February 7, 2013 by Fred Hosier
A FedEx courier injured her knee on the job. She required surgery and took time off under the Family Medical Leave Act. Shortly after she returned to work, she was fired for falsifying records. Was the firing justified or was it retaliation for taking FMLA leave?
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Tags: FMLA, retaliation, work injury
January 31, 2013 by Fred Hosier
A miner says his former employer fired him for expressing safety concerns. Now, the company is suing the miner, saying he filed a false claim against them.
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Tags: frivolous lawsuit, mining, MSHA, retaliation
December 28, 2012 by Fred Hosier
An employee was bit by a spider at a construction site and suffered an infection. He didn’t sue his employer, but he did sue the owners of the site for negligence. Can the property owner be held liable for the spider bite?
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Tags: construction site, negligence suit, spider bite
December 10, 2012 by Fred Hosier
A pet chimpanzee attacked an employee who had been summoned to her boss’ house. The worker sued her employer who countered that workers’ comp should cover this incident. Now, there appears to be a settlement in this case.
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Tags: chimp attack, exclusive remedy, post traumatic stress disorder, Workers' comp
October 9, 2012 by Fred Hosier
With all the reports about increasing use of painkillers, such as opioids, it’s no wonder some companies are testing employees for the legal substances for safety reasons. But, as this case shows, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do that.
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Tags: ADA, drug testing, EEOC, opioid, painkillers
September 7, 2012 by Fred Hosier
It’s been more than two years since the explosion at a BP rig in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11 workers and caused the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history. The potential consequences for BP continue to pile up, as a new lawsuit shows.
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Tags: BP rig explosion, Gulf of Mexico, lawsuit, safety first
September 4, 2012 by Fred Hosier
A Kansas grain company faces a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the families of four men who were among six killed when a grain silo exploded in October 2011.
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Tags: Bartlett Grain, grain dust explosion, grain silo explosion, wrongful death lawsuit
August 8, 2012 by Fred Hosier
A warehouse worker died from a disease caused by exposure to pigeon droppings. Is this covered by workers’ comp, or was his widow allowed to sue the company for wrongful death?
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Tags: death cause by pigeon droppings, exclusive remedy, pigeons in warehouse, Workers' comp
June 29, 2012 by Jim Burger
If you ever watch detective shows or read Agatha Christie novels, you know motive is everything.
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Tags: Bohl v. Cassens Transport Co.
June 18, 2012 by Fred Hosier
A widow is suing a Texas company, alleging it took the employer two hours to get an ambulance for her husband who had fallen several feet and hit his head. She also claims a drug test was ordered before anyone called 911.
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Tags: calling 911, drug test, negligence lawsuit, Texas Industries