defined cell phone policy, more than half, 27.3%, created that policy only after an incident occurred.

Employers are now faced with a triple threat of legal actions including: workers' compensation claims from their employees, liability law suits from the innocent individual who was injured, and now an OSHA fine. It is anticipated that these economic  factors will have a major impact in creating an improved cellphone safety culture.

For over 3 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.

Related articles

• OSHA To Fine Employers for Distracted Driving Accidents (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• CDC Urges Employers to Prohibit Cell Phone Use While Driving (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Click It or Ticket Campaign --- May 23--June 5, 2011 (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• MIT studies how age affects distracted driving (autoblog.com)

Truck Crash That Kills 11 Results in Call For A National Cellphone Ban

Citing distraction from the use of a mobile phone by the driver of an 18-wheel semi truck as the probable cause of a crash that killed 11 people, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended banning the use of mobile phones by commercial drivers except in emergencies. Accidents arising from the use of cell phone are resulting major liability & workers' compensation problems for employers.

"Distracted driving is becoming increasingly prevalent, exacerbating the danger we encounter daily on our roadways," said NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman. "It can be especially lethal when the distracted driver is at the wheel of a vehicle that weighs 40 tons and travels at highway speeds."

On March 26, 2010, at about 5:14 a.m. CDT, near Munfordville, Kentucky, a truck-tractor semitrailer combination unit driven by a 45-year-old male departed the left lane of southbound Interstate 65, crossed a 60-foot-wide median, struck and overrode a cable barrier system, entered the northbound travel lanes, and struck a 15-passenger van, driven by a 41-year-old male and occupied by 11 passengers (eight adults, two small children, and an infant). The truck driver and 10 of the 12 occupants of the van were killed.

Investigators determined that the driver used his mobile phone for calls and text messages a total of 69 times while driving in the 24-hour period prior to the accident. The driver made four calls in the minutes leading up to the crash, making the last call at 5:14 a.m. CDT, coinciding with the time that the truck departed the highway.

The Safety Board also determined that the median barrier system, which had recently been installed following another cross-median fatal accident on the same section of I-65, contributed to the severity of the accident because it was not designed to redirect or contain a vehicle of the accident truck's size. Because median crossover accidents involving large vehicles are so deadly, the NTSB made recommendations regarding the use of appropriately designed median barriers on roadways with high volumes of commercial vehicles.

At the meeting today, the NTSB issued 15 new safety recommendations to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), all 50 states, and the District of Columbia. The Safety Board also reiterated two previously issued recommendations to the FMCSA.

A synopsis of the NTSB report, including the probable cause, findings, and a complete list of all the safety recommendations, is available on the NTSB's website. The NTSB's full report will be available on the website in several weeks.

RELATED MATERIAL

Board meeting announcement (9/8/11)

Investigative update (5/14/10)

Launch of investigative team to accident site (3/26/10)

Related articles

• Board Urges Cellphone Ban for All Commercial Drivers (nytimes.com)
• Illinois Bar Some Criminal Violators From Receiving Compensation Benefits http://hr.blr.com/
• National Cell Phone Ban Proposed by Congress (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Distracted Driving Accidents Echo Intoxication Caused Injuries (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• When the Boss Calls (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Face Liability For Cell Phone Accidents (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Risks Increase From Cell Phone Use (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• NTSB Truck Crash Investigation: A Day Late and Eleven Lives Short (zoomsafe.com)

Employers Face Liability For Cell Phone Accidents

Accidents resulting from the use of cell phones at work shift liability to to the employer. Todd Clement, an expert trial lawyer from Dallas TX, in a recent interview, explains why employers are going to paying damages for distracted driving accidents involving their employees.

Multiple claims can be made following a work-related distracted driving accident caused by an employee's use of a cell phone. Those claims include an action by an employee, the who used the cell phone, against the employer for workers' compensation benefits. Since the system is a "no fault" program, the employer becomes liable for the payment of benefits to the employee inclusing: temporary, medical and permanent benefits.

Claims can also be made by the passenger (co-employee) against the employer under the workers' compensation act. Also, anyone else injured may also file a liability claim against the employer for their employee's distracted driving conduct.

In some jurisdictions claims may also exist an employer directly by an employee for the employer's failure to maintain a safe workplace. In many jurisdictions, if The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cites an employer for maintaining an unsafe workplace, the employee may also be subject to OSHA files. Those violations may also be evidence used against the employer to establish proof that the employee did indeed maintain an unsafe workplace.

