Posts Tagged ‘wildlife’

Have you protected your employees from this seasonal peril?

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

We’re looking for some OSHA safety guidelines, but to no avail. There’s a peril that is plaguing postal workers, police, EMTs and news producers alike, yet it’s a safety issue that remains largely unaddressed. We’re talking turkey here. Wild, urban turkeys are fast, aggressive and persistent. In honor of Thanksgiving, we bring you these videos of brave workers confronting this natural peril.





As yet, we aren’t aware of any turkey-related claims. Wait, that is not entirely true – there was the rather unusual situation where a claims investigator was mistaken as a turkey and shot, an unfortuante situation my colleague discussed a few years ago. But a claim resulting from an actual turkey attack? We’ve yet to hear of one.
Should you be confronted by a wild turkey – and we assure you, it can be an intimidating experience to be attacked by a 30-pound enraged male turkey that sees you as threat or a subordinate in the pecking order – the best advice we have is to try not to give ground. They are trying to establish dominance. Hold your ground, carry a big stick to shoo them, or better yet, carry an umbrella, which you can open and close to create your own display of dominance.
Or barring that, just stay in your vehicle, call state wildlife authorities, and wait until help arrives or the turkeys meander away.
Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers!

Pot Smoking with Bears: Stupidity is (Still) Compensable

Friday, April 1st, 2011

We last encountered Brock Hopkins back in June of 2010, when he had secured workers comp benefits for severe injuries incurred while feeding bears. He was a bit stoned at the time. Russell Kilpatrick, owner of Great Bear Adventures in Montana, contended that Hopkins was a volunteer. Judge Jeremiah Shea found in Hopkins’s favor. Now the Supreme Court of Montana has weighed in, finding that Judge Shea got it right.
There were three major issues in determining compensability: whether Hopkins was an employee; whether he was in the course and scope of employment when attacked; and whether his marijuana use precluded payment of benefits.
Hopkins frequently worked in the park, performing minor repairs and, yes, feeding the bears.The pay was informal, but Kilpatrick would slip him some money now and then. This “exchange of money for favors” is, well, employment. Thus, Hopkins was an employee, working under the admittedly informal and ad hoc supervision of the laid-back Kilpatrick.
While it is not clear that Kilpatrick wanted the bears fed on the fateful day, he did not tell Hopkins not to feed them. And as Judge Shea deadpanned in his ruling: “…presumably, customers are unwilling to pay cash to see dead and emaciated bears.” Hopkins, in other words, was working when he mixed up the feed, set down his marijuana pipe on a fence post and entered the enclosure.
Finally, the judge opined that smoking marijuana while working among bears was “ill-advised to say the least and mind-bogglingly stupid to say the most,” being high was not a factor in the attack. Red, the attacking bear, was an “equal opportunity mauler” and likely would have gone after anyone, stoned or sober.
So Brock Hopkins, a loser by most accounts, wins in the courts. He collects indemnity for his (considerable) troubles and has all his extensive medical bills paid through the Montana uninsured fund. Kilpatrick’s legal woes continue, as he did not carry workers comp insurance for the employees he didn’t think he had. So much for clear thinking in the good mountain air of Montana.

