New emergency rules enacted by Illinois workers’ compensation regulators have drawn a lawsuit by a pair of trade associations representing retailers and manufacturers in the state. The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association (IMA) and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) allege in a lawsuit filed in the 7th Judicial Circuit Court of Illinois in Sangamon County that the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission…
Indiana House Democrats sent a letter to the governor’s office asking the state to better protect the safety of essential workers.The state’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has seen thousands of non-formal COVID-19 complaints related to various safety issues in the past month. In a letter to the governor last week, the party caucus notes that in a recent executive…
The company whose weekend demolition of a former coal plant in Little Village sent a massive cloud of dust into Chicago’s nearby neighborhood apologized for causing “anxiety and fear.” However, the apology did not prevent the company from being sued for the act. Northbrook, Ill.-based Hilco Redevelopment Partners said the developer failed to follow a plan it gave city officials…
The Illinois Workers Compensation Commission issued an emergency amendment Monday that creates a rebuttable presumption for front-line workers who contract COVID-19 — expanding the definition far beyond first responders and health care workers to include everything from grocery and pharmacy workers to hotel and funeral service employees. The emergency amendment revises the Illinois Workers Occupational Diseases Act to provide workers…
A man suffered serious injuries after being catapulted off a lawnmower in an incident he claims was the fault of negligence of the retailer and manufacturer. Charles Morgan, along with his wife, filed suit against Art’s Lawn Mower Shop of Missouri and the John Deere Company, following the alleged incident involving the X739 Signature Series Lawn Mower. The suit, filed…
A Southern Indiana machinery worker’s failure to follow warnings and instructions on a woodcutting machine he was using were the cause of injuries he sustained on the job, the Indiana Court of Appeals concluded on Monday. As such, the machinery’s manufacturer couldn’t have reasonably expected the accident. While working for wooden pallet producer American Fibertech, Kyle Hackney in November 2015…
Federal officials have cited three employers for workplace safety hazards after a worker suffered injuries at Northwestern University’s campus in Evanston, Ill. Northwestern University, Hill Mechanical Corp. and National Heat & Power Corp. collectively face a total of $235,962 in proposed penalties for exposing workers to permit-required confined space hazards associated with underground steam vaults, according to the U.S. Department…
The National Transportation Safety Board said that a northern Indiana school district is partially to blame for a 2018 crash that killed three siblings crossing a rural highway to reach their stopped school bus. The wreck was caused by a pickup truck driver’s failure to stop for the school bus, despite the vehicle’s activated and clearly visible warning lights and…
An ambulance that crashed into a car and killed its driver was not covered under an insurance policy, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday. As a result, the insurer had no obligation to either the ambulance service or its employee. At the time of the accident, Markel Insurance Company insured United Emergency Medical Services’ fleet of ambulances. But…
Employees will be filing workers comp claims related to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it remains unclear what proportion of the claims will be compensable, a panel of experts said. Rules regarding occupational disease claims vary by state and in many cases workers will not be able to prove they contracted the disease at work, they said. However, the scope and…