Related articles

• Employers Face a Tripple Legal Threat for Distracted Driving Claims (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• OSHA To Fine Employers for Distracted Driving Accidents (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• CDC Urges Employers to Prohibit Cell Phone Use While Driving (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Accidents Caused by Fatiguing Employment Require a Remedy (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• IARC To Issue Report on Cell Phones (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Dr. David Michaels Discusses OSHA's Efforts to Stop Texting While Driving

Employee Penalized For Not Following Safety Rules

An employee's workers' compensation award maybe be reduced for failing to follow an employer's safety rules. A Missouri Court ruled that reducing an injured employee's award by 25% to 50% for failing to follow an employer's safety rules was not unconstitutional.

This ruling may have widespread application in many situations including distracted driving claims, where an employee sustains an accident while using a cell phone in violation of an employer's cell phone policy. The employer woud still remain responsible for the reduced award and, of course, subject to a 3rd part law suit by a potential 3rd party.

The reduction rule actually places fault back into the workers' compensation system which both violates the intent of the Act . Such a policy does not compensate for the reduced values (awards) anticipated and prescribed under the workers' compensation act. While the the logic seems to rational, the application further emasculates the intent of workers' compensation. It would be far more logical to put the cart before the horse, and work to prevent the unsafe work condition in the first place. Shifting responsibility to the injured worker is not consistent with the act's intent.

Thompson v. ICI American Holding, 2011 WL 3444008 (Mo.App. W.D.) Decided, August 9, 2011
For over 3 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.

Related articles

• National Cell Phone Ban Proposed by Congress (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Risks Increase From Cell Phone Use (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Bad Faith Claims Maybe Going to the Jury (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Distracted Driving Increases Workers' Compensation Risks (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Cell Phones and Cancer: The Static in the Debate (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

