The NTHSA proposal for automatic device disabling could potentially prevent a lot of accidents caused by distracted driving.
Today’s post is by our colleague Jon Gelman of New Jersey.
After years of accidents in the workplace caused by the use of mobile devices in vehicles, the Federal Government has proposed universal guidelines to encourage automobile manufacturers to electronically disable these devices when a vehicle is in operation. The enforcement of this safety-first proposal may establish a legal standard to bar the use of such devices in vehicles and encourage employees to have a safer working environment.
See: U.S. Department of Transportation Proposes ‘Distraction’ Guidelines for Automakers “Issued by the Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the guidelines would establish specific recommended criteria for electronic devices installed in vehicles at the time they are manufactured that require visual or manual operation by drivers. The announcement of the guidelines comes just days after President Obama’s FY 2013 budget request, which includes $330 million over six years for distracted driving programs that increase awareness of the issue and encourage stakeholders to take action. “
For most workers* injured before July 1, 2011, time-loss and pension benefit payments will increase 3.6 percent based on the change in the state’s average wage, as announced by the Department of Employment Security on June 19.
The increase also applies to pension benefits paid to family members of those who died because of a work-related accident or disease.
Injured workers can face a number of obstacles in their quest to return to work, particularly if the residuals of their injury, or in some cases, multiple injuries, have left them with significant physical restrictions. These obstacles are magnified if the worker is a non-English speaker and even more complicated if they are an undocumented worker.
In Washington State, immigration status is not a factor in workers’ compensation coverage
In Washington State, immigration status is not a factor in workers’ compensation coverage – if you are injured while an employee of a Washington company, your injury claim is covered. The Department’s position is that it is not its responsibility to monitor immigration laws but, rather, to provide protection to workers in our state. This is a very progressive stance, one that is rare across the spectrum of state comp systems, but it can complicate the return-to-work phase of an injury claim.
Vocational services for any non-English speaking employee can be time-consuming and expensive, even for a modest retraining goal, as the labor market is particularly limited when one’s ability to read, write and speak in English is limited. In many cases, these skills may be lacking in the worker’s native language, as well, and it is not simply a need to learn English that needs to be addressed. The longer the vocational process, the longer the injured worker remains on time-loss and the greater the retraining cost; all factors that impact the bottom line of the State and self-insured employers. Often, employers scramble to find a light duty job for their employee to get them back to work and avoid the retraining issue.
As of January 1, 2012, a significant change in Washington’s workers’ compensation laws has provided an opportunity to resolve the claims of injured workers age 55 and over through structured settlements, called CRSSA (Claims Resolution Structured Settlement Agreements) agreements. The CRSSA option is intended to provide an alternative for injured workers who feel “stuck” in the Department’s system, and wish to pursue retirement or alternative work goals outside their claims.
Causey Law Firm was one of the first workers’ compensation firms in the state to successfully negotiate for and receive approval of a CRSSA from the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals.
The Department has a specialized unit of experienced personnel to evaluate incoming requests for CRSSA’s from injured workers and employers. If the Department (or self-insured employer) concludes the claim is appropriate to consider negotiations under the CRSSA, they will request the applicant provide a proposed lump sum figure to initiate negotiations. Many factors are taken into account in determining whether or not a CRSSA is appropriate, to include whether it is in the best interest of the worker, the nature and extent of both industrial and non-industrial injuries, other claims, present and future income sources of the worker, present and future expenses, employment and education history, and the effect a settlement may have on other benefits. All of this information is provided to the Department or employer, and if an agreement is reached, it is forward to the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals, which is a separate state agency, for final review and approval. As of May 2012, 18 agreements have been filed with the Board, but only six of these have been approved.
Structured settlements allow a worker to resolve all the issues in their claim (time loss, permanent partial disability, vocational rehabilitation benefits, and pension) except treatment, by closing their claim and receiving, after an initial lump sum payment, monthly or bi-weekly payments until the full amount of the settlement is reached. An injured workers’ right to treatment cannot be compromised under the CRSSA rules and, in some cases, a worker can include authorization for future anticipated treatment in the agreement. The amount of the settlement and payout schedule will vary depending on the unique circumstances of each claim.
As we have advised several of our clients, it may not be in your best interest to pursue a CRSSA. However, if you are an individual who wishes to pursue self-employment, retirement, part-time work, or alternate vocational avenues, and have become tired of the “system” running your life, and you’d like to have the power to resolve your claim, it may very well be appropriate to pursue this new option. If so, please give our office a call, and we will be happy to provide further assistance.
The board is now accepting nominations for the 2012 Governor’s Lifesaving awards, presented to Washington state residents who saved a life these past 12 months.
All Washington workers covered by the state workers’ compensation system or a self-insured employer are eligible for the lifesaving nomination. However, the heroic act is not limited to the workplace or Washington state. It could have taken place any day or time, anywhere in the world.
