Longshore

Port of Seattle, Eagle Marine Agree to Make Terminal 5 BIG Ship Ready

The Port of Seattle and Eagle Marine Services (EMS), operator of Terminal 5, announced on May 16th a proposal to relocate its cargo and breakbulk activities to another terminal so that the port can modernize Terminal 5 to handle the bigger ships that are changing international shipping. 
 
“If we’re going to keep jobs in Washington state, we need investments that make us globally competitive,” said Port of Seattle Commissioner Bill Bryant. “That’s why we’re rebuilding T5.  We’re investing in jobs.  Modernizing T5 so it can handle the new big ships is the first step in realigning our port for the future.”
 
“As we are working to preserve maritime jobs in Seattle, the Commission is moving forward to strengthen cooperation with the Port of Tacoma to increase trade in Puget Sound,” said Port of Seattle Commissioner John Creighton.  “We’re having productive talks on how we can make the Puget Sound gateway more competitive and create new jobs.” 
 
“ILWU Local 19 appreciates the work the Port of Seattle and terminal operators are doing to keep cargo here in Seattle by making each of our terminals big ship ready,” said ILWU Local 19 President Cam Williams.  “By preparing for the future, we insure that jobs will stay in the region.”
 
Shipping lines are consolidating into new alliances, and have been launching much bigger ships as part of their strategy to reduce costs. While three of the port’s container terminals are already home to Super Post-Panamax cranes that service 10,000 TEU vessels and above, the existing cranes at Terminal 5 are not able to handle these bigger ships.
 
Under the proposal, EMS would shift its operations to Terminal 18, allowing EMS to preserve container volume and ship calls. This commitment will preserve maritime jobs that depend on cargo flowing today through T5. Cargo destined to T5, under this proposal, would begin transitioning to T18 in mid-June.  The proposal with EMS is tentative pending approval by the Port of Seattle Commission.
 
“T5 needs to be modernized for the bigger ships that are already here, we applaud the Port in working with us to preserve our customers’ cargo through this gateway,” said Nathaniel Seeds, COO of Eagle Marine Services, Ltd.
 
Maintaining efficient cargo throughput is essential for moving goods in and out of the port.  With four in ten jobs in Washington dependent on trade, these terminal improvements will insure that Washington goods can get out of the Port of Seattle and into markets world-wide.
 
“Preserving vessel service capacity is good for exporters, we appreciate the Port of Seattle’s efforts to keep this gateway competitive,” said Anderson Hay CEO & President Mark Anderson.
 
The Port has also received approval from the federal government to let the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers begin studying the potential for a project that may result in the deepening of the West Waterway channel near the terminal. 

Uncategorized

Social Security Agency Cuts Services as Demand Grows, Senate Report Says

Today’s post was shared by Gelman on Workplace Injuries and comes from www.nytimes.com

WASHINGTON — The Social Security Administration is closing field offices and reducing services to the public even as demand for those services surges with the aging of the baby boom generation, according to a bipartisan Senate committee report.

The report, to be issued Wednesday by the Senate Special Committee on Aging, says the agency has closed more than two dozen field offices in the last year, generally without considering the needs of communities and without consulting beneficiaries or field office managers.

In deciding whether to close field offices, the Social Security Administration “excludes both its own managers and the affected public,” and the decisions often appear arbitrary, the report says.

The committee’s chairman, Senator Bill Nelson, Democrat of Florida, said, “Seniors are not being served well when you arbitrarily close offices and reduce access to services.”

He added, “The closure process is neither fair nor transparent and needs to change.”

The field offices served over 43 million people last year. About 10 percent of the visitors filed for benefits, and 30 percent were seeking new or replacement Social Security cards.

In testimony prepared for a committee hearing on the issue on Wednesday, Nancy A. Berryhill, a deputy commissioner at the agency, said its budget and work force had not kept pace with what she described as “a staggering 27 percent increase” in claims for retirement benefits, to 3.3…

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Closing the Income Inequality Gap

Today’s post was shared by US Labor Department and comes from social.dol.gov

Editor’s note: The following guest post is authored by San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee. Join the conversation about this issue on Twitter using #RaiseTheWage.

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee

San Francisco is the most progressive city in America when it comes to addressing income inequality. And we will continue to make sure San Francisco remains a city affordable to the 100 percent.

President Obama understands that income inequality remains one of the great challenges of our time, and I’ve supported his efforts to raise the national minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. There is no better time than right now to take action. As jobs and confidence are coming back, we must make sure that the residents in our cities are not left behind in the economic recovery.