Cavalcade of Risk #112 and various workers comp news briefs

Wednesday, August 25th, 2010

The Notwithstanding Blog puts a medical spin on things in hosting Cavalcade of Risk #112: Medical School Edition. This is an excellent showing for a new host and a relatively new blogger, self described as an “economics-trained fledgling first-year medical student.” After you’ve perused this week’s edition, why not poke around his blog a bit to kick the tires?
Workplace fatalities drop dramatically – In 2009, 4,340 workers died on the job, according to the preliminary Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries 2009, which was recently issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This is the lowest number on record since data began being collected in 1992, and represents a dramatic drop from the 5,214 deaths in 2008. In terms of 100,000 full-time equivalent workers (FTEs), it is a drop from 3.7% to 3.3%. Transportation-related injuries accounted for the highest number of fatalities (39%), followed by assaults and violent acts (18%), contact with objects (17%), falls (14%), exposure to harmful substances/environments(9%), and fires/explosions (3%).
In explaining the decrease, BLS points to economic factors. In 2009, total hours worked dropped by 6%, following a 1% drop in 2008. The drop was particularly pronounced in dangerous professions, such as the construction industry, which historically account for a large percentage of fatalities. Plus, officials say that 2009 numbers are preliminary, and that some data may be delayed by the fiscal constraints experienced by reporting agencies.
Ohio’s workers comp system – Insurance Information Institute’s Bob Hartwig told a gathering of Ohio state officials that the state should privatize it’s workers compensation system. He made the case that moving Ohio from a monopolistic state fund to a competitive market would afford more choice to employers. Ohio is the largest of the four states in which the state is the exclusive provider of workers compensation coverage. The other three states are Washington, North Dakota, Wyoming. West Virginia is the most recent state to make the transition from a monopolistic system to a competitive market.
OSHA cites SeaWorld – Last February, Tilikum, a 12,000-pound orca, attacked and dragged whale trainer Dawn Brancheau to her death. After investigating the circumstances surrounding the death, OSHA cited SeaWorld for three violations. “OSHA’s investigation revealed that this animal was one of three killer whales involved in the death of an animal trainer in 1991 at Sea Land of the Pacific in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. SeaWorld had forbidden trainers from swimming with this whale because of his dangerous past behavior, but allowed trainers to interact with the whale, including touching him, while lying on the pool edge in shallow water.” SeaWorld’s former health-and-safety director turned whistleblower is also speaking up, calling her former employer’s practices questionable and dangerous. Linda Simons was fired by SeaWorld, allegedly for speaking up during the investigations.
Disability – The 2010 Survey of Americans with Disabilities, conducted by the Kessler Foundation in conjunction with the National Organization on Disability, reports on the gaps between people with and without disabilities. The survey found that employment represents the largest gap: “Of all working-age people with disabilities, only 21% say that they are employed, compared to 59% of people without disabilities – a gap of 38 percentage points. People with disabilities are still much more likely to be living in poverty.” Indicators are tracked over time, and this is the sixth time the survey has been conducted in 24 years.
Obesity and DisabilityObesity is linked to higher health care costs than smoking or drinking, and plays a major role in disability at all ages, according to Rand Corporation researchers, who have been conducting a series of studies analyzing obesity trends and estimating their effects on future health care costs. “More than one in five U.S. adults are now classified as obese based on self-reported weight, and almost one in three based on objectively measured weight.” Researchers also found that the fastest-growing group of obese Americans consists of people who are at least 100 pounds overweight.
Quick takes
Caveat emptor – Joe Paduda at Managed Care Matters offers a buyer checklist of issues when evaluating work comp savings on medical bill review.
Fraud fighting – at Comp Time, Roberto Ceniceros relates the story of some creative investigation tactics used to prove workers comp fraud on the part of a Florida mail carrier.
RIMS – check out the RIMS website, which has just been overhauled. In addition to improved navigation, it includes more accessible news feeds on the front page.
Legal brief – When is a deviation not a deviation? The Arkansas Court of Appeals ruled in favor of truck driver whose injury occurred off-route.

Blowing Smoke in Montana

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

As a service for Insider readers who do not follow the Flathead Beacon, we bring you the western Montana saga of Brock Hopkins, who either was or was not an employee of Great Bear Adventures when he had a great bear adventure of his own, much to his detriment. Hopkins, 23 at the time, appears to have been an occasional worker at the seasonal attraction. On November 2, 2007, he showed up at the park, took a few hits on his marijuana pipe (not prescribed by a doctor) and checked in with the park owner, Russell Kilpatrick, who was on the phone at the time.
Kilpatrick wanted Hopkins to repair a gate. After completing the task, Hopkins went to ask Kilpatrick if there was anything else that needed doing, but Kilpatrick was asleep (hibernating?). So Hopkins, after carefully placing his marijuana pipe on a storage shed outside the bear pen, mixed up some feed and entered the pen. He was attacked by a bear and sustained severe injuries to his legs. He barely managed to crawl out of the pen.
Contract of Hire
In subsequent court proceedings, Kilpatrick argued that Hopkins was a volunteer at the park. While he denies asking Hopkins to feed the bears, he admits that he did ask him to adjust the gate. And, yes, he did slip him $300 shortly after he was released from the hospital.
Judge James Jeremiah Shea, of the Montana Workers’ Compensation Court, disagreed with Kilpatrick. In his written decision, Judge Shea managed to reference the (marijuana stoked) comedy, “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle:”
“It is not as if this attack occurred when Hopkins inexplicably wandered into the grizzly pen while searching for the nearest White Castle. Hopkins was attacked while performing a job Kilpatrick had paid him to do – feeding grizzly bears.”
Kilpatrick denies asking Hopkins to feed bears, who may or may not have needed feeding. And one might be inclined to raise the issue of the marijuana impeding Hopkins’s judgment. Judge Shea took these factors into account and concluded that there was contradictory testimony on the issue of feeding the bears and most important, even though Hopkins smoked marijuana on the job, his being stoned was not a significant contributory factor in the injury. (If Hopkins could fix a gate while stoned, he could presumably feed the bears.)
Management’s Burden
Kilpatrick is appealing the ruling. He has a high mountain to climb if he wants to prove that Hopkins was not an employee. I’m not sure he is helping his cause when he indignantly stated the following:

