November 14, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An employee was exposed to harmful dust at work due to an inadequate ventilation system. He had also been a smoker for many years — from one to four packs per day. Can he get workers’ comp for his chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)?
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Tags: breathing, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cobalt dust, COPD, Workers' comp
November 9, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Retail giant Wal-Mart appears to be out $10 million in connection with a serious injury suffered by a truck driver who was making a delivery to one of the chain’s stores in northern Colorado.
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Tags: Colorado, jury verdict, slip and fall, Wal-Mart
October 24, 2011 by Fred Hosier
The law caught up with a Toledo, OH, man who was captured on video working on a roofing job while receiving workers’ comp benefits.
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Tags: roofing, Video, workers' comp fraud
October 18, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A man who posed as a government inspector to extort tens of thousands of dollars from construction companies has been sentenced to prison.
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Tags: extortion, fake inspector, OSHA inspection, prison sentence
October 17, 2011 by Jim Burger
Workers’ comp experts agree: One of the worst moves you can make with injured employees is to let them think you’re an adversary. After all, there are plenty of lawyers looking to befriend them.
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October 10, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A worker with chemical sensitivity who is also called “a fairly heavy smoker” by a doctor says exposure to substances at work caused her to be permanently and totally disabled. Can she prove that, and can she get workers’ comp?
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Tags: anhydrous ammonia, bleach, chemical sensitivity, methyl bromide, pesticides, Russell Stover, smoker, Workers' comp
October 6, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A federal court has ruled that three former Chicago Bears players can’t file for workers’ comp benefits in California and should file in Illinois instead. This appears to end the players’ attempt to file in a state with better benefits.
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Tags: Chicago Bears, NFL, NFL Players Association, Workers' comp
September 28, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Tyson Foods will pay $32 million to settle the question of whether workers should be paid for the time it takes to put on and take off protective clothes and safety gear at the beginning and end of their shifts.
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Tags: donning and doffing, PPE, safety gear, Tyson Foods, United Food and Commercial Workers
September 26, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Should a company’s workers’ comp insurer continue to pay an injured worker who skips medical appointments, doesn’t communicate with doctors and leaves vulgar voice mails for a case worker?
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Tags: doesn't communicate, end workers' comp payments, severe pain, skips medical appointments, uncooperative worker, vulgar voice mail
September 19, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A worker whose job it was to collect overdue cable TV bills, disconnect service and retrieve cable boxes was assaulted while disconnecting service at an apartment complex. Is he eligible for workers’ comp coverage?
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Tags: Boxco, cable boxes, collect cable bills, Workers' comp, workplace assault
September 12, 2011 by Fred Hosier
What happens when a worker quits after an injury and then decides she deserves bigger workers’ comp payments?
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Tags: assembly line, carpal tunnel syndrome, Nissan, reconsideration of benefits, Workers' comp
August 30, 2011 by Fred Hosier
What’s the penalty for not having workers’ comp insurance? In some cases, like this one, it’s jail.
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Tags: contractor, jail, Workers' comp
August 29, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Imagine this: Employees at a work site have some down time while waiting for materials to arrive. To amuse themselves while waiting, they try to smash a bowling ball with a sledge hammer. An employee is injured. Does the injury quality for workers’ comp benefits?
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Tags: bowling ball, goofing off, Pennsylvania, positive work order violation, sledge hammer, Workers' comp
August 22, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Dealing with workers’ comp is frustrating enough. But losing a case over a technicality is even more so.
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Tags: light duty, rehabilitation, shoulder injury, Workers' comp
August 15, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An employee was talking on his company-issued cell phone to a co-worker in his own car when he was shot in the face by someone in a passing vehicle. A ruling says he should receive workers’ comp benefits because he was on the company cell phone at the time of the shooting.
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Tags: cell phones, coming-and-going rule, principal shot, school gangs, Workers' comp
August 4, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Did this company fire a worker for seeking medical treatment for a workplace injury, or was this a case of miscommunication? A jury made the call.
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Tags: back injury, back pain, Family Medical Leave, physical therapy, punitive damages, seek medical treatment
July 26, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A state workers’ compensation law requires employees to give proper notice of a workplace injury to employers to receive benefits. The question in this case: Did a series of communications between employee and employer add up to proper notice?
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Tags: carpal tunnel, lifting restriction, proper notification, Workers' comp
July 22, 2011 by Fred Hosier
When it comes to workers’ comp benefits, is employee hearing loss over a long period of time different from other injuries suffered in the workplace? The answer is key in a lawsuit by more than 40 workers.