Last week in my city, legislators, business leaders, labor unions and workers’ rights representatives joined me to introduce a fair and responsible consensus measure for the November 2014 ballot that will significantly raise San Francisco’s minimum wage. The rising cost of living is putting a financial squeeze on our city’s hardest working families, and this is a measure that will help them make ends meet. It’s the right thing to do.

We have taken up the president’s call to address income inequality at the local level – not just in my city, but in other cities across the nation. But we cannot leave anyone behind. That’s why I’ve introduced a resolution to be…

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Workers' Compensation

Wilcox Farms Fatal Silo Collapse – Citations

The Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) issued a press release on June 4th stating that it has cited Wilcox Farms Feedmill, Inc., of Roy for safety violations related to a fatal silo collapse last December. One worker died after he was engulfed in more than 400 tons of corn that spilled out of the silo.

Wilcox Farms issued a press release on February 12, 2014 describing the incident, the emergency response to it and how competitor farms came to the business’s rescue to provide feed for the chickens in the days after the accident. 

“As an employer, especially a family business, it’s the worst thing you could ever imagine happening,” said Andy Wilcox. “The fact that we weren’t able to find Steve for two days was really tough.”

Wilcox has been cited for one “willful” and two “serious” safety violations with total penalties of $67,200. The state investigation found shortcomings in how the company maintained and managed the silo, and inadequate employee training.

A serious violation exists in a workplace if there is a substantial probability that worker death or serious physical harm could result from a hazardous condition. A willful violation can be issued when L&I has evidence of plain indifference, a substitution of judgment or an intentional disregard to a hazard or rule.

The day the 60-foot tall silo collapsed, two employees were working on feedmill operations, which included discharging corn using an auger in the silo. The unloading auger was not working that day, so they opened a side discharge door to allow corn to flow onto the outer portion of the auger. During that process, the silo collapsed and 400-500 tons of corn spilled out, engulfing one worker who was unable to escape.

“Worker fatalities are tragic and preventable,” said Anne Soiza, assistant director of L&I’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health. “Our state requires all employers to provide safe and healthy workplaces. We fully expect Wilcox will correct the hazards and practices that haven’t been fixed already to ensure their employees are as safe as can be.”

Wilcox Farms has 15 working days to appeal the citation.

As part of the investigation, L&I hired an engineer to assess the structural integrity of the silo.

The investigation found four instances where Wilcox was not following proper silo operation and maintenance procedures that may have contributed to the collapse. For example, if corn is added or discharged improperly or the silo is overfilled, tons of grain could build up at an uneven rate and then suddenly shift and create instability. The four instances were:

  • A side discharge system was used to unload corn instead of the manufacturer’s standard procedure of withdrawing grain from the vertical center via the auger. The side discharge system was not installed, designed or supplied by an authorized dealer or contractor.

  • The silo was overfilled all the way to the roof and past the maximum fill level of one inch from the top of the vertical walls.

  • The silo had been previously repaired with a patch over a rupture of the wall due to corrosion. The repair was not made with corrugated material and was not done in a way to ensure structural stability. Also, it wasn’t assessed by a structural engineer or the silo manufacturer.

  • There were previous occasions during which the company had simultaneously filled the silo while it was being discharged.

L&I concluded that this was a willful violation with a proposed penalty of $56,000.

The investigation also found two serious violations with proposed penalties of $5,600 each:

  • Employees weren’t trained in specific procedures and safety practices for silo operations and maintenance.

  • The employer did not maintain the silos in accordance with the manufacturer’s maintenance and safety procedures.

Wilcox Farms has 15 working days to appeal the citation. For a copy of the citation, please contact L&I Public Affairs at 360-902-5673.

Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers’ compensation supplemental pension fund, helping workers and families of those who have died on the job.

 

 Photo credit: kirotv.com

Health

“Just Get Off Your @ss!”

Here’s another “helpful hint” about your own health, for attorneys and clients who may be tuning in to our blog. Nothing here directly related to workers’ compensation, except to the extent that overall good health can ward off injury and illness.

A Kansas State University study in 2013 concluded the people who sit for four hours or more each day are at a substantially greater risk for developing cancer, diabetes and heart disease. And the risk for degenerative disease continues to increase at a consistent rate for six hours, eight hours, and more, of daily sitting.

