Quote of the day
"This is buffoonery."
Greg Krohm, executive director of the International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions and former administrator of Wisconsin's workers comp program, about the extraordinarily high injury rate of Chicago "patronage" workers
Inland Empire Fraud May Be Largest in California History
The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s office charges four individuals, all of whom were either owners or principal employees of temporary employment agencies, with potentially the costliest workers’ compensation insurance fraud in state history. They four allegedly bilked three insurance companies out of more than $39.2 million by fraudulently underreporting and/or misclassifying employees. Central Valley Business Times
Go to the Full Story…
Free Seminar on WPS for Ag Pesticides in Oxnard Next Month
California State Compensation Insurance Fund is offering a free, 4-hour workshop covering the California and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fieldworker training requirements for agricultural pesticides, Nov. 15 in Oxnard. Workers’ Comp Executive
Go to the Full Story…
Chicago: The City That Works … Or Not
In Chicago, long notorious for its political corruption, city workers with political clout claim to be injured at a rate that far exceeds any occupation tracked by the U.S. Department of Labor, reports the Chicago Sun-Times, and the workers’ comp bill to taxpayers is in the millions. Are dozens of city workers whom doctors have declared healthy really being paid to stay idle? And will this ignite another political battle between Chicago’s entrenched Mayor Richard Daley and a longtime political rival on the city council as they seek to assign blame for the civic embarrassment? By Tim Novak and Art Golab, Chicago Sun-Times
Go to the Full Story…
Illinois High Court Gives RSI Sufferers More Time to File
Reversing a decision of the state Workers’ Compensation Commission and two lower courts, the Illinois Supreme Court says employees are entitled to more time to report conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome to worker’s compensation authorities, since such injuries may not be immediately apparent. By Michael Higgins, Chicago Tribune
Go to the Full Story…
British Columbia Trucking Industry to See Rate Cut
Reflecting recent trends of stable injury rates, shorter injury duration, in addition to positive investment returns, general trucking operations in British Columbia will see a workers’ compensation premium base rate drop of at least 15 percent from WorkSafeBC. Overall, more than 68 percent of employers in the province will see a reduction in their 2007 base rate. By Steven Macleod, Truck News (Canada)
Go to the Full Story…
Rhode Island Grand Jury Indicts Former Beacon Officer
A Rhode Island grand jury indicts the former vice president of loss prevention and underwriting for dominant Rhode Island workers’ compensation insurer Beacon Mutual Insurance Co., according to the state’s attorney general. Charges against David R. Clark include insurance fraud, conspiracy and destroying data. By Roberto Ceniceros, Business Insurance
Go to the Full Story…
BWC Gave Noe Free Rein with Its Money, Auditor Testifies
The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation agreed to give Tom Noe not only $50 million to buy rare coins, but so much control over the money that he could buy anything and lend money to anyone, a BWC auditor testifies last week in Noe’s corruption trial. Further, Noe put a clause in his contract that would have made it impossible for future administrations to back out of the coin funds without his approval, according to the auditor.
Go to the full story by Mark Niquette, Columbus Dispatch
Go to the full story by Mike Wilkinson, Toledo Blade [With Photos]
Votes on Ohio Workers’ Comp Ballot Issue May Not Count
An Ohio referendum that would erase new restrictions on workers’ compensation benefits is no longer on the November ballot after an appellate court rules that a lower court improperly stopped Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell from blocking the referendum. However, Cuyahoga County sent out 11,000 absentee ballots before the secretary of state’s order and as of now, any votes on that issue will not count. By T.C. Brown, Cleveland Plain Dealer
Go to the Full Story…