Bosses who exhibit bullying behaviors can adversely impact the safety of their workplaces because bullied employees and their colleagues are less likely to engage in safe work practices, experts say. Failing to address bullying behaviors can affect a company’s bottom line through absenteeism, lower productivity and increased workers compensation costs, experts say. In early August, researchers from Portland State University…
An official says an explosion at a chemical tank cleaning business in northwestern Indiana injured three workers. The blast happened about 7:20 a.m. Wednesday at T.A.C. East Inc. in an industrial area of East Chicago. City Fire Chief Anthony Serna tells The (Northwest Indiana) Times that three employees suffered first-, second- and third-degree burns to their arms and legs and…
A former employee of an Illinois automobile dealership has filed a lawsuit alleging she was fired after she considered filing a workers’ compensation claim for carpel tunnel syndrome. Chelsea Marinacci contends she was fired after telling her superiors at Tri Ford in Highland, Illinois, about her diagnosis and that she may have to file for benefits, according to an Illinois…
Occupational injuries have been linked to a higher occurrence of drug-related deaths and suicide, according to data posted Thursday by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The study, published in July’s American Journal of Industrial Medicine, examined New Mexico’s workers compensation data for 100,806 workers injured from 1994 to 2000 and Social Security Administration earnings and mortality data…
An employee of a roofing company alleges he was terminated from the job for requesting workers’ compensation benefits, alleging discrimination because of his disability and because he is of Mexican origin. Homero Serrano-Cardenas filed suit in Madison County Circuit Court against his former employer, Collinsville-based Lakeside Roofing, accusing the company of violating rules around workers’ compensation as well as provisions…
Individuals using opioids have difficulty finding a physician willing to take them on as a patient, and workers comp patients likely face similar barriers to care, experts say. A University of Michigan study released in mid-July found that 40% of individuals taking an opioid for chronic pain were rejected as potential patients in group health. Opioid-using patients in the workers…
A former employee of a corner market is suing after she was allegedly fired for filing a workers’ compensation claim. The employee, Rebecca Valle, claims she was terminated some time after she was injured while working at Curly’s Corner Market in Granite City. Valle filed suit in Madison County Circuit Court against the market and its manager, Amber Ronk. When…
Fewer injured workers are receiving opioids to treat pain than in previous years, as medical providers are turning more to non-opioid medications and physical therapies. A new study of injured worker claims from 27 states by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) finds that both treatments using non-opioid pain medications such as NSAIDs and non-pharmacologic treatments such as physical therapy…
One of the most unfair things about the law that you can’t do anything about is the bad luck of the draw. If you are sitting at a stop light and get rear-ended by a person with $20,000 in insurance and become paralyzed, you are likely only going to recover that $20,000. On the other hand, if you are struck…
ArcelorMittal has been fined $14,000 after a steelworker died in an April train accident at the company’s Indiana Harbor steel mill in northwestern Indiana. The (Northwest Indiana) Times reports the Indiana Department of Labor Occupational Health and Safety Administration found two serious safety violations at the East Chicago mill, including failing to “establish and maintain conditions of work which were…