The lifesaving effort must have taken place between June 1, 2011, and May 31, 2012. The deadline for submitting applications is June 30.
The nominee must have performed “hands-on” aid in saving a life. For law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians and other similar professions, the lifesaving action cannot be part of their normal job duties, but must be actions above and beyond the call of duty. Past recipients have included rescue personnel who have acted to save a life while off-duty.
The board also presents humanitarian awards to people who, despite their best efforts, were unable to save the life of the victim.
Last year, 40 people were recognized with lifesaving and humanitarian awards. For a nomination form and more information on qualifications, contact Laura Glover, lifesaving award coordinator, at 360-902-5533. Nomination forms are also available at www.wagovconf.org.
Over the course of 35 years representing injured workers, I have heard some whoppers – Employers’ questionable tactics that make even my jaw drop. With all the insurance company generated blather about “employee fraud” incidences of employer fraudulent tactics abound. Workers beware of the following:
Recorded statements taken by worker’s compensation carrier adjuster while employee is under medication or in the hospital still suffering from the injury. Questions such as “It’s true you had (low back pain, arm pain, fill in the blank pain, etc.) before your work injury, correct? You’ve had lots more pain from (your motor vehicle accident, sports injury, etc.) than you’re experiencing from your work injury, correct?
Employer “channeling” a work to its “Return to Work Clinic” (doctors on company payroll whose opinion is “like some athletic coaches, ‘rub some dirt on it and get back in the game’.”
Telling employees to take sick leave rather than claim worker’s compensation.
Telling employees to file medical bills under their group insurance, not worker’s comp.
Nurse Case Manager who initially befriends the employee but later makes every attempt with the worker’s doctor to prematurely return the worker to the job before a healing occurs.
Today’s post comes to us from our colleague Rod Rehm of Nebraska.
Selecting and hiring a good lawyer is critical in dealing with a legal problem. Lawyers are increasingly limiting the types of cases handled in an effort to provided better representation. The Internet is a common starting point for consumers to locate and select lawyers who have the right kind of knowledge and experience for their problem. I recommend the following steps for selecting a lawyer.
1. Check with family, friends, neighbors, or others whom you trust and respect to learn if they know of a lawyer or law firm who they would recommend for the kind of problem you are dealing with. This approach is the traditional way to find a professional and often leads to a good attorney-client relationship with satisfactory results.
2. Consult a general-practice lawyer you know and ask for recommendations. This approach gives you the advantage of having someone who knows area lawyers help you find the right mixture of knowledge and expertise.
3. Internet searches will turn up a large variety of lawyers who handle the kind of problem you are experiencing. Read several of the websites with a careful eye for the following:
a. Is the firm A-rated by the leading peer-rating organization Martindale and Hubbell? The ratings are very good indicators of how the firm is regarded because they come from judges and other lawyers who work with the firm.
b. Do the members of the firm appear to be actively involved in organizations dealing with your kind of problem? Are the lawyers officers or board members of such groups? Have the lawyers been speakers at seminars? This kind of activity shows the lawyers are interested in improving and protecting the law for people with your kind of problem and respected by other lawyers and judges. Here are some examples of law organizations. For employment matters, see the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA) (please link to www.nela.org). For workers’ compensation organizations, see the Workers’ Injury Law and Advocacy Group (link to www.wilg.org). For other personal-injury matters, see the American Association for Justice (link to www.justice.org). For general trial-attorney needs, see the American Board of Trial Advocates (link to www.abota.org).
c. Do the lawyers from a firm belong to any organizations indicating that they have been honored or selected for membership based on knowledge and experience?
d. Do the lawyers appear to belong the bar associations in their area? Have they served on any committees, sections, or governing bodies?
4. Go to www.martindale.com and use the lawyer search. You can search for lawyers by city, state, and specialty. Lawyers are rated as follows. AV® Preeminent™ is the highest rating, followed by BV® Distinguished™ then Distinguished. We recommend only A-rated lawyers if they are available. One way to get the best of the best is to limit the search by checking the box “Featured Peer Review Rated.” The website is very user friendly.
5. Contact the lawyer or lawyers you focus on, and talk to the lawyer. Learn how the lawyer interacts with clients. The following are some questions that might be helpful: Do you feel comfortable talking with the lawyer? Are they Internet users? Will you have a specific team of people working with you? How do they charge? Can you have Skype conferences or do they have other face-to-face conferencing options through the Internet? Will retainer documents be required and available for review before an appointment?
These suggestions provide a framework on how to locate and evaluate an attorney to help you. The references we refer to are industry standards, so they not subject to as much manipulation as other online approaches, such as reviews, testimonials, or video recommendations on lawyers’ websites.