Distracted Driving - Time To Revisit Compensability Issues

The Attorney General of the State of New Jersey reported today that there has been a surge of 26% in reported accidents attributed to "distracted driving." While the enforcement effort has been made some headway in leveling off the statistics, a question remains whether it is time to change the compensability rules in workers' compensation to prohibit claims if the employee was texting while driving.
Acting Attorney General John Hoffman today announced the staggering toll driver inattention has taken on New Jersey’s roadways in the past 10 years, declaring that the State experienced a “distracted driving decade” and that an ongoing law enforcement initiative is working to help end the crisis.
From 2004 to 2013, driver inattention was a major contributing circumstance in 1.4 million crashes in New Jersey – that is about half of the total crashes in the state in that period. Distraction was the number one contributing circumstance in total crashes. And in one decade (2003-2012), more than 1,600 people have been killed in crashes where driver inattention was a major contributing factor.
“The numbers tell the sad truth: we are in the midst of a surge in driver inattention, and crash statistics bear out that we can characterize the last 10 years simply as ‘New Jersey’s Distracted Driving Decade,’” said Hoffman. “What is perhaps most troubling about these numbers is that the issue of distracted driving seems to be getting progressively worse. Our research indicates that while crashes and fatalities are trending downward as a whole, the number and proportion of distracted crashes are rising.”
At the beginning of the “Distracted Driving Decade” in 2004, driver inattention was cited as a major contributing circumstance in 42 percent of crashes. But that number has risen in those 10 years and last year it peaked at 53 percent. And the proportion of distracted crashes has surged 26 percent in that time span.
“In recent years smartphones and other devices have become more sophisticated and it’s clear to most of us that they’re being used more by drivers,” said Acting Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety Gary Poedubicky. “Though the overall picture of road safety is brightening, one cannot help but conclude that there is an increasing addiction to distraction for drivers. We need to put an end to the epidemic of driver inattention and close the book on the ‘Distracted Driving Decade.’”
In an effort to stop distracted driving, the Division of Highway Traffic Safety has for the first time made funds available to law enforcement agencies for a statewide crackdown on motorists who are using a handheld device while driving, which is illegal in New Jersey. Sixty police departments received $5,000 each for the campaign called U Drive. U Text. U Pay. and the funds will be used to pay for checkpoints and increased patrols. Many more enforcement agencies are also expected to participate unfunded in the initiative, which was funded and developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
About halfway through the three-week campaign, which runs from April 1 to 21, the funded departments have issued an estimated 3,000 summonses for cell phone and electronic device violations.
“People need to know that we are serious about stopping this deadly behavior,” said NHTSA Region 2 Administrator Thomas M. Louizou. “Using a handheld phone and texting has reached epidemic levels. When you text or talk on the phone while driving, you take your focus off the road. That puts everyone else’s lives in danger, and no one has the right to do that.”
The crackdowns are similar in scope to the Drive Sober, or Get Pulled Over and Click It or Ticket mobilizations, which have targeted impaired driving and seat belt usage, respectively. Louizou said the successes of those programs have proven that the combination of tough laws, targeted advertising, and high-visibility enforcement can change people’s risky traffic safety behaviors.
To see a list of agencies receiving funding for this initiative please visit:www.nj.gov/oag/hts/downloads/UDUTUP_2014_Grant_Recipients.pdf
This increased police presence on the roads will soon be paired with stepped up penalties for breaking the State’s primary cell phone law. Currently, motorists violating New Jersey’s primary cell phone law face a $100 fine plus court costs and fees. Because of a new law signed by Governor Chris Christie last year, penalties for that transgression will get stiffer. On July 1, those penalties will rise to a range of $200 to $400 for a first offense, $400 to $600 for a second, and up to $800 and three insurance points for subsequent violations. These changes follow the adoption in 2012 of the “Kulesh, Kubert and Bolis Law.” Under that law, proof that a defendant was operating a hand-held wireless telephone while driving a motor vehicle may give rise to the presumption that the defendant was engaged in reckless driving. Prosecutors are empowered to charge the offender with committing vehicular homicide or assault when an accident occurs from reckless driving.
Joining Acting Attorney General Hoffman’s call to end distracted driving was Gabriel Hurley. Hurley, 29, was severely injured in a 2009 crash that left him blind and with extensive damage to his face and skull. Hurley sustained his injuries when an oncoming car collided into an underpass while he was entering it. The impact caused the other car’s air-conditioning compressor to come flying into his windshield. Hurley, of Middlesex, said he believed the 17-year-old driver had been inattentive behind the wheel at the time of the crash.
After an extensive recovery period, which included more than a dozen facial reconstructive surgeries, he began a career as a safe driving advocate and has spoken to thousands of drivers, most of them in high school, about the consequences of reckless and inattentive driving.
“The course of my life was altered in that crash,” Hurley said. “I have lost my sense of sight and smell and suffered other physical and emotional damage. However, I believe what happened gave me a purpose to tell everyone that crashes like mine are preventable and we can stop them by simply focusing on the task at hand when we’re behind the wheel.”

Read more about distracted driving:

Elite Drivers Provide Tips for Work Zone Awareness Week

Apr 10, 2014

Stay Alert and Avoid Distracted Driving – Work zones present extra challenges and obstacles. Motorists need to pay attention to the road and their surroundings. – Schedule your trip with plenty of extra time. Expect delays and ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

OSHA To Fine Employers for Distracted Driving Accidents

Apr 18, 2011

OSHA has announced an aggressive program to combat "The Number 1 Killer of Workers," Distracted Driving. The announcement was made today by Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor of the Occupational ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

US Publishes Guidelines to Minimize Distracted Driving

May 29, 2013

Transportation accidents rank on the top of the list for worker fatalities. Now the federal government is attempting to reduce that number by restricting distractions while driving.driving. Voluntary guidelines reduce ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Apple Is Moving Distracted Driving ...

Jun 13, 2013

Transportation (DOT) have made major efforts over the last few years to target distracted driving as a major safety issue to avoid serious accidents and ultimately save lives and reduce insurance costs. The DOT reports ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

When the Boss Calls

The use of cells phones while driving still remains a serious problem as drivers continue to ignore laws throughout the country. Unenforced and unenforceable laws throughout the nation aren't meeting the well intentioned goal of restricting their use. A major excuse is the need to use it for work and my "boss" required the employee to use it.

The epidemic of distracted driving continues to spread. Economic consequences are not yet frequent enough and severe enough to change the culture of abuse. Industry still hasn't taken the bold steps required to solve the problem.

Even though the genie of the "car phone" is out of the bottle, carefully engineered technology can resolve the problem. The same companies that brought us the unhealthy combination of cell phones and distracted driving can engineer the cure.

