Quote of the day
"This is a crushing blow to small business and yet another disincentive for micro businesses to expand."
Barbie Dallmann, West Virginia business owner, about a planned workers' comp premium rate boost in the state over the next year
Mountain State Small Businesses Decry Rate Boost
About 13,000 West Virginia employers face increases in their workers’ compensation insurance premiums over the next year, a development that is not popular with small businesses. Under the old Workers’ Compensation Commission, the minimum annual premium was $100; by the end of 2008, no employer will pay less than $750 a year. By George Hohmann, Charleston Daily Mail
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Bureau Scandal Affects State’s Outlook
Ratings bureau Moody’s reduces Ohio’s economic outlook from stable to negative, partially reflecting the investment debacle at the state Bureau of Workers’ Compensation that cost the state $300 million in lost investments. By AP via Cleveland Plain Dealer
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Keystone Stater Gets Four Months for Fraud
A 61-year-old former Pennsylvania postal clerk who distorted his psychological and physical condition to government physicians faces four months in prison and a $33,000 workers’ compensation restitution bill. Scranton Times-Tribune
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Connecticut Case May Reflect Employment Classification Trend
A recent decision by a Connecticut workers’ compensation commissioner that a FedEx driver was an independent contractor, not an employee who would otherwise qualify for benefits for his back injury, may reflect a national employment classification trend. By Douglas S. Malan, Connecticut Law Tribune via Law.com
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Hazards Rampant at Interior Dept. Headquarters
A new internal audit of the U.S. Department of Interior Headquarters shows major safety, health and environmental hazards, including asbestos, in buildings that house more than 2,000 federal workers. By Neal Augenstein, WTOP Radio (Washington, D.C.)
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Arkansas Appeals Court Cites Equal Protection in Upholding Benefits
Reversing the state Workers’ Compensation Commission, the Arkansas Court of Appeals rules that an employee injured when he was 40 should not lose his permanent total disability benefits after he turns 65. The court said denying benefits would violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution. By John Gambrell, AP via the Cabin (Arkansas)
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