The further finding of the study was that the increased risk of disease was not correlated with high or low body mass index, meaning that outside factors, such as poor eating and other negative lifestyle habits are not nearly as significant as the risk factor of just sitting.

A report from Northwestern University earlier this year found that, over age 60, every additional hour spent sitting doubles the risk of becoming disabled.  And, somewhat disappointingly, additional exercise has no impact on the disability risk. Australian researchers recently found that people whose job or other circumstances require prolonged sitting, but who just regularly stood up and moved around frequently, were better off than sitters who did 30 minutes of exercise each day.

None of the foregoing is intended to diminish the importance of regular exercise in our daily lives, but the lesson is: don’t stay chained to your desk and computer. Stand up and walk around when you’re on the phone, do laps around the office, walk to a coworker’s office instead of emailing – – do whatever it takes to get out of the sitting position as often as possible.

Your author manages his law firm mostly on his feet. After reading about the issue with sitting, he stood and walked, without sitting, for four hours at a firm event last week. (He’s now training himself to stand — and rock back and forth on his feet– for long periods when watching TV at home.  Houseguests will be fully advised.)

Workers' Compensation

Washington Forklift Rodeos – Competitors Needed!

Being a safe forklift driver requires skill and knowledge. Professional forklift drivers have an opportunity to demonstrate both in upcoming regional forklift competitions. The winners of the two regional events will go on to a statewide “rodeo” at the Governor’s Industrial Safety and Health Conference in the fall.

Eastern Washington drivers are invited to compete June 21 in the regional qualifying forklift rodeo at the Spokane Fire Department Regional Readiness Center at 1618 N. Rebecca St. 

A Western Washington forklift competition will be held Aug. 23 at the Boeing Kent Space Center, 20403 68th Ave. S. The top five individual qualifiers from each of these regional competitions will then proceed to the 17thAnnual Forklift Rodeo at the 63rd Annual Governor’s Industrial Safety and Health Conference held this year in Spokane on Sept. 24.

Employers are encouraged to sponsor in-house competitions. The forklift rodeos typically draw the best forklift drivers from around the state.

To take part, competitors must first successfully pass a written exam and be current on training requirements. During the competition, the forklift drivers are timed as they negotiate a fun and challenging course.

The top eight drivers in these regional competitions earn cash prizes ranging from $50 to $300. In the finals, prizes range from $100 to $500 for the top five drivers. Team awards are also given for the top two teams in each region. Participation is limited to the first 30 drivers who register.

Visit www.wagovconf.org for registration forms or call 206-281-3842 or 1-888‑451-2004 (TDD users: 360-902-5797). The entry fee is $40 for competitors. Spectators are welcome and there is no admission charge.

The conference is co-sponsored by the Governor’s Industrial Safety and Health Advisory Board and the Department of Labor & Industries.

 

Photo credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Workers' Compensation

Kids’ Chance – Providing Silver Linings for Families of Injured Workers

Kids’ Chance of Washington is a need-based scholarship program for the dependent children and spouses of workers killed or seriously disabled in a workplace accident in Washington. It was founded in 2001 as one of 20 states helping kids to achieve their desired future.

Serious work-related accidents can have a devastating impact on families, especially children. The financial impact can be life shattering. Kids’ Chance of Washington is a non-profit charitable organization whose mission is to provide educational scholarships to these families in need. Through the collaborative efforts of business and labor organizations, need-based scholarships are provided to the children and spouses of Washington workers permanently or catastrophically injured or deceased.

Scholarships are funded through donations from business and labor organizations throughout Washington, as well as individuals, employers, attorneys, other groups, and special activities sponsored by specific individuals or groups and grants.

Kids Chance of Washington is one of many states that offers this Kids’ Chance scholarship program. For more information on other states’ programs, visit the National Web Site for Kids’ Chance, Inc.

Causey Law Firm is proud to support Kids’ Chance of Washington.  Monica Bell and I attended the annual fund raising dinner on June 5th and were inspired to see the number of people, from all facets of workers’ compensation – claims management, vocational services, business and labor groups, and attorneys representing both claimants and employers – coming together for this common cause.

Photo credit: CarbonNYC / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Causey Law Firm

A milestone celebration!

25 years, and still smiling!

This week marks the 25th anniversary of our firm’s longest tenured employee, Kit Case.  As a workers’ compensation and Longshore paralegal, Kit has helped literally thousands of injured workers over the past quarter century.  She is a knowledgeable guide and compassionate listener to those lost and overwhelmed by the system, but also a fierce advocate for workers’ rights.  