Employers seem to lack the economic motivation to take action. Employers who insit on their use for employment reasons can be compared to those employers who remove a machine guard to increase production at the cost of injury. It is senseless and tragic to insist that employees are required to us cellphones for employment. It is time that mandatory technology safeguards be implemented to curb abuse and avoid trajic and unnecessary accidents.

Related articles

• Employers Risks Increase From Cell Phone Use (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• National Cell Phone Ban Proposed by Congress (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Distracted Driving Increases Workers' Compensation Risks (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Face Liability For Cell Phone Accidents (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Cell Phones and Cancer: The Static in the Debate (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

Cell Phones Usage For Commercial Interstate Drivers to be Banned

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) proposes to restrict the use of hand-held mobile telephones, including hand-held cell phones, by drivers of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) while operating in interstate commerce. Cell phones have become a major cause of distracted driving accidents resulting in an increase of workers' compensation claims by employees as well as liability lawsuits against employers directly.

Read the proposed Federal Rule: Final Rule: Drivers of CMVs: Restricting the Use of Cellular Phones

"FMCSA and PHMSA are amending the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) and the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) to restrict the use of hand-held mobile telephones by drivers of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs). This rulemaking will improve safety on the Nation’s highways by reducing the prevalence of distracted driving-related crashes, fatalities, and injuries involving drivers of CMVs. The Agencies also amend their regulations to implement new driver disqualification sanctions for drivers of CMVs who fail to comply with this Federal restriction and new driver disqualification sanctions for commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders who have multiple convictions for violating a State or local law or ordinance on motor vehicle traffic control that restricts the use of hand-held mobile telephones. Additionally, motor carriers are prohibited from requiring or allowing drivers of CMVs to use hand-held mobile telephones." read more...

.......

For over 3 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.

Related articles

• Distracted Driving Accidents Echo Intoxication Caused Injuries (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Face Liability For Cell Phone Accidents (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employee Penalized For Not Following Safety Rules (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Distracted Driving Increases Workers' Compensation Risks (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employers Risks Increase From Cell Phone Use (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Cell Phones and Cancer: The Static in the Debate (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• National Cell Phone Ban Proposed by Congress (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

The Next Wave of Workers Compensation Claims: WHO Calls Cell Phones a Potential Cancer Risk

After years of review, the World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the radio frequencies utilized by cell phones as possibly carcinogenic to human thereby opening the door to potential wave of workers' compensation occupational disease claims for  cancer of the brain. The increase risk has been identified for glioma, a malignant type of brain cancer .

The research has been mounting concern about the possibility of adverse health effects resulting from exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields, such as those emitted by wireless phones. The number of mobile phones in use is estimated at 5 billion annually. The Working Group did not quantitate the risk; however, one study of past cell phone use (up to the year 2004), showed a 40% increased risk for gliomas in the highest category of heavy users (reported average: 30 minutes per day over a 10‐year period).

The WHO/International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has been meeting from May 24 through May 31 in Lyon, France to access the potential carcinogenic hazards from exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields.

The IARC Monograph Working Group discussed and evaluated the available literature on the following exposure categories involving radiofrequency electromagnetic fields:

•  occupational exposures to radar and to microwaves; 
•  environmental exposures associated with transmission of signals for radio, television and wireless telecommunication; and 
•  personal exposures associated with the use of wireless telephones. 

A report summarizing the main conclusions of the IARC Working Group and the evaluations of the carcinogenic hazard from radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (including the use of mobile telephones) will be published in The Lancet Oncology in its July 1st issue.

Cells phones have emerged as a significant issue in workers' compensation claims since their use has been a major cause of distracted driving resulting in many serious and fatal accidents on the job. The WHO/IARC report has the potential of causing a major new wave of workers' compensation claims for cancer.


For over 3 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.

Related articles

• CDC Urges Employers to Prohibit Cell Phone Use While Driving (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• CDC Urges Employers to Prohibit Cell Phone Use While Driving(workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Symposium on Prevention of Occupationally-Related Distracted Driving (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• WHO to assess cell phones' link to cancer(seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• WHO to assess link between cellphones and cancer (ctv.ca)
• Talking about brain cancer (nationalpost.com)

Employers Now Banning Cell Phone Use

A recent survey reflects increase employer concern over cell phone use while driving. Such written policies may encourage courts to bar employees who engage in such activity from recovery under workers' compensation laws.