“I became very very angry because I then knew what had happened. In my opinion Brock could not resist one last time of harassing the bears with his habit of blowing smoke in their faces for God only knows what reason and in direct defiance of my telling him NOT to disturb them!!!”

Alas, Kilpatrick is learning a tough lesson in management: you are responsible for the (stupid) actions of people who perform work-related tasks for you, whether or not you formally hired them – and in this case, whether or not you specifically asked them to perform a given task. (If a supervisor is napping, employees are pretty much on their own.)
The fact that Hopkins was prone to blowing smoke at the bears and Kilpatrick still allowed him on the property weakens his case considerably. (As Hopkins left his pipe on the shed prior to entering the pen, it is unlikely that he provoked the bear in this particular manner on that fateful day.)
Meanwhile, the youthful Hopkins has knee problems and possibly permanent muscle damage. He may want to find himself a medical practitioner to write him a script for marijuana, which is available legally in Montana. Blowing smoke can ease the pain, as long as you don’t direct it into the face of a sleepy or hungry bear.

Fresh Health Wonk Review & assorted news briefs

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

New Health Wonk Review – David Harlow of Health Blawg has posted an entertaining and informative Tax Day edition: Health Wonk Review: Block That Metaphor. Grab your coffee and dig in.
Diabetes prevention – At GoozNews, Merrill Goozner writes about the cost-effectiveness of diabetes prevention programs. Employers take note. We’ve frequently talked about the effect of co-morbidities such as diabetes and obesity on comp claims. Any progress on the prevention front would be good news for employers – both for the workers comp costs, and also for overall employee health and productivity.
Handy new toolCompPharmaPedia, a glossary of terms commonly used in the comp pharmacy business, published by CompPharma LLC, a consortium of workers comp PBMs. Not sure what a PBM is? Look it up!
Fleet safety – At the MEMIC Safety Blog, Randy Klatt posts about how GPS as a safety tool for fleet safety. “You can instantly see where all your trucks, vans, or cars are located and their current speeds… More efficient responses will also mean less temptation for drivers to exceed speed limits, especially since they know their movements can be seen. For those who have hours-of-service restrictions, GPS can be used to ensure accurate reporting and log keeping.”
Trainer killed by elephant – It’s been a tough time for animal trainers. A few weeks ago, a trainer was killed by a whale at a Florida”s SeaWorld, and last week, elephant handler Andrew Anderton was killed by Dumbo, the elephant that he trained and lived with for 15 years. The death is under investigation by OSHA, but was thought to be an accident after the elephant had a run in with sparks from an electrical wire. Animal-related occupational fatalities are more common than many might realize. Over a 6-year study period in the 1990s, the Department of Labor logged 350 animal-related fatalities.
Bullying – teen bullying has been much in the news of late, but unfortunately, this is not a phenomena that people outgrow. At Strategic HR Lawyer, Diane Pfadenhauer talks about workplace bullying.
Time lapse – At Comp Time, Roberto Ceniceros offers his nomination for strange claim of the month. OK, and while we’re on the theme of “strange,” we nominate the case of Copenhagen workers who went on strike in protest after an unusual work benefit was rescinded. You have to wonder what the safety record had been like.
10 ways to trigger a lawsuit – At HR Daily Advisor, Attorney Barbara Meister Cummins offers her picks for the 10 most lawsuit-attracting lines she hears from managers, part 1 and part 2. We’d add one that my colleague wrote about recently: “Don’t report that, you’ll screw up the safety bonus.”
Scary medical story of the week – If you think getting a computer virus in email program is bad, just wait until the hackers turn their sights to implantable medial devices. According to the MassDevice blog, hackers have already hijacked a patient support website for epileptics, MRI machines and electronic medical records. The post talks about these incidents and discusses the need for heightened security for devices with life-sustaining functions.
Scam alert – The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) to consumers: Beware of health insurance scams.

