Court awards claimant additional benefits
- The Supreme Court of Oklahoma held that the 350 weeks statutory cap on permanent partial disability benefits does not prevent a claimant from receiving additional benefits if the claimant has not reached 100% impairment to any body part or the body as a whole.
- In this case, a claimant suffered several work-related injuries—some under the workers’ compensation law in effect before the enactment of the Administrative Workers’ Compensation Act in 2014.
- For the injuries before 2014, the claimant received a 71.3% impairment rating and 360 weeks of permanent partial disability benefits benefits.
- For the injuries sustained after 2014, the claimant filed three separate claims for which he was awarded permanent partial disability benefits, however, payment was denied because the claimant had already received 360 weeks of the benefits for the prior injuries.
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Bill in New Jersey will help first responders affected by 9/11
- A bill was filed in New Jersey that would provide workers’ comp benefits to certain first responders for illnesses or injuries related to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
- Senate Bill 1470 would consider any illness or injury developed by a first responder who worked at the site of the World Trade Center to be a presumed occupational illness or injury eligible for workers comp.
- Employers of workers who received medical or disability workers comp benefits for the same injuries from other states or the federal government would be entitled to a credit.
- The Senate Labor Committee is reviewing the proposal.
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Workers injured at Wolfspeed
- Two people were injured and one had to be transported to the hospital after an accident with some equipment inside Wolfspeed, a manufacturer of wide-bandgap semiconductors in Durham, N.C.
- Once first responders arrived, they determined the situation was just a minor accident involving on one of the machines that were scheduled for maintenance.
- In July, a man was killed on site at this location which resulted in the Department of Labor fining Southern Industrial Constructors $20,000 for violating a pair of workplace safety rules.
- In 2022, The North Carolina Department of Labor cited Wolfspeed for two safety violations for a death at the facility.
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Cold weather brings possible peril to workers
- Cold temperatures and seasonal precipitation like freezing rain, hail, or snow can pose winter workplace hazards.
- The Alaska Occupational Safety and Health (AKOSH) Division has reported the loss of limbs or extremities due to frostbite in cities and villages, as well as in more isolated areas of the state.
- AKOSH recommends that workers wear thermal underwear during winter, along with insulated footwear or mukluks with liners and double mittens.
- To avoid carbon monoxide poisoning, OSHA recommends that employers install effective ventilation systems, avoid using fuel-burning equipment and vehicles in enclosed or partially enclosed spaces.
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