Hundreds of COVID-19 workers’ comp claims wallow at Washington L&I
More than 300 COVID-19-related workers’ compensation claims filed with the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries have been lingering in the system without a decision for six months or longer. Most are cases where the claimant allegedly got COVID at work, in a job not connected to healthcare or frontline work. According to L&I data, the average time for a decision on a rejected COVID-related claim is 96 days. The average time for a decision on an accepted COVID claim is nine days. KING5 (Seattle) [with video]
Minneapolis police overtime surges due to staffing shortage
The Minneapolis Police Department has spent about $3 million on overtime this year, with about half due to a staffing shortage, the department’s finance director said Monday. Since January 2020, 296 Minneapolis police officers have separated from the city, according to MPD. To try to grapple with millions of dollars in workers’ compensation claims and hiring and training costs, the department wants to start a wellness program for officers. Minnesota Reformer
Vaccinate or test deadline hits for New Jersey school, state employees
New Jersey state and school employees faced a Monday deadline for getting vaccinated or undergoing regular COVID-19 testing. More than three-quarters of the state’s vaccine-eligible population has been fully vaccinated in New Jersey, among the highest rates in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New Canaan Advertiser
These 24 jobs could ruin your hearing
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 22 million Americans are exposed to noise at work. To determine the noisiest jobs, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data on noise exposure by occupation from the University of Michigan’s Job Exposure Matrix. MSN