Today we have a guest post from our colleague Leonard Jernigan of North Carolina.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says that “falls from portable ladders are one of the leading causes of occupational fatalities and injuries.” A few weeks ago a gentleman came to see me who had orthopeadic surgical wires and metal bars sticking out of his arm (for those who are not too sensitive, click here to see the photo)
He had fallen from a ladder about 15 feet and landed squarely on his hands and broke both arms. No one was holding the base of the ladder and the ladder was more than 15 years old. Wires and metal bars were now holding his bones in place, and workers’ compensation benefits were holding him financially in place. However, since he was only making $11 dollars an hour his weekly compensation benefits were small. As you probably know, the Workers’ Compensation Act does not provide money for pain and suffering, or lost income from other jobs (think about the man who takes on two jobs to maintain a higher standard of living for his family; if he is hurt while working at one job, he is only paid for the income loss at that job, not both).
The employer has a duty to train and teach its employees how to use a ladder. Many employees (particularly young ones) have no idea how dangerous ladders can be: they assume the ladder will hold the load and will be secure when placed in position, and that it is free of defects, no matter how old. OSHA has a list of safety considerations and these tips can be found at the Department of Labor’s web page (click here for a PDF version).
Click through for a graphic video of a ladder accident published by prevent-it.ca, a website run by the Province of Ontario (Canada)’s Ministry of Labor. Be warned that this mock-up video is a public service announcement intended to teach safety. It is scary and not for the faint of heart. Continue reading Ladder Safety Could Save You From A Painful Injury→
Many people don’t realize that Social Security stopped mailing out annual Statements in 2011, but indeed they did. Citing budget concerns and a little-used ‘emergency’ ruling stating that it’s okay for the Social Security Administration to stop fulfilling one of its legally-mandated functions if doing so could potentially bankrupt the agency or impair its ability to fulfill its primary function, Social Security stopped sending out individual Social Security Statements. In fact, they also ceased fulfilling requests for statements received by mail or telephone, and disabled their online ordering service. The only way you could obtain your Statement was to go down to your local Social Security Office and tell them you had an ‘urgent need’ for the information!
Now, Social Security has (finally!) rolled out online (and IMMEDIATE) access to your Statement, including your earnings history, estimated benefit amounts, and eligibility information. And fortunately, they have made it incredibly easy!
All you need is:
your own personal information (full name, Social Security number, date of birth, mailing address, phone number)
and working email address.
Start at Social Security’s website. On the left-hand menu, go to ‘Get Your Social Security Statement Online’, and follow the prompts. Social Security uses a program called Experian to verify your personal data, so be prepared to answer some interesting multiple-choice questions, including
phone numbers and addresses that you may have used in the past,
dates that you opened specific credit accounts,
or where you send your mortgage payment.
You can also choose an added layer of security, by asking Social Security to send a text message to your mobile device anytime you log in to your account.
Note, however, you are actually setting up a ‘my Social Security’ account – – the same type of account that people RECEIVING benefits have – – not just accessing a Statement. Please be prepared to keep track of your login information, as you not only may need to access your Statement again over the years as new earnings are posted, but you may also one day need this account to set up your own Medicare, Retirement, or Disability benefits. Keep this login information in a safe and secure location, and do not share it with others to maintain your security.
There are strategies that can make worry more manageable.
For the last few weeks we’ve been talking about the very real medical dangers of worry. For injured or disabled workers, worry can add an additional and very significant burden on the body. In this post, we’ll talk about some of the ways that worry can be treated or even avoided.
Much of the time treatments are simply medications that increase GABA. Cognitive therapy is prescribed depending upon insurance coverage. Addressing the physical and mental effects of excessive worry can aid in recovery from an injury or disability and can increase levels of success in vocational retraining efforts. In rare cases, worry and anxiety can become permanent fixtures in a person’s life, and the effects of this condition can result in ratable permanent impairment. But, the greater part of lay and scientific literature lists non-medicine tips to reduce worry, fear and anxiety to a more modulated level, thereby providing some relief from this constant invader that often creates unproductive and hurtful periods in life.
Here, summarized, are six tips cited in the literature to help manage worry without medication:
Separate out toxic worry from good worry: Good worry amounts to planning. Toxic worry is unnecessary, repetitive, unproductive, paralyzing, frightening, and in general, life-defeating.
Get the facts rather than letting your imagination run away. Analyze the problem and take corrective action.
Develop connectedness in as many ways as you can: family, social, information and ideas, organizations and institutions. Never worry alone.
Touch and be touched: in addition to massage therapy, seek out hugs and laughter – being around children or family can help.
Be good to yourself. Exercise, eat well, get enough sleep, meditate, do yoga and be aware of over consumption of substances detrimental to your health, such as alcohol.
Sing, read, cry, do what you love, look for what’s good in life and don’t sweat the small stuff.
