Quote of the day
"If I hadn't been Indian, I would have died."
Sharesa Price, a Native American Floridian who claims she was fired when she sought workers' comp for a tumor caused by exposure to radio-frequency radiation; she subsequently turned to Tribal Health for anti-seizure medication
Note to our subscribers: The Workers’ Comp Executive News Digest will be on holiday break until Jan. 7, 2008. Happy Holidays!
L.A.-Area Cleaning Firms Sued for Alleged Worker Misclassification
As part of its ongoing crackdown on California’s underground economy, state officials sue two janitorial companies, alleging that they treated workers at restaurants in Los Angeles, San Diego and Orange counties as independent contractors to avoid paying minimum wage and overtime or providing rest and meal breaks, among other benefits. By Molly Selvin, Los Angeles Times
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Iraq, Afghanistan Vets’ Mental Disability Benefits Vary by State: Study
Military veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with debilitating mental ailments are discovering that their disability benefits vary widely depending on where they live, according to a first-of-its-kind McClatchy news analysis. By Chris Adams, Miami Herald
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Texas High Court Decision Draws Fire on Int’l Human Rights Day
In Texas, labor leaders and legislators recently used International Human Rights Day to draw attention to a recent Texas Supreme Court decision that they contend threatens worker safety and injured workers’ ability to sue negligent employers. By Lee Nichols, Austin Chronicle
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Florida Cell Phone Programmer’s Court Victory a First
In May, a workers’ compensation administrative law judge awarded a Florida cell phone programmer $30,000 to pay her medical bills and other expenses related to a tumor she claimed she sustained from radio-frequency radiation. The first-of-its-kind decision, however, is unlikely to have widespread repercussions for the cell phone industry. By Nancy McVicar, South Florida Sun-Sentinel [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…
Keystone State’s Benefits to Rise in 2008
Starting the first of the year, the maximum workers’ compensation check in Pennsylvania will climb to $807, up $28 from 2007. By Sharon Smith, Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pa.)
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Ohio Companies Sue BWC over Group Rating System
Three companies file a class-action suit against the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, contending the bureau’s group rating system awards unrealistic premium discounts to employers who are members of groups designed to minimize risk. They say the system unconstitutionally forces employers to pay million of dollars in excessive premiums to subsidize the others. Akron Beacon-Journal
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Oklahoma Workers’ Comp Court Taking Comments on Draft Fee Schedules
The administrator of the Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Court says she has received complaints that the reimbursement rates set out in the court’s proposed new fee schedule are too low—and also that they are too high. By Janice Francis-Smith, Journal Record
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South Carolina Executioners Sue Prison System
In South Carolina, two former state executioners, both of whom are retired on disability and have pending workers’ compensation claims, file federal lawsuits against the prison system’s top officials, alleging the executioners did not receive proper training and were forced to execute inmates or lose their jobs and ranks. By Tim Smith, Greenville News via WLTX-TV (Columbia) [With Photo] Go to the Full Story…