Health Wonk Review and other noteworthy news briefs

Thursday, March 18th, 2010

It’s Health Wonk review week, and Minna Jung serves up the March Madness of both the basketball court and the health care reform process in this week’s Health Wonk Review. Visit this week’s post at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s blog The Users’ Guide to the Health Reform Galaxy.
Employer trends

  • Laura Petrecca of USA Today writes that employers are increasingly using technology to track and monitor employees. They do so for a variety of reasons, including monitoring to ensure productivity; to ensure that trade secrets are protected, and to ensure maintenance of professional and lawsuit-proof workplaces. Next month, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case that will explore privacy rights for employees when using employer-supplied devices. View some of the tech monitoring techniques that are being used.
  • NPR has been running a series on work-life balance and the increasing number of employers who are turning to flexible work schedules. You can read more about it at HR Web Cafe: Work-Life Balance and Flex Work.
  • Employee compensation costs – Private industry employers spent an average of $27.42 per hour worked for total employee compensation in December 2009 (PDF), according to a report issued last week by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Wages and salaries accounted for 70.8% of these costs, while benefits accounted for 29.2%. Of the benefits, 8.2% were for the cost of legally mandated benefits.

CT crackdown – Connecticut employers take note – Attorney General Richard Blumenthal is planning a crackdown on workers that are misclassified as independent contractors. “Among the commission’s recommendations: increase the penalty from $300 per violation to $300 a day per violation, strengthen criminal sanctions against misclassification and jointly investigate misclassification complaints with other state agencies.”
Immigrant workers – In light of a recent Iowa Supreme Court ruling in a case involving a nonresident alien, Roberto Ceniceros posts about immigrant workers and benefit complexities. To stay current on other related issues, we refer you to Peter Rousmaniere’s Working Immigrants.
Toxic chemicalsThe Environment News Service writes that the Obama administration is giving mixed signals on right-to-know for toxic chemicals. On the one hand, to increase transparency, the EPA is providing free web access to the Toxic Substances Control Act Chemical Substance Inventory. This is the first time that employers will have access to thousands of industrial chemicals in the agency’s database. But in a move that seems at odds with the administration’s stated commitment to transparency, OSHA is proposing a reduction in the hazard warning information that chemical manufacturers must provide to workers, customers and other users. OSHA denies that it is weakening protections, and according to the article, claims that it is “merely trying to conform with global labeling rules and that manufacturers often disagree with the cancer hazard evaluations and other advisory information.”
Medical marijuana – We suspect we’ll be seeing more stories like this: Walmart fires Michigan man for using medical marijuana.The store fired 2008 “Associate of the Year” Joseph Casias when he failed a drug test. Casias has sinus cancer and a brain tumor and has an authorized medical marijuana card. He uses marijuana to control pain at night, but claims that he is never under the influence at work. (See our past posts on this topic: The current buzz on medical marijuana and the workplace and One toke over the line.)
Kemper runoff – Hard to believe that it’s been six years, but the Kemper runoff saga is nearing conclusion, according to Business Insurance. Some call this “one of the most successful runoffs in history,” but not all agree. Some are waiting for liquidation to see if they will fare better than the reported 25 cents to 50 cents on the dollar that claims are being settled at:

“A decision to wait for liquidation or settle beforehand should depend on a cost benefit analysis that includes evaluating whether state guaranty funds for workers compensation claims are likely to pay for the majority of a policyholder’s claims, several experts said.

Workers comp claims account for the largest portion of Kemper’s outstanding liabilities, totaling about $600 million, Ms. Veed said.

But some states have net-worth exclusions, which eliminate guaranty fund coverage for companies above certain net worth levels, which range from $10 million to $50 million depending on the state, several sources said.”

