Quote of the day
"The investigation established that the failure to produce the requested records was the product of carelessness and improper supervision, not criminal intent."
Report by the Marion County, Oregon district attorney about Oregon workers' comp insurer Saif Corp.'s production of records in a half-decade legal battle with Oregonians for Sound Economic Policy
Probe: Saif Botched Record Production, But Not Criminally
Neither Oregon’s state-owned workers’ compensation insurer Saif Corp., nor its employees acted criminally during a legal battle with Oregonians for Sound Economic Policy, a nonprofit that is largely financed by Saif’s biggest business rival in Oregon and which sued the insurer in 2000 for access to public records, a district attorney’s office concludes. However, the two-year investigation concludes that Saif Corp.’s records production was “poor and sloppy.” By Edward Walsh, the Oregonian
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Case Challenges Constitutionality of Tennessee’s Workers’ Comp Mediation Process
The attorney for two injured Tennessee workers argues to the state supreme court that because the workers’ compensation specialists who mediate claims are not lawyers, injured workers lose the right to have grievances heard before a judge or attorney, violating the right to due process under the Fifth and 14th amendments. By Christine Butorff, Nashville City Paper
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Washington State Trooper Reeled In
A 35-year-old Washington state trooper accused of fishing while collecting $20,000 in workers’ compensation benefits for an alleged wrist injury now faces charges of theft and perjury. During his time off, the trooper reportedly recorded about 40 commercial fish catches. By AP via Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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Mechanical Fault Ruled Out in Deadly Snowmobile Crash
The investigation into the snowmobile crash deaths of two Australian workers at Canada’s Whistler Blackcomb ski resort has been hampered by rapidly changing snow conditions, and the lack of physical evidence or witnesses. The British Columbia Workers Compensation Board is participating in the probe, which has ruled out mechanical failure as the cause. By Vera Devai, Townsville Bulletin (Australia)
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Montana Farm Bureau Federation Inks Deal with Montana State Fund
The Montana Farm Bureau Federation and the Montana State Fund sign an agreement to allow the federation to administer the State Fund’s agriculture group worker’s compensation program. A series of workshops is designed to help farmers and ranchers maintain safe working environments, in order to cut down on worker’s compensation claims. Prairie Star (Great Falls)
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WorkSafe Saskatchewan Expands Ad Campaign
In the third year of its workplace safety television and radio advertising campaign, WorkSafe Saskatchewan is expanding it to buses. The chairman of the province’s Workers’ Compensation Board says the campaign has caused about 40 percent of people who have seen the ads to modify their habits in the workplace. By Sheri Ebert, CJME 980 Newsradio (Regina)
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The Importance of Keeping Back Pain at Bay
In the U.S., back pain affects around two-thirds of all workers at some point in their lives, causing “a tremendous impact on both society and the worker,” according to University of Cincinnati professor Kermit Davis. And in Canada, back pain accounts for over a quarter of all workers’ compensation lost-time claims, around 10 million workdays annually. But there are steps employers and employees can take to thwart the menace. By Karen Kawawada, the Record (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
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