The Department of Labor (DOL) is telling employers if you’ve got unpaid interns, odds are you’re breaking the law.
The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division reports it’s cracking down on organizations failing to pay interns properly — and it’s expanding efforts to educate companies, colleges and students on the law regarding internships.
“If you’re a for-profit employer or you want to pursue an internship with a for-profit employer, there aren’t going to be many circumstances where you can have an internship and not be paid and still be in compliance with the law,” said Nancy Leppink, the acting director of the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division.
The reason this problem is just now coming to light: Interns haven’t been quick to file complaints — usually due to a fear of endangering their chances for future employment. So the DOL has decided to step in for them with additional enforcement efforts.
As an example, officials in California have issued guidance letters to advise employers whether they are breaking the law. Oregon regulators unearthed numerous abuses and obtained back pay for unpaid interns who claim they were really employees in disguise.
In a nutshell, the DOL is saying: If your company benefits from the work an intern does, the person must be paid.
The DOL’s established criteria:
1. To be unpaid, an internship must be similar to the training provided in an academic or vocational setting. (workersxzcompxzkit)
2. Unpaid interns must not displace regular paid workers.
3. An employer must not receive an “immediate advantage” from an unpaid intern’s work.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers’ Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, manufacturing, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. He can be contacted at: Robert_Elliott@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
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WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Research on workplace bullying released by Massey University sounds a warning to employers that they need robust practices and procedures to deal with workplace bullying issues, says Department of Labour Head of Employment Relations, Lesley Haines.
The research, Understanding Stress and Bullying in New Zealand Workplaces was two-thirds funded by the Department and was carried out by a research team led by Professor Tim Bentley.
The researchers looked at the incidence of workplace bullying in four sectors – health, education, travel and hospitality. They surveyed employers and employees and found that workplace bullying in these sectors is high by international standards. However, they have warned against extrapolating the results to say that bullying is widespread across all New Zealand workplaces.
“Despite this, employers should not be complacent,” says Haines. “They have a duty under the Health and Safety in Employment Act to provide a healthy and safe workplace. This includes having a workplace in which bullying is not tolerated.
“Most importantly, employers should have clear and well understood systems to deal with bullying complaints, and which includes the provision of an impartial investigation of any complaints.”
Haines says the Department has resources available to help employers and others deal with bullying. “We are developing a fact sheet that provides guidance in dealing with bullying issues. The Department also provides assistance with individual cases through its Health and Safety Inspectors and Mediation Services.
“If an employee feels unable to make a complaint to the employer, he/she may want to get support from family or friends, discuss the matter with the union, or seek assistance from the Department.” (workersxzcompxzkit)
Haines says the Department will work with each of the four sectors covered by the report to raise awareness of the issues raised by the research findings. The fact sheet and other guidance material will be provided to employers and their staff to help them address bullying.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
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WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
The Santa Barbara (California) County Board of Supervisors approved a new workers’ compensation program reported to save the county more than $3 million over three years.
The decreased premium is expected to take care of expenses for all the county’s industrial injuries and illnesses incurred from July 1, 2010, to June 30, 2011.
According to the Lompoc Record, the board decided to take advantage of a new program offered by the California State Association of Counties (CSAC), providing better service at a lesser risk to the county, county staff said.
The board members backed the change because the fire and sheriff’s departments would experience a combined $681,000 in savings. These two departments pay more than 50% of the county’s workers’ comp premiums.
For over three decades, the county has been a member of the CSAC Excess Insurance Authority, “a member-directed risk sharing pool of counties and public entities,” according to county staff.
The county was enrolled in one of its compensation programs and the county was mandated to absorb the risk for each claim up to $500,000 and manage all the necessary administrative work.(workersxzcompxzkit)
The recently approved CSAC program, known as Primary Workers’ Compensation, transfers and moves all of the county’s risk around to a bigger pool, thus lowering the county’s costs.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
A Suffolk County, New York roofer who allegedly passed phony certificates of workers’ compensation coverage as he took work at job sites around the county is now charged with insurance fraud in a case initiated by the New York State Insurance Fund.
The roofer faces a felony fraud charge of violating the Workers’ Compensation Law following his arrest by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Insurance Crime Bureau.
Investigators said the owner allegedly presented three altered NYSIF workers’ comp. insurance certificates to three different Suffolk County contractors – one each in East Northport, Babylon and Riverhead between 2007 and 2009.
The investigation revealed that the suspect allegedly presented the contractors with fraudulent NYSIF certificates indicating that Commercial Roof Services had valid workers’ comp insurance with NYSIF, leaving the contractors liable for insurance premiums totaling $10,000. (workersxzcompxzkit)
Legitimate NYSIF certificates of insurance carry a unique verification number. NYSIF allows contractors and homeowners to protect themselves against liability by checking the verification number of NYSIF certificates online at nysif.com using NYSIF eCERTS (registered).