(Uncompensable) Nightmare at Work

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

In December we blogged the horrendous case of Carla Nash, a lovely woman who was mauled by a chimpanzee owned by Sandra Herold, a friend. The 200 pound chimp literally ripped her face apart. Nash, who lacks health insurance, has been hospitalized for over a year at the Cleveland Clinic. The attack destroyed her vision and rendered her face unrecognizable (and unviewable). Doctors have determined that she is not ready for a facial transplant. She has sued Herold for $50 million. Her medical bills will easily run to 7 figures; who will pay has yet to be determined.In our prior blog, we noted that Herold was trying to limit the exposure to her workers comp policy.
A little lost in Nash’s tragedy is the fate of Frank Chiafari, the Stamford, Connecticut police officer who came to Nash’s aid. The raging, blood-covered chimp approached Chiafari’s cruiser, tore off the mirror, ripped open the door and tried to attack the policeman. Chiafari shot and killed the chimp.
In the weeks and months following the incident, Chiafari suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); he experienced anxiety, flashbacks, mood swings and nightmares. He underwent counseling. (It’s not clear how much time, if any, he was away from work.) Chiafari’s workers comp claim was denied: under Connecticut law, public safety officers are eligible for PTSD benefits only when they shoot people – not animals.
Compensating for the Uncompensated
The good news is that Stamford has been covering Chiafari’s medical bills, although they did require him to switch to a therapist of the city’s choosing. The even better news is that Chiafari has literally been working his way through this work-related nightmare. He is still on the job.
There is movement in the Connecticut legislature to amend the workers comp statute so that public safety officers are covered for PTSD resulting from the use of deadly force involving animals. As is so often the case, the law will be adjusted long after the incident that exposed the gap in coverage. Fortunately for officer Chiafari, the city, despite the comp denial, recognized the legitimacy of his claim and paid for the needed counseling. They did the right thing for an officer who did the right thing. Nothing will erase the horrible images from that fateful day last February. But life for Chiafari can go on in all its ordinary splendor – more than we can say, alas, for the ill-fated Carla Nash.

“Exclusive Remedy” for Losing Your Face?

Tuesday, December 8th, 2009

Usually employers try to prove that someone is not an employee, in order to avoid the workers comp liability. (Think “independent contractor.”) Today we examine a truly horrific case where the employer is desperate to establish compensability under workers comp, so that a grieviously injured employee can only collect comp benefits. By using the “exclusive remedy” provision of comp, the employer wants to avoid liability for pain and suffering. Some pain, some suffering!
Sandra Herold runs a towing company out of her house in Stamford, Connecticut. The company had a mascot – a 200 pound chimpanzee named Travis, who lived with Herold. I do mean lived with her: according to reports, they shared wine at candle lit dinners and shared a bed as well (no further comment possible).
Charla Nash occasionally worked for Herold, in an unspecified capacity. In February 2009, Herold called Nash and asked her to come by, as she was having trouble controlling Travis. As soon as Nash arrived, Travis attacked her, ripping off her face (literally). She lost her eyes, nose and mouth in the horrendous attack. (While images of her ravaged face are available on the internet, I do not recommend viewing them.) Police eventually were able to shoot the chimp.
Nash somehow survived the attack and is suing Herold for $50 million; a second suit against the state of Connecticut seeks an even larger amount, alleging negligence in allowing Herold to keep the animal in her home. (It is worth noting that no criminal charges have been brought against Herold.)
Exclusive Remedy?
Herold’s first line of defense is establishing workers comp as the “exclusive remedy.” She claims that Nash is an employee and thus is prohibited from suing her “employer.” While it may be premature to judge this particular strategy, it seems highly unlikely that Herold will prevail. Even if she can show that Nash was on the payroll, it is clear that Nash was not working on the day of the attack; Herold had called her and asked her to come over to help with Travis. And even if it can be proven that Nash occasionally helped out with Travis, it is unlikely that her job description included the duties of an animal trainer (for which she is not qualified).
In the unlikely scenario that this case is limited to workers comp, the claim will run in the multiple millions: comp will have to pay for Nash’s humongous medical bills – including a face transplant – and support her astronomical living expenses. This is a permanent total injury, so the indemnity portion may also be substantial. (If I were Herold’s comp carrier, I would aggressively deny this claim as not being work related.)
Herold is banking on a judicial process that finds having your face ripped off by a 200 pound beast is simply part of the job, part of the “assumption of risk” we all accept simply by showing up for work. (If that were the case, how many of us would be willing to report to work?) Herold’s house-of-cards defense will collapse with the most humble of gestures: Nash revealing her destroyed face to a jury.
Exclusive remedy is an important concept, one well worth preserving, but in this situation, it has no place. Herold must be held accountable for the actions of her late companion, Travis – anything less would be a travesty.