Click here to read the survey results: 

Companies Increasingly Concerned About Employee Use of Cell Phones While Driving

"The number of commercial fleet operators that have adopted written policies pertaining to employee use of cell phones while driving on-the-job has increased 29% in the past year – from 62% to 80% – according to the second annual survey of more than 900 transportation and fleet professionals conducted by ZoomSafer."

Related articles

• House passes statewide ban on using cell phone while driving (suntimes.com)
• LaHood calls for federal ban on using cell phones while driving (news.cnet.com)
• Law to Ban Medical Expense Claims Proposed (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• OSHA Fines NJ Employer For Unsafe Conditions (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

Privacy: Cell Phone Not Protected From Search

A Federal Court of Appeals has ruled that data stored on a cell is not protected from a governmental search and inspection. Over the last few years the privacy of e-mail was called into question, however the now the permitter of permitted inspection has expanded to include the data store of cell phones, whether it be photos or text.

"We conclude that the Stored Communications Act, which prohibits accessing without authorization a facility through which an electronic communication service is provided and thereby obtaining access to an electronic communication while it is in electronic storage, does not apply to data stored in a personal cell phone."

Fannie Garcia v City of Orlando (No. 11-41118) (5th Cir 2012) Decided 12/12/12

Read more about "privacy"

Workers' Compensation: Privacy: Why Injured Workers Are Stalked ...
Apr 30, 2012Privacy: Why Injured Workers Are Stalked With Junk Mail and Nuisance Calls. Data sharing is a major problem and its effect on injured workers is becoming more acute. When injured workers contact providers for "more ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Privacy, Clients and Social Media DiscussionApr 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/

Facebook, Organ Donations and Medical Privacy of Workers ..May 07, 2012
The announcement of Facebook to allow for the public listing of organ donors of it social media site, albiet with good intentions, raises concerns about the privacy of workers' compensation claims as the organs could become ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Major California Medical Record Privacy Breach DisclosedAug 23, 2011
The lack privacy of medical records in workers' compensation claims has perpetually been a huge concern for workers since Congress ignored requests to protect their dissemination. A recent disclosure in California that the ...
http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Related articles

• Italy's Supreme Court Rules Cell Phone Brain Cancer Work Related (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Employee Termination Because of Facebook Comment Does Not End Workers' Compensation Benefits (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• The New Reality |As goes the Labor market, so goes workers compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• US Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument on Workplace Harassment Case (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

Federal Cell Phone Rules Compliance Guide Published

Distracted Driving remains a serious problem in the workplace and now the Federal government is taking enforcement actions to a new level. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) recently announced Rules that it is prohibiting the use of hand-held cell phones by interstate truck and bus drivers.

As the Rules take effect is is anticipated that many states will adapt these changes.  For those who use prohibited devices in the course of their employment and are involved in accidents may ultimately be denied workers' compensation benefits and employer liability will result. ZoomSafer has now published a compliance guide.

See:  FMCSA Cell Phone Rules: A Compliance Guide for Truck and Bus Fleets

Related articles

• Cell Phones Usage For Commercial Interstate Drivers to be Banned (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• NHTSA Revises Methods for Distracted-Driving Data Collection (news.onlineautoinsurance.com)
• NTSB Advocates Adoption of Cell-Phone Ban in All 50 States (news.onlineautoinsurance.com)

Cell Phone Hearing Use Results in $1.2 Million in Compensation Benefits

The use of a Blackberry cellphone that reportedly caused tinnitus has resulted in the payment of $1.2 Million in workers' compensation benefits. 

Cell phone injuries have been linked medically by published studies. "The authors warn users of cell phones to look out for ear symptoms such as ear warmth, ear fullness, and ringing in the ears (tinnitus) as early warning signs of an auditory abnormality."

Tinnitus describes a condition of "ringing in the ears." Individuals often describe the sound as a hum, buzz, roar, ring, or whistle. The predominant cause of tinnitus is long-term exposure to high sound levels, though it can also be caused by short-term exposure to very high sound levels, such as gunshots. Non-acoustic events, such as a blow to the head, dietary issues, stress, jaw joint disorders, debris on the eardrum, or prolonged use of aspirin may also cause tinnitus.The inner ear or neural system produces the actual sound.

Exposure to excessive noise in the workplace has been recognized as a major health hazard, one that can impair not only a person's hearing, but also his physical and mental well-being. workplace first affects the ability to hear high-frequency or high-pitched sounds.  Workers suffering from noise-induced hearing loss may also experience continual ringing in the ears, called "tinnitus".  In addition, workers who are exposed to noise sometimes complain of nervousness, sleeplessness and fatigue.

