Lawmakers in Connecticut consider workers’ comp bill
- Connecticut lawmakers are considering expanding the state’s workers’ compensation system to cover post-traumatic stress injuries for all employees.
- However, one official with the CBIA said Myers said that expansion of workers’ compensation coverage without first studying the actual costs will be a dangerous precedent to set.
- SB 913, which passed out of the Labor and Public Employees Committee, was referred from the Senate to the Appropriations Committee.
- CBIA and other business organizations have voiced concern with the cost implications of this legislation.
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Workers getting injured at an alarming rate
- While the passage of the OSH Act in 1970 has vastly improved workplace safety, too many people are still sickened, injured, and killed on the job.
- Tragedies are not unavoidable accidents, but rather entirely predictable and preventable.
- New developments like climate change and gun proliferation exacerbate already-existing risks, creating more danger for workers nationwide.
- The U.S. needs a new commitment to workplace safety: to stronger laws, more enforcement funding, and to worker empowerment generally, according to Terri Gerstein, director of the State and Local Enforcement Project at Harvard.
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New rule in Florida impacting workers’ comp
- A new rule in Florida requires insurers to verify employees before charging premiums for subcontractors’ exempt officers.
- This change aims to address concerns raised by insurance agents and consultants over the practice of carriers charging additional premiums for exempt subcontractor officers or owners.
- Carriers must file a notice with the Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation if a subcontractor hires nonexempt employees and fails to provide evidence of workers’ comp insurance.
- The new rule impacts workers’ compensation insurers, general contractors, and subcontractors with exempt officers in Florida.
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Amazon failed to provide adequate medical treatment
- An ongoing investigation by a federal agency found Amazon didn’t provide adequate medical treatment for traumatic and chronic injuries at a center in Castleton, New York.
- OSHA determined that the company failed to ensure injured employees received proper medical care.
- At least six employees with head injuries and four with back injuries did not receive timely, necessary medical care. Injured workers were returned to their jobs and, in many cases, their injuries became worse as a result.
- OSHA has proposed $15,625 in penalties, an amount set by federal statute.
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