Turkey Shoot

Thursday, December 3rd, 2009

William Wehnke, 51, claims to have spotted a wild turkey in his field in rural Annsville, New York (population 3,000). He took aim and fired at the turkey and managed to hit Matthew Brady, a workers comp investigator, who happened to be crouching in the field, dressed in camouflage. Brady was apparently performing surveillance on Wehnke, who is collecting workers comp benefits for an unspecified injury. Whatever his disability, Wehnke is obviously capable of operating a shotgun.
Local authorities are not buying Wehnke’s story about the turkey. He’s been arraigned on a three-count grand jury indictment that includes felony second-degree assault and unlawful manner of taking. He is even charged with using inappropriate ammunition for hunting turkeys. Wehnke is in a lot of trouble for his little turkey shoot.
Investigator Brady was hit in the side, back and legs. He underwent surgery and presumably filed his own workers comp claim for what is surely a work-related – if highly unusual – disability.
Images – Lasting and Otherwise
I could not help but think of the other Mathew (sic) Brady, the 19th century photographer whose iconic images of the Civil War still resonate with us. As pathetic as investigator Brady’s situation is, his earlier namesake fared even worse. After the Civil War, Mathew Brady found that war-weary Americans had little interest in purchasing photographs of the bloody conflict. Having risked his fortune on his Civil War enterprise, Brady lost the gamble and fell into bankruptcy. His negatives were neglected until 1875, when Congress purchased the entire archive for $25,000, which might sound like a lot, but was not even enough to cover Brady’s debts. He died in 1896, penniless and unappreciated. In his final years, Brady said, “No one will ever know what I went through to secure those negatives. The world can never appreciate it. It changed the whole course of my life.”
The world may ultimately take little note of the suffering of the other Matthew Brady, wounded as he crouched in that desolate Annsville field. His life, too, has been significantly changed. But he at least will benefit from the wonders of modern medicine and the cushion of weekly indemnity, until he once again pursues his craft as a comp investigator. But the next time he is asked to don camouflage, he just might want to take a pass.

Halloween edition of Health Wonk Review; other news notes from the blogs

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

Our local neighbor Tinker Ready of Boston Health News has done a most excellent job in her illustrated Halloween edition of Health Wonk Review – she even included photos from her local haunted house. Go visit now: Health Wonk Review: Killer viruses and the undead public option – lots of good posts in an entertaining format.
Other news from the blogosphere
Is the party over in workers comp? – Joe Paduda of Managed Care Matters sees a lot of similarities between market conditions today and back in the dread late 1990s – lengthy soft market, premium rates that have dropped by two-thirds over five years, continued increase in medical severity … he doesn’t see a soft landing as likely.
FDA issues list of fraudulent H1N1 flu products and websites – “This list is intended to alert consumers about Web sites that are or were illegally marketing unapproved, uncleared, or unauthorized products in relation to the 2009 H1N1 Flu Virus (sometimes referred to as the “swine flu” virus). Note that until evidence to the contrary is presented to FDA, the owner of the listed Web site is considered responsible for promoting the unapproved, uncleared, or unauthorized products. The uses related to the 2009 H1N1 Flu Virus are not necessarily being promoted by the manufacturers of the products.” (Thanks to Gooznews for the pointer.
Could integrating comp medical care into group health could save big bucks? That’s a question that Roberto Ceniceros examines at CompTime in light of a recent California study that says savings could be achieved.
Judge Robert Vonada has been frequently updating Pennsylvannia Workers’ Compensation Journal of late. We particularly enjoyed a recent post entitled an entertaining primer on mediation, in which he points to and comments on a list of thirty things to say in mediation – or as he puts it, a list of things you will hear yourself say and wish you hadn’t.
CDC NIOSH Science Blog offers workplace safety & health tips for tattooists and piercers – a group of workers who are at hgh risk for exposure to bloodborne pathogens. They’ve created a Body Art Topic Page for more information.
We’ve recently been discussing the issue of injuries inflicted by animals and workers comp in the light of the chimp that attacked a CT woman. Risk Monitor features a posting called when circus animals kill that focuses on risks related to wild animals in the entertainment industry.
BLR’s Safety Daily Advisor reminds us that OSHA gives your employees 14 specific workplace rights. See OSHA’s 14-Point Employee Bill of Rights
Quickies