Author Rebecca Shafer, J.D. President, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers’ Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, manufacturing, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. She can be contacted at: RShafer@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Payment per claim for prescription drugs used to treat injured workers in Illinois was slightly lower than in most study states, according to a new study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI). It is interesting to note, in Illinois physicians both dispense and prescribe medications.
The 16-state study by the Cambridge, MA-based WCRI found the average payment per claim for prescription drugs in the Illinois workers’ compensation system was $361, slightly lower than the median of the study states. The average price per pill paid to pharmacies in Illinois was close to the 16-state median. Typical prices were seen for medications used most commonly in treating injured workers.
The WCRI study, Prescription Benchmarks for Illinois, found although the average price per pill paid to pharmacies in Illinois was close to the median of the 16 states, the price was higher in Illinois compared to what was paid in nearby states (Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin).
The study also noted the utilization of prescription drugs in Illinois was similar to the median states, reflected in the average number of pills per claim and the average number of prescriptions per claim with prescription. Typical utilization was seen for the medications commonly used to treat injured workers in Illinois.
Prescription costs per claim in Illinois might be lower, except physicians tend to dispense higher priced medications, WCRI reported.
Some Illinois physicians wrote and dispensed prescriptions at their offices directly to the patient. Physicians dispensed 22% of all prescriptions. When physicians dispensed prescription drugs, they were paid a higher fee than what pharmacies are paid for the same medication by prescription. (workersxzcompxzkit)
For example, the average price per pill paid for Vicodin® was $0.78 when dispensed in office by the physician. When filled as a prescription to pharmacy, the medication cost $0.53.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers’ Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, manufacturing, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. He can be contacted at: Robert_Elliott@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
What is the difference under the federal workers’ compensation system between Controverting Continuation of Pay (COP) and Challenging a Claim? Sue Wetherington put together this informative outline and commentary for us. We all appreciate learning more about how our federal system under FECA works since it is funded by the taxpayers.
Controverting COP means: To dispute, challenge, or deny the validity of a claim for COP on the basis of one of the nine (9) reasons:
1. Disability is due to an occupational disease or illness.
2. Employee serves without pay or nominal pay, or is appointed to the staff of a former President, or is selected pursuant to Chapter 1221 of Title 28 and serves as a petit or grand juror, and is not otherwise an employee of the United States.
3. The employee is neither a citizen nor a resident of the four untied States or Canada (i.e., a foreign national employed outside the United States or Canada).
4. The injury occurred off the employer’s premises and the employee was not engaged in “authorized off premises duties.”
5. The injury was caused by the employee’s willful misconduct; or by the employee’s intent to bring about the injury or death of himself/herself or another person; or by the employee’s intoxication by alcohol or illegal drugs.
6. The injury was not reported on a form approved by Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP) (usually Form CA1) within 30 days after the injury.
7. The employee first stopped work more than 45 days after the injury.
8. The employee first reported injury after employment ended.
9. The employee enrolled in Civil Air Patrol, Peace Corps, Job Corps, and Youth Conservation Corps, work-study program, or other group covered by special legislation.
Challenging a Claim
1. An Agency questioning the validity of a claim must submit the reasons in writing to OWCP. All allegations must be supported by specific factual evidence. The authority to determine any aspect of a claim rests with OWCP. (workersxzcompxzkit)
An Agency would want to either Controvert COP and/or Challenge a Claim when there are circumstances questing the validity of the claim
Author: Sue Wetherington has served as President and CEO of GS&S and Associates, Inc., St. Augustine, Florida since September 1999. GS&S, founded in 1999, is comprised of experts with over 120 years of combined experience with all laws and regulations governing workers' compensation for federal employees and helps control escalating program costs and assist in returning injured workers to productive employment. Services include Workers' Compensation Program diagnostics, roll reduction, development of automated claims filing and tracking systems, and formulation of policy letters and job offers. Contact her at sue@gss-compsolutions.com, gss-compsolutions.com or (904) 461-5520.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
An international food company supplying major United Kingdom supermarkets was fined after a worker was hurt while cleaning processing machinery.
The incident happened on April 20 during the night shift at the Bakkavör Fresh Cook Ltd site in Sluice Road, Holbeach St Marks, Lincolnshire. Spalding Magistrates' Court heard that the worker was cleaning a machine consisting of three tanks tipping food into each other.
In order to clean the machine properly, hygiene operatives needed to stand on the frame of the machine to reach various parts. As the injured worker reached up she lost her footing and fell into one of the 1.5 meter deep tanks, resulting in her losing consciousness. She was rescued by colleagues who heard her shout as she fell.