Other cases have also been reported for workers' compensation benefits as a result of the use of a telephone. An injured worker was employed at New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Company for approximately six years as a customer service representative who spoke with customers on the telephone.  A pre-employment physical, which included a hearing test, demonstrates no hearing difficulties or other medical issues.  During the course of her employment, renovations were conducted at the employer's office and she testified that she heard loud drilling and that her desk vibrated and she had difficulty hearing customers on the telephone.  While medical evaluations reflected no statutory hearing loss pursuant to the form of the occupational Hearing Loss Act, the expert physician did recognize a 5% loss due to tinnitus.  The trial judge concluded that the tinnitus disability was significant and distracted from the former efficiency of her ears and distracted from her ordinary pursuits of life.  The reviewing Court held that tinnitus and supported by the appropriate proofs was a permanent partial disability and was compensable irrespective of whether the employee also suffers a hearing loss compensable under the OHLA.  Schorpp-Replogle v. New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Company, 395 N.J.Super. 277, 928 A.2d 885 (App.  Div. 2007).

.....
For over 3 decades the Law Offices of Jon L. Gelman1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered work related accident and injuries.

Related articles

• Federal Cell Phone Rules Compliance Guide Published (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Workers' Compensation: Are Second Injury Funds Going to be History Soon? (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• The Law School's Roll in Workers' Compensation Law To Be Discussed (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

NIOSH Supports Efforts To Ban Distracted Driving

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is following the lead of the US Department of Labor by encouraging employers to ban cell phone use while operating vehicles. An outright prohibition and supporting legislation may lead to the prohibition of workers' compensation benefits in many jurisdictions in the near future unless more global and radical action is taken to re-mediate this dangerous activity.

“While the basic distractions of cell phone calls or text messaging are similar whether one is driving on work time or on personal time, there are sources of distraction and incentives to engage in distracted driving behaviors that are unique to the workplace,” noted John Howard, M.D., Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). “Someone driving on personal time has the leisure of waiting to return a friend’s call or text message. In these situations, minimizing risk is a matter of changing personal behavior and habits,” Dr. Howard said. “Workers, however, may be required or pressured by job demands to engage in distracted driving behaviors. Strong employer policies to curb the use of cell phones and in-vehicle technologies while driving are an important tool in creating a safe driving culture within an organization.”

Dr. Howard added, “NIOSH applauds the efforts of the Departments of Transportation and Labor to highlight the important role public and private employers can play in reducing distracted driving. We join them in urging employers to set policies to prohibit text messaging while driving. In addition, NIOSH will continue to work with our federal and other partners to support further efforts to reduce distracted driving in the workplace.”

.....

For over 3 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 work related accident and injuries.

Related articles

• The Trend to Exclude Distracted Driving From Workers' Compensation Coverage (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Cell Phone Safety and Workers Compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• New Distracted Driving Video Serves as Wake-Up Call for Employers (eon.businesswire.com)

Distracted Driving Workers Compensation Claim Draws Major Public Attention

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 media attention. An effort to hold a hearing, "on the sly with no press," before the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission is now receiving coverage by news organizations including; the Associated Press, the Belleville News Democrat, the Courthouse News Service, and the ABA Journal. 


Accidents caused by distracted driving are creating an emerging challenge for workers' compensation court to adjudicate. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is following the lead of the US Department of Labor by encouraging employers to ban cell phone use while operating vehicles. An outright prohibition and supporting legislation may lead to the prohibition of workers' compensation benefits in many jurisdictions in the near future unless more global and radical action is taken to re-mediate this dangerous activity.

The state trooper pleaded guilty to two counts of reckless homicide last year. He has since resigned from his job.


The attempt to conceal the hearing of the Illinois troop was the subject of internal e-mails reported by the Belleville News Democrat. Public commenting was removed from the on-line report because of abuses. No hearing date or location has been reported yet for the compensation hearing.

Related Articles:

NIOSH Supports Efforts to Ban Distracted Driving
Cell Phone Safety and Workers Compensation
The Trend to Exclude Distracted Driving from Workers Compensation Coverage
Put it Down - Friday April 30th
Driving While Distracted Compared to DUI
Are Driving Distractions Within the Course of Employment?
Employee Cell Phone Chat Results in $5.2 Million Payment to Widow by Employer