It’s Cavalcade of Risk day – visit the bi-weekly roundup of posts about risk, graciously hosted this week at Wenchy’s Place – check out this week’s edition and wish the hostess a happy birthday while there.
In other workers’ comp-related news:
Medical costs and WC – Joe Paduda explains why you should expect work comp medical costs to be heading up over at Managed Care Matters. He points to one of the primary problems: “Misaligned incentives for work comp managed care programs, and payers’ increased reliance on managed care program revenue and profits.”
Moving violations – U.S. bans truckers, bus drivers from texting. The National Safety Council estimates that at least 1.6 million crashes are caused each year by drivers using cell phones and texting. The NSC has called for a total ban all cell phone use and texting while driving. Here’s a good site to bookmark since cell phone and texting laws have been changing frequently in response to safety reports: State cell phone and texting while driving laws. It’s maintained by the Governors Highway Safety Association.
More on marijuana – Should pot provided as a work comp medical benefit? Roberto Ceniceros talks about a California
marijuana ruling at Comp Time. Meanwhile, the CA Supreme Court nixed limits on medical marijuana and the Los Angeles City Council voted to close hundreds of dispensaries that have sprung up.
Global risk – Before you open that branch office in Somalia, you may want to take a look at Emily Holbrook’s posting on Risk Monitor: the most hazardous countries for business.
P/C Forecast – What’s in store for the property-casualty industry in 2010? Ernst & Young offer a 2010 U.S. industry outlook. (PDF)
Comp Case Law Over at LexisNexis WC Law Blog, Larson’s Case Law Developments offers their picks for The Top 10 Workers’ Compensation Cases of 2009.
Union census – Workplace Prof Blog reports on a Department of Labor report which shows that the union density rate was essentially unchanged in 2009 – 12.3% vs 12.4% in 2008. Among private sector employees, the rate dropped to 7.2% from the 2008 rate of 7.6%. Also of note from the report: “The data also show the median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary union members were $908 per week, compared to $710 for workers not represented by unions. Union members earn 28 percent more than their non-union counterparts.”
Quickies
- CA staffing firm ordered to pay $20 Million in workers’ comp fraud case
- OSHA’s Greatest Hits: Top 10 Citations in 2009
- Obesity epidemic in your workplace? CDC can help
- Amusing advertising clips on the topic of risk
- What’s so great about Fortune’s top 100 companies?
Tags: cell phones, labor, managed care, medical costs, medical marijuana, texting, Transportation, unions