The injured woman was subsequently off work for five weeks and reported suffering from severe headaches and pains in her neck and back, for which she had to take pain killers.
Bakkavör Fresh Cook Ltd, of West Marsh Road, Spalding, Lincolnshire, was fined £3,500 ($5,340) and ordered to pay costs of £2,091 ($3,190) after pleading guilty to breaching section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
HSE Inspector Jo Anderson noted, “No-one at Bakkavör realized that climbing was involved to clean this machine. A risk assessment should have been carried out and an examination of how work at height was being undertaken. (workersxzcompxzkit)
"This case highlights the need for employers to be aware of what goes on during the night shift. All staff has a right to the same standard of care irrespective of their working hours."
Author Rebecca Shafer, J.D., Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers’ Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, manufacturing, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. She can be contacted at: RShafer@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
If you want a heated discussion among insurance people, bring up the question of workers' compensation benefits for illegal immigrants. Not only will there be differences of opinion, it will also be difficult to get all the parties to refer to the illegal immigrants with the same words.
The liberals in the discussion will refer to them as undocumented workers. The conservatives in the discussion will refer to them as criminals for illegally entering the country. For this blog, let's take the middle road and refer to them as illegal immigrants.
The Pros and The Cons:
Here are a couple of the arguments for paying work comp benefits to illegal immigrants and a couple of arguments against paying benefits.
The Arguments for Paying WC Benefits to Illegal Immigrants:
1. The broad language of most state work comp statutes intend to include all workers without regards to their citizenship status.
2. The denial of work comp benefits would encourage unscrupulous employers to hire illegal immigrants as the employers would have no work comp exposure.
The Arguments Against Paying WC Benefits to Illegal Immigrants:
1. The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), a federal statute takes precedent over state laws. In the U. S. Supreme Court case of Hoffman Plastic Compounds vs. National Labor Relations Board, (not a work comp claim) the Supreme Court ruled that an illegal immigrant could not lawfully work under ICRA and prohibited compensating the illegal immigrant for work that he could not lawfully perform.
2. If the illegal immigrant commits fraud to obtain a job by swearing to his citizenship status, he does not have an enforceable employment contract.
WC Benefit Coverage for Illegal Immigrants Varies by State:
About five weeks ago there was a news item that state representative Rashida Tlaib in Michigan was introducing legislation to specifically provide workers’ compensation benefits to illegal immigrants. About three weeks ago there was an item in the news that Ohio state senator Bill Seitz was introducing legislation to bar the payment of work comp benefits to illegal immigrants.
These news item prompted some research into which states provide benefits to illegal immigrants. Just like everything else in the work comp laws, there is a lot of variation between the states. The availability of workers' compensation benefits for illegal immigrants is handled in different ways, but four general categories can be identified. They are:
1. The don't ask, don't tell states which define work comp benefit eligibility without reference to an employee's citizenship status or immigration status. This includes about 30 states.
2. The second group of states have work comp statutes that outline when benefits apply to immigrants but do so without addressing whether or not the immigrants arrived legally in the country. This includes Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota and Ohio.
3. The third group of states go direct to the heart of the question with work comp laws that state illegal immigrants are covered for work comp benefits, or illegal immigrants are not covered for work comp benefits. States that specifically include illegal immigrants in their workers comp coverage are California, Florida, Nevada, New York, Texas and Utah. The states that specifically exclude work comp benefits for illegal immigrants are Idaho and Wyoming.
4. The fourth group of states provides work comp benefits to “aliens and minors” who are “legally authorized to work” but do not spell out what “legally authorized to work' means. States that fall into this category include Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
Note: This hot-button issues is the subject of various court cases, legislative efforts and measures in several states, so there may have been recent changes in the work comp statutes of a particular state they may not be reflected in the above categories.
Related Issues:
For the jurisdictions that do not specifically exclude illegal immigrants from coverage under the work comp laws, several other benefit issues come up.
1. If the illegal immigrant status of the employee is discovered while he is off work on disability benefits (it often is), the employer cannot return the illegal immigrant to work under ICRA. How long do you pay the illegal immigrant wage loss benefits when he is not disabled, but the employer cannot take him back?
2. Can the employer offer the illegal immigrant modified duty return to work to shut off temporary total disability benefits knowing the illegal immigrant cannot come back to work?
3. What do you do about rehabilitation and vocational benefits for the permanently partial disabled illegal immigrant worker? Do you retrain them knowing they cannot accept a job in the United States? Do you retrain them for a job in their home country?
