Housing chief allegedly blasts workers’ comp, then files for it

States, ex-players trying to level playing field on workers comp

Her lawsuit says Alvarez asked in a meeting, How can the workers comp person be out on workers comp? He also made derisive comments about her disability, the suit says. We find it the height of hypocrisy that after an extensive record of saying that anyone who takes workers comp is a malingerer and a fraud, Mr. Alvarez then files for it, said Heidi Machen, Myres attorney. Alvarezs workers compensation claim contends he suffered injuries in five areas, including his back and neck, which his attorney, Byron Smith, said were all stress-related. Its all secondary to stress, said Smith, who defended Alvarezs decision to set up Next Door Restaurant in Berkeley with his wife while on leave.
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Fla. workers' compensation rate could go up again

The leading cause of fatalities involves entering the bin, becoming engulfed in the grain and suffocating. There are other hazards as well, including exposure to hazardous atmospheres, falls and getting caught in moving equipment. To reduce risks, workers should not enter a grain bin unless absolutely necessary. In the event that a worker must enter a bin, these simple measures can save lives: Turn-off, disconnect or block off all mechanical, electric and hydraulic equipment particularly grain moving equipment. Grain should not be moved while a worker is inside the bin as a suction can be created that can engulf the worker in seconds.
For the original version including any supplementary images or video, visit http://ehstoday.com/safety/ohio-workers-comp-bureau-warns-grain-bin-dangers

Ohio Workers' Comp Bureau Warns of Grain Bin Dangers

-- For the fourth straight year, employers across the state could have to pay more for their workers' compensation insurance. Insurers are seeking a 1 percent increase in the insurance that employers purchase to cover on-the-job injuries. The main cause for the increase is that medical costs are outpacing declines in other expenses. If state regulators approve the rate hike, it would go into effect Jan. 1. Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty's office stressed that even if the hike is granted, workers' compensation rates will still have dropped by nearly 56 percent from where they were a decade ago. In 2003, the Legislature passed a law aimed at reducing rates through provisions that include a limit on fees paid to lawyers for injured workers.
For the original version including any supplementary images or video, visit http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/08/16/3566828/fla-workers-compensation-rate.html

It's so swollen it's hard to tell where the top of the knee begins and the bottom of his thigh ends, so disfigured that there appears to be three large broccoli heads beneath the skin. Williams, the NFL's Man of the Year in 1986 and Sports Illustrated's co-Sportsman of the Year in 1987, normally keeps the knee covered, but on this sunny April afternoon he repeatedly raises his pant leg and exposes it to cringing legislators. His hope is that the reality of his situation will persuade them to vote no on AB 1309, a bill that would prevent major- and minor-league athletes in all sports from filing workers compensation claims in California if they played or ended their careers with clubs outside the state. The fight over workers comp reform for pro athletes isn't new. It has taken place in Florida, Arizona and Louisiana, to name a few states. The battle in California is significant, however, because it's often regarded as the state of last resort, meaning out-of-state players who weren't informed of their workers comp rights by their teams -- or who had physical or cognitive issues surface after the statute of limitation lapsed in their home states -- could have their cases heard in California, one of only nine states that recognizes what's known as "cumulative trauma," wear-and-tear injuries or conditions sustained from their jobs.
For the original version including any supplementary images or video, visit http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/nfl/news/20130507/workers-comp-california/