The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) draft risk evaluation of formaldehyde, released on March 15, 2024, raises significant concerns for worker health and worker compensation risk exposure.
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Monday, March 25, 2024
Friday, March 22, 2024
Asbestos Claimants Maybe be Impacted by US Supreme Court Decision
The recent Supreme Court oral arguments in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Gypsum Co. Inc. (22-1079) centered on the question of whether an insurer has the right to object to a debtor's reorganization plan under Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The outcome of this case will significantly impact how asbestos claims are handled in bankruptcy proceedings.
Monday, March 18, 2024
US Bans Asbestos
Tuesday, February 13, 2024
OSHA Fines Paterson NJ Contractor $1Million for Fall Violations
The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited a New Jersey contractor for again exposing workers to fall hazards, this time while working at a construction site in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey.
Tuesday, January 30, 2024
Long Overdue Public Safety Worker Coverage
Legislation has been reintroduced to provide workers’ compensation benefits for certain public safety workers who developed an occupational illness or injury flowing from the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. A closer look at the legislation reveals that it removes defenses such as causal relationship, statute of limitations, and jurisdiction. Complicated statutory and regulatory challenges may ultimately offset the benefits offered.
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Household Contact Awarded $30 Million Verdict for Mesothelioma
Employers have a responsibility not only to their employees but also to their household contacts, individuals who live in the employee’s home. Employees who are exposed at work may carry the toxic substances home on their clothes or their body.
Saturday, December 30, 2023
Top Blog Posts of 2023
It has been a busy year for the Workers' Compensation blog. This blog has had over 2 million views. Here is a list of the most popular posts in 2023.
Happy New Year!
Tuesday, December 19, 2023
NATIONAL CENSUS OF FATAL OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES IN 2022
There were 5,486 fatal work injuries recorded in the United States in 2022, a 5.7-percent increase from 5,190 in 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The fatal work injury rate was 3.7 fatalities per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers, up from 3.6 per 100,000 FTE in 2021. These data are from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI).
Monday, December 18, 2023
TSCA Update
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is beginning the process of prioritizing five additional toxic chemicals for risk evaluation under the nation’s premier chemical safety law. If, during the 12-month-long statutory process, the EPA designates these five chemicals as high-priority substances, the EPA will then begin risk evaluations for these chemicals.
Sunday, December 10, 2023
Analysis of the OSHA Report on Severe Injury: A Seven-Year Lookback
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published the "Severe Injury Report: A Seven-Year Lookback" summarizing employer-reported inpatient hospitalizations, amputations, and eye losses from 2015 to 2021. This report provides valuable insights into the prevalence and nature of severe workplace injuries, helping identify areas for improvement in workplace safety.
Wednesday, November 8, 2023
Toxic Flight Attendant Uniforms Result in a $1.1 Million Verdict
Wearing an employer-designated work uniform shouldn’t result in severe and debilitating occupational exposures. Unfortunately, some American Airlines flight attendants suffered injuries from wearing the flight uniforms prescribed by their employer. The lawsuit that they filed lawsuit resulted in a $1.1 Million award.
Thursday, October 26, 2023
Preparing for the Next Epidemic of Occupational Disease
A recently published standard establishes minimum requirements to reduce the risk of disease transmission by exposure to infectious aerosols in new buildings, existing buildings, and major renovations.
Friday, October 20, 2023
New EPA Rule Will Lighten the Burden of Proving an Asbestos-Related Disease Claim
In many occupational asbestos claims, it has been challenging to establish that asbestos fiber was used in the workplace. That will soon change under recently announced US Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] Rules.
Monday, October 16, 2023
Wayne NJ Contractor Fined $180K for Exposing Workers to Energized Power Lines
The U.S. Department of Labor has entered into a settlement agreement with a New Jersey building contractor who allowed their subcontractors' employees to work in close proximity to high-voltage power lines at a Paterson work site in 2021 and 2022.
Saturday, September 23, 2023
Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Occupational Exposure to Cellphone Radiation
Last week, the French government requested that Apple stop selling the iPhone 12 model because of excessive radiation detected during recent tests. The Agence National des Fréquences [ANFR] stated that “…Apple must immediately take all measures to prevent the availability on the market of the phones concerned present in the supply chain. Regarding phones already sold, Apple must take corrective measures as soon as possible to make the phones concerned compliant. Otherwise, it will be up to Apple to recall them.”
Tuesday, August 8, 2023
The Long Legacy of COVID-19 Disability
The legacy of the COVID-19 pandemic persists. There exists a continuing need for long-term treatment and disability. While state benefit systems such as workers’ compensation have made an admirable attempt in many jurisdictions to provide benefits, a significant gap and non-uniform delivery of benefits continue to exist among jurisdictions. Federal efforts are expanding to provide necessary research and treatment protocol resources.
Saturday, July 29, 2023
OSHA Issues Extreme Heat Hazard Alert
The U.S. Department of Labor announced that it's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued a heat hazard alert to remind employers of their obligation to protect workers against heat illness or injury in outdoor and indoor workplaces.
Friday, July 28, 2023
President Biden Announces New Actions to Protect Workers from Extreme Heat
Millions of American workers are currently experiencing the effects of extreme heat, which is growing in intensity, frequency, and duration due to the climate crisis. President Biden requests the Department of Labor to issue Hazard Alerts for Heat and take other actions to protect workers from extreme heat.
Thursday, July 13, 2023
OSHA Cites Main Line Contractor Corp. of Newark NJ for 21 Violations and $333,052 in Penalties
A series of inspections by the U.S. Department of Labor has found a Newark-based construction contractor defying federal safety regulations by exposing employees to more than 20 violations, including potentially deadly falls, at six southern and central New Jersey work sites in early 2023.
Tuesday, July 11, 2023
EPA Seeks Reporting of Asbestos Fibers
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final rule to require comprehensive reporting on all six fiber types of asbestos as the agency continues its work to address exposure to this known carcinogen and strengthen the evidence that will be used to protect people from this dangerous chemical further. Historically asbestos, a known carcinogen, has been present in workplaces causing significant occupational exposures to workers, sometimes fatal, and has generated a long wave of workers’ compensation claims.