4. In states that consider employment a contract between the employer and the employee, should the contract be null and void back to the beginning when it is entered into with deception and fraud on the part of the employee? (workersxzcompxzkit)
Summary:
As this is an election year, the issue of workers' compensation benefits for illegal immigrants will continue to be a hot topic in the insurance field. The employers, the illegal immigrant employees, the insurance companies, the court systems and the various state legislative bodies will continue to be involved in the debate of this topic. The final solution is yet to be decided.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers’ Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, manufacturing, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. He can be contacted at: He can be contacted at: Robert_Elliott@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
A worker has an accident on 5/8/07. The employer, in the C-2, reports not receiving notice of the accident until 9/12/07. Section 18 of the WCL states an injured worker must report an accident to the employer, in writing, within 30 days of date of occurrence. However, at the first hearing 6/4/08 when the worker testified, the carrier’s representative failed to raise the issue of late notice.
Eventually, after litigation, an appeal (when the claim was disallowed for late notice, and a request for full board review, the full board decided late notice was no longer an issue since it was not raised by the carrier or the employer at the first hearing in which all parties were present and the worker testified. Section 18 also provides late notice be waived if the carrier or employer does not raise it at the first hearing where all parties are present and the worker (claimant) testifies.
Each year dozens, if not hundreds, of claims that should properly be disallowed for late notice, are allowed for failure of the carrier to properly raise the issue. At the new rates, hundreds of thousands of dollars could be involved in a single such claim.
WHY, when the employer properly notified the carrier of the late notice did the carrier's rep not raise the issue in time? Comp claims are highly repetitive in many respects and a lawyer for a carrier might be handling more than 10 files on a single afternoon or morning. A note on a file to raise an issue may be overlooked or forgotten. (workersxzcompxzkit)
The employer might have a lawsuit against the carrier but there are better practices to employ to prevent the defense from being lost.
Tip from Ted: When an employer identifies a defense, especially late notice, it should call the carrier and make sure it knows of the defense. Then, the employer makes every effort to be present at the first few hearings (workers are not always present at the first hearing, nor do they always testify). The employer’s presence ensures that closer attention is paid to the file and that defenses are not lost.
Source: Citywide Central Insurance Program. New York WCB: 0074-9236.Full Board decision filed 2/25/10.
Author: Attorney Theodore Ronca is a practicing lawyer from Aquebogue, NY. He is a frequent writer and speaker, and has represented employers in the areas of workers' compensation, Social Security disability, employee disability plans and subrogation for over 30 years. Attorney Ronca can be reached at 631-722-2100.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
© 2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Maintaining a rigid albeit consistent policy of termination upon expiration of FMLA leave, while once considered standard practice, is no longer advisable whether the leave is related to a workers’ compensation claim or not. In fact, such a policy could result in a hefty settlement with the EEOC similar to the $6.2 million dollar settlement with Sears, Roebuck & Co. This settlement resulted from a 2004 lawsuit complaining of an inflexible workers’ compensation leave policy with termination of employees without consideration of reasonable accommodations, in violation of the ADA.
The FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act) allows most employees to take up to 12 unpaid weeks of leave in a 12-month period under certain qualifying circumstances. The employer is required to allow the employee to return to the same or an equivalent position at the same rate of pay.
The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) provides equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities. Marginal or non-essential functions of a job must be forgiven and reasonable accommodations must be made to allow an employee to perform the essential functions of a job. Reasonable accommodations are considered permanent. Once the disability is known or an employee requests an accommodation due to a disability, employers must consider making a reasonable accommodation.
Examples of reasonable accommodations include providing a qualified interpreter, restructuring the duties or tasks of a job, adjusting a work schedule, modifying or obtaining equipment (wheelchair or specialized glasses…) among other things. Employers are not required to make accommodations that would create “undue hardship” for their business.
Accommodating disabilities is an individualized process. Every disability and every person is different and must be treated accordingly. Resources from different specialties may be needed to properly consider and make a reasonable accommodation including the employee’s direct supervisor who has intimate knowledge of the job requirements, a human resources representative, an ergonomic specialist, an occupational therapist and a safety and training specialist, possibly among specialists.
Maintaining a bank of current, quantified job descriptions is useful both in the hiring process as well as in making accommodations under the ADA. This bank serves in accommodating temporary restrictions for work related injuries. (workersxzcompxzkit).
Failure to comply with the ADA in making reasonable accommodations carries the potential for EEOC lawsuits resulting in costly settlements. The days of an across-the-board termination policy following expiration of a leave policy without ADA consideration appear to be over.
Author Rebecca Shafer, J.D . Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers' Compensation costs, including airlines, health care, manufacturing, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. She can be contacted at: RShafer@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Podcast/Webcast: Occupational Health Strategies
Click Here:
WC Calculator: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/calculator.php
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers' comp issues.
©2010 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
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