‘Take-Home’ COVID claims could alter market
- “Take-home COVID” claims are claims brought against an employer by the spouse or child of an employee who caught COVID-19 in the workplace and brought it home, causing injuries.
- Employees that are injured in the workplace are generally prohibited by workers’ compensation laws from suing their employers, in exchange for receiving workers’ compensation benefits.
- The California Supreme Court, in Kuciemba v. Victory Woodworks, will soon decide whether California employers can be liable for take-home COVID claims.
- If take-home COVID claims are allowed, businesses will look to their insurance coverage and could find several challenges.
Amazon workers walk off the job
- Warehouse workers at Amazon’s largest air freight facility walked off the job Monday over a pay dispute and working conditions with the heat.
- About 160 employees walked out at the San Bernardino International Airport facility, which is a part of Amazon’s logistics network and one of the company’s three U.S. air hubs.
- However, Amazon officials reported that only 74 out of the 1,500 employees at the facility walked out over the dispute.
- About 900 employees at the San Bernardino airport have signed a petition calling for base pay to be increased from $17 per hour to $22 per hour.
Louisiana recreation worker shot on the job
- A Shreveport (La.) Public Assembly & Recreation employee was shot and injured after attempting to deescalate an altercation that started inside a city recreational center.
- The Shreveport Police Department located a SPAR employee who was suffering a non-life threatening gunshot wound to the upper body at Bilberry Park.
- Police said the victim was outside of the recreational center attempting to deescalate an altercation that began inside on the basketball court when he was struck by gunfire.
- The suspect wanted in connection with this shooting is still at large.
Illinois hospital to settle COVID vaccination mandate
- NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, Ill., agreed to pay more than $10.3 million to resolve allegations over its COVID-19 shot mandate.
- It was reportedly the nation’s first classwide lawsuit for healthcare workers over a COVID shot mandate
- NorthShore will change its policy to allow unvaccinated employees to work if they have an approved religious exemption.
- It’s estimated that employees who quit or were fired will receive approximately $25,000 each, and the original 13 plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit will get around $20,000 more.