Kit became the firm’s administrator ten years ago, expanding her job to include human resources, benefits, and marketing in addition to her case work.  Kit has been our guiding force in initiating and maintaining our blog and web presence.   She also encouraged four of our former Causey law firm legal assistants (including our attorney Brian Wright) to pursue law school.  

Given her experience here, she is called upon often to teach our employees how to navigate the often murky and turbulent waters of workers’ compensation. She has accomplished all of this while still enjoying a rich life which includes sailing, scuba diving, art and cycling, frequently commuting to work on her bike.  

We applauded and toasted Kit’s immeasurable contributions to the firm on Friday– appropriately, near the water.  Thank you for everything, Kit!

 

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Employers Beware: Missouri Supreme Court Heightens the Risk of Dismissing Employees Who Filed Workers Compensation Claims

Today’s post was shared by Workers Comp News and comes from www.jdsupra.com

The Missouri Supreme Court recently overruled the long-standing “exclusive” causation standard for worker’s compensation retaliation claims and held that an employee only needs to demonstrate that filing a worker’s compensation claim was a “contributing factor” to an employer’s discrimination or adverse action. In Templemire v. W&M Welding, Inc, — S.W.3d –, (Mo. 2014), No. SC 93132, 2014 WL 1464574, (Mo. April 15, 2014), the “contributing factor” standard turns on whether an illegal factor played any role in the decision to discharge the employee rather than the exclusive reason. Put another way, imagine an employer with 10 reasons for terminating an employee — nine of the reasons are lawful and one is because the employee filed a worker’s compensation claim. In that scenario, the firing is illegal discrimination.

The major take-away –

The Missouri Supreme Court’s ground-breaking decision makes it significantly easier for employees to prove worker’s compensation retaliation. Employees now may sue and recover if they can prove their worker’s compensation claim was “a factor” in the decision to dismiss, just like in discrimination cases under the Missouri Human Rights Act (MHRA). Therefore, we anticipate a resurgence in these claims. Employers should proceed with caution and seek legal counsel when terminating or taking any other adverse employment action against an employee…

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Workers' Compensation

Why We’re Still Killing Workers in the USA

The AFL–CIO’s annual report on job fatalities is out, and provides some interesting fodder for thought.

It’s no surprise that North Dakota – – with its “wild West” environment for oil and gas extraction on the Bakken Shale was the most dangerous place – – with 17.7 deaths per 100,000 workers versus the national average of 3.4.

Nationally, 4600 workers died on the job in 2012. While that number has fallen since safety laws were implemented in the 1970s, the decline has flat-lined over the most recent decade. It was 4.2 deaths per 100,000 workers in 2006, now still at 3.4 in 2012.

The AFL–CIO report contains maps that reflect part of the reason for the stall-out: the vast majority of the states with the highest fatality rates contain the 8 million workers in states with no federally approved OSHA safety and health plan. The report graphically portrays another salient fact: the number of federal OSHA inspectors per 1 million workers has fallen from a high of 15 in 1980 to 6.9 in 2013.  OSHA has been so underfunded over recent years that it would take an average of 139 years for available OSHA inspectors to visit each workplace in their jurisdiction just once. (In some states that number is even more staggering – – 521 years for South Dakota.)

The AFL-CIO report reflects some other interesting facts concerning the demographics of workplace fatalities – – not surprisingly, being foreign-born or Latino puts a worker at a higher risk of fatality, and homicide was the number one cause of death for women in the workplace in 2012.

But, getting back to the “oil patch” in North Dakota, we see other disturbing trends in the culture of workplace injury that accompany the decreasing application of safety regulation. With job growth tripling in North Dakota’s oil patch since 2007, while workers’ compensation filings are up, many injured workers are encouraged by employers in the extractive industries not to file, with many companies working out sidebar deals with injured workers. Injury rates are being kept artificially low by rewards for not reporting. As the AFL–CIO’s safety chief, Peg Semenario, has said, underreporting warps national safety figures in an industry that is already notoriously opaque.

And the culture of creating false indicators of workplace safety will likely have tremendous implications down the line when the 2000 tons of silica-rich sand used in the cement casing of each fracking well begins to work its way into workers’ lungs. NIOSH reported in 2012 that 92 of 116 air samples at franking sites exceeded the recommended safe levels of silica, which can lead to incurable, irreversible lung disease.

 

 Photo credit: Craig Newsom / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Published by Causey Wright