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Tags: hearing loss, long-term exposure, Louisiana, refinery, Workers' comp
July 11, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An injured worker turns out to be an illegal immigrant. His injuries prohibit him from doing the type of physical labor he previously did. He could do sedentary work, but he doesn’t have the skills. Does he get permanent total disability (PTD) benefits under workers’ comp?
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Tags: Florida, illegal immigrant, permanent total disability, sedentary work, Workers' comp
July 8, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Here we go again: Another federal court has ruled on whether employees should be paid for the time it takes to put on and take off their required safety gear. And the ruling is opposite one handed down by another court just last month.
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Tags: Butterball, donning and doffing, protective gear, safety gear, Tenth Circuit
July 1, 2011 by Fred Hosier
As you assess risks in your workplace that could cause an employee’s death, should you add “sitting too long in front of a computer” to the list? A potential adverse effect of sitting too long at a job is key to a recent workers’ comp court case.
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Tags: computer, dependency benefits, pulmonary embolism, sedentary job, Workers' comp
June 27, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Fact: 16 states and Washington, DC, have laws that allow the medical use of marijuana for patients with fatal diseases or chronic pain. What’s not as clear: How these laws impact workplace drug policies. Now, another state court has weighed in.
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Tags: medical marijuana, TeleTech, Washington state, workplace drug policies
June 16, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Confused about whether you’re required to pay workers for the time they spend putting on and taking off their required safety gear? You’re not alone. Yet another federal court has weighed in on the issue.
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Tags: donning and doffing, lunch breaks, safety gear
June 13, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A Baltimore man has won an $814,500 judgment after he developed popcorn lung from workplace exposure.
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Tags: bronchiolitis obliterans, diacetyl, Kenneth McClain, popcorn lung
June 13, 2011 by Fred Hosier
June 6, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Sure, OSHA hasn’t yet enacted its proposal to include an ergonomic check box on its injury logs. But that doesn’t mean companies don’t have to report these injuries.
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Tags: ergonomic injury, musculoskeletal disorder, OSHA 300 log, tennis elbow
June 4, 2011 by Fred Hosier
A state supreme court has weighed in on whether punitive damages awarded by a jury to a paralyzed worker were too large.
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Tags: fall, fractured spine, inspection program, paralyzed worker, punitive damages, Qwest
May 26, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An employee said a workplace injury left him in pain, unable to “enjoy life’s pleasures” or wear shorts because of an embarrassing scar. Given those claims, attorneys for his former employer were interested in what was on his Facebook page.
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Tags: Facebook, forklift, leg scar, warehouse
May 24, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An applicant failed his pre-employment drug test and wasn’t hired. Years later, following successful drug treatment, he applied again, only to be told he wouldn’t be hired because of a one-strike rule.
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Tags: ADA, discriminate, drug test, drug treatment, one-strike
May 16, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An attempt to prevent OSHA from obtaining records from a company’s workers’ comp insurance carrier has failed.
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Tags: deaths of two teenage workers, grain elevator, Haasbach LLC, OSHA subpoena, Workers' comp
May 16, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Employee Michael Stokes suffered an ankle injury at work which required surgery. How did this lead to his widow requesting death and funeral benefits under workers’ comp? And did she get them?
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Tags: ankle injury, bacteria, death benefits, Schindler Elevator, surgery, Workers' comp, wound care
May 9, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An employee was on an allowed lunch break. When he went just across the street from where he was working to eat his sandwich, he was injured. Should he get workers’ comp benefits?
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Tags: injured on lunch break, New York, Workers' comp
April 25, 2011 by Fred Hosier
Q: When is workers’ compensation, the so-called “exclusive remedy” for employee injuries, not an exclusive remedy? A: When the injured employee can prove the company knew an injury was likely to occur.
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Tags: exclusive remedy, forklift, injury likely to occur, light duty, scissors lift, ThyssenKrupp, Workers' comp
April 18, 2011 by Fred Hosier
An employee says she should receive permanent disability benefits because mold at work was a significant factor in her chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). But she also smoked for 33 years. How did a court rule in this case?
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Tags: COPD, indoor air quality, permanent partial disability, smoking, Workers' comp, workplace mold
April 14, 2011 by Fred Hosier
If asked, most people could give definitions of construction and maintenance. But when it comes to OSHA regulations, things like definitions aren’t that simple.
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Tags: appeals court, construction, energized parts, maintenance, OSHA regulations, painting
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