OSHA Moves to Protect Temporary Workers

OSHA launches initiative to protect temporary workers from injuries at work.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced an initiative to further protect temporary employees from workplace hazards. The announcement was made during a program at the department's headquarters marking Workers' Memorial Day – an annual observance to honor workers who have died on the job and renew a commitment to making work sites across the country safer.

Dr. David Michaels

OSHA today sent a memorandum to the agency's regional administrators directing field inspectors to assess whether employers who use temporary workers are complying with their responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Inspectors will use a newly created code in their information system to denote when temporary workers are exposed to safety and health violations. Additionally, they will assess whether temporary workers received required training in a language and vocabulary they could understand. The memo, which can be viewed at http://s.dol.gov/ZM, underscores the duty of employers to protect all workers from hazards.

"On Workers' Memorial Day, we mourn the loss of the thousands of workers who die each year on the job from preventable hazards," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "Many of those killed and injured are temporary workers who often perform the most dangerous jobs have limited English proficiency and are not receiving the training and protective measures required. Workers must be safe, whether they've been on the job for one day or for 25 years."

Workers' Compensation Has Become A Territorial Fight

As the nation's economy continues to struggle for upward movement, workers' compensation has become a political battlefield. Professional athletes have become a target as states attempt to pass legislation to restrict claims from visiting athletes.

"Controversial legislation that would restrict most professional athletes from out-of-state

teams from filing claims in California workers' compensation courts won overwhelming approval Thursday in the state Assembly.

Despite aggressive lobbying by professional football players and other athletes, the bill, AB 1309, passed 61 to 4. The measure now goes to the state Senate.

"Our workers' compensation system has been increasingly exploited by out-of-state professional players at the expense of California teams and all California businesses," said the bill's author, Assemblyman Henry T. Perea (D-Fresno). "The flood of claims are raising insurance costs for all employers."

See the complete article: Assembly OKs workers' comp bill to ban out-of-state athletes

Read more about "athletes" and workers' compensation

Hyde Park Corner - A New Place on Facebook for Discussions

Congratulations to my good friend, Stephen Embry, on the inauguration of his new page on Facebook to post  discussions about current topics, including workplace safety. His new page is called The Hyde Park Corner.

To commemorate the inauguration of The Hyde Park Corner,
I stopped by in London today to see and

hear what was happening actually at The Hyde Park Corner. 

I must say that things are a lot more significant and current on Steve's page. I would encourage you to visit it in the near future.

Intoxication, Work, And Workers' Compensation Don’t Mix

Today's post comes from guest author Paul J. McAndrew, Jr. from Paul McAndrew Law Firm of Iowa.

Most of us know that, for both professional reasons and in the interest of safety, remaining sober while on the job is essential. However, it is important to also recognize that workers who are intoxicated at the time that they sustain a work injury stand a far lower chance of ever collecting workers’ compensation.

If the blood test shows the presence of alcohol or drugs, odds that the employee will be able to collect workers’ compensation are much lower.

This is because of the intoxication defense: if an employer can prove that intoxication was the cause of the workers’ injury, then they employer is not required to provide workers’ comp for that injury. Now, there are some notable

Returning to Light-Duty Work - What, When, How and Why

Women making airplane wings, circa 1920. Seattle Municipal Archives

Today's post comes from guest author Kit Case from Causey Law Firm of Seattle, WA. Light duty issues can be a tricky area of workers' compensation law since most workers' compensation programs do not provide for a trial return to work period.

The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries encourages employers to offer light-duty positions to their injured workers - - the suggestion is written across the top of every time loss compensation order - - as early after an injury occurs as possible.  

The employer of an injured worker can offer shorter hours, a transitional job/job modifications or a new position entirely.  The pay scale can be at any rate at or above minimum wage.  In order to qualify as a valid job offer, a description of the position must be approved by a physician.  Once approved, the job must be offered, in writing, to the injured worker with specific details including the work schedule, rate of pay and person supervising the work.

If an injured worker declines a valid job offer, time loss compensation will end. 

If an injured worker declines a valid job offer, time loss compensation will end.  If the employer offers a return-to-work position that pays less than the workers’ time loss compensation rate, the worker will likely be eligible for partial compensation to make up the difference.  This benefit, called Loss of Earning Power (LEP) compensation, is based on a comparison of the pre-injury wage less the actual wages earned through return to work and pays 80% of the difference, up to a state-wide cap on compensation or the time loss compensation rate, whichever is less.

NJ Governor Christie to Propose Workers' Compensation Reform

The NJ Workers' Compensation system is in for a change. Governor Chris Christie of NJ is taking aim at reforming the NJ system.

In the past, unsuccessful major attempts to reform the State's workers' compensation

system have come from interest groups from outside of the State, ie. 1980's national insurance Industry (AIA) concerns. Now the focus is changing, and the proposals for reform will be coming from the the State's Chief Executive, a major coalition builder who has successfully tackled major legislative changes during his term in office.

Historical efforts on workers' compensation reform in NJ have been:

-1974 Following the NJ State Commission on Investigation "Report of the NJ Workmen's Compensation System"
-1980's Following the WCRI Study attempt to adopt AMA Medical Guidelines

-1998 An attempt to increase the calculation of the State Average Weekly Wage, Dependency      Benefits and Legislative Oversight

-2008 Following the NJ Star Ledger expose ("How NJ Fails Workers") on temporary and medical benefit issues

“'We’re going to be coming up with a package of proposals that’s going to work both sides of that,' Christie told a caller on his monthly NJ 101.5 FM radio show tonight.

'The employers who may not be stepping up and meeting their obligations and also the employees who are committing fraud on the worker’s comp system,' he said."

Click here to read the complete article:  Christie to present plan to reform N.J. worker's compensation system (NJ.com)

NASA: Safety Is Prime for Today's Launch of Antares

NASA is preparing for the launch of Orbital's Antares™ A-ONE Test Flight Mission scheduled for today at 5pm. I was a guest of NASA this week and toured the facility including the launch pad. Safety is prime for NASA and its corporate affiliates like Orbital.

Launching a space mission is a complex and massive operation. The balancing of public and mission safety concerns is extremely important. Besides the ordinary employee safety issues such as: hearing and eye protection, radio transmission frequency triggers and fire, NASA must identify and protect the public.

Unlike some other nations, the US launches its rockets near the ocean, and strictly monitors their trajectory. Any deviation from the planned flight path, ie. jeopardizing public safety, would result in the the destruction of the rocket over an isolated over-water area.

Today's planned launch will be televised on NASA TV and cane be viewed from a large area on the US Mid-Atlantic seacoast.