Today’s post comes from guest author Nathan Reckman from Paul McAndrew Law Firm.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics “Workplace Injuries and Illnesses – 2010” report, the United States is becoming a safer place to work. In 2010, there were 3.1 million non-fatal work injuries reported. This translates to 3.5 injuries per 100 full-time equivalents, a slight decrease from the 2009 rate of 3.6 injuries per 100 full-time workers. The rate of injuries per 100 workers has been decreasing every year since 2002. In 2010, Iowa reported an above average number of work injuries, averaging 4.4 injuries per 100 full-time equivalent workers.

Of these 3.1 million injuries, nearly 76% (2.2 million) of injuries occurred in the service industry. Service jobs make up 82.4% of the labor market. Nearly 24% (0.7 million injuries) occurred in manufacturing industries, which make up 17.6% of the labor market.

Surprisingly, the state owned nursing and residential care facilities workers reported the most injuries at 14.7 injuries per 100 full-time equivalents. The industry with the most reported injuries in 2009, Local Government supported Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction, improved from 12.5 injuries per 100 full-time equivalents to 8.6 injuries per 100 full-time equivalents in 2010.

The statistics are encouraging, but I look forward to the day where there are no fatal workplace injuries, and where workplace safety is a primary concern for all employers and workers.

The Washington State Workers’ Comp Solvency Crisis is Going Away… 

      Let’s review the history here.  In 2010, Washington voters rejected, by an 18-point margin, an initiative to “privatize” our workers’ compensation system.  The impetus for the initiative, sponsored by the business and insurance community, was to bring “free market” savings to the system and save it from collapse.  That effort having failed miserably, the powers that be stirred up the 2011 Washington Legislature over the financial plight of the Department of Labor & Industry’s (Department) lack of reserves, largely due to the recession which started in 2008.  The 2011 legislature passed a series of measures, including a limited form of “lump-sum buyouts” for certain claims and more employer control over injured workers’ medical treatment, that were expected to generate about $1.3 billion in savings over four years.  Fast forward to 2013, and those 2011 amendments are now actually projected to save about $1.5 billion with no further changes.  And some of the 2011 changes have not even been fully implemented yet.

The bottom line here is that any basis for the panic and frenzy whipped up by business and the Republican Senate about the impending collapse or insolvency of our system has disappeared, and there now should be no reason to reintroduce measures that even further limit the rights and remedies of Washington’s injured and diseased workers in the upcoming session. 

     At a Workers’ Compensation Advisory Committee meeting in June of 2012, which focused on a State Auditor’s report about the low level of the Contingency Reserve, a worst-case scenario projecting the possibility  of ten years of double-digit  rate increases caused business lobbyists to start a mantra about a “mother of all rate increases” just around the corner.  But, following a large rate increase in 2011 to stabilize the accident insurance fund, and despite continuing medical cost inflation, the solvency of the fund has improved such that our workers’ compensation system had an average rate increase of ZERO in 2012 and 2013!  Despite the improved financial picture for compensating Washington’s injured and diseased workers, the business community, aided by Republican legislators, brought an array of “reform” bills to the 2013 legislative session – including a wide open “lump-sum buyout” bill that would have extended this process to the vast majority of claims, essentially gutting Washington’s one hundred year-old system of workers’ compensation.  The ostensible reason cited by legislators in our Republican-controlled Senate as necessitating these changes has been the still relatively low amount in the Department’s Contingency Reserve for funding the system in the future.

     The array of bills brought to the session, opposed by the Democrat-controlled House and Governor Inslee, died at the end of the regular session.  However, the so-called “reform” proponents are lining up to reintroduce some of these in the Special Session which began on May 13.  Based on information recently released by the Department, the air may have gone out of the “reform” balloon.  The Department reports a net operations income of $250 million in the second half of 2012, and most importantly, the system’s Contingency Reserve increased 64% from June to December of 2012, way above projections!  And even without a rate increase in 2013, the Department projects it will add another $82 million to reserves by the end of the year.  At this point, a very modest 5.5% rate increase is projected for 2014 to keep building the Reserve fund back to its appropriate level.

     The bottom line here is that any basis for the panic and frenzy whipped up by business and the Republican Senate about the impending collapse or insolvency of our system has disappeared, and there now should be no reason to reintroduce measures that even further limit the rights and remedies of Washington’s injured and diseased workers in the upcoming session. 

Data cited includes information from “The Stand”:

http://www.thestand.org/2013/03/4-reasons-to-leave-workers-comp-alone/

and,

http://www.thestand.org/2013/05/workers-comp-system-posts-strong-gains/

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Fourth & Vine Building – in the shadow of the Space Needle!

After TWENTY YEARS in our Pioneer Square office,  Causey Law Firm is MOVING!

The office will be closed on Friday, May 31^st and will reopen in our new location as of 1:00 pm on Monday, June 3^rd.  Time loss compensation will be processed on both dates.

Our mailing address, e-mail addresses, phone numbers and fax number will all remain the same.  Located on the corner of 4^th & Vine in the Belltown neighborhood, our physical address will be:

2601 4^th Avenue, Suite 340, Seattle, WA.

Our new location offers convenient access with a load zone for quick stops and plentiful metered parking.  Two conference rooms and individual offices will make for comfortable meetings. 

Like us on Facebook to see pictures!

If you, or a loved one, are diagnosed with a severe or aggressive condition, you may qualify to be immediately approved!

     One question that I am asked frequently by folks considering applying for Social Security Disability is “How long do I need to be off work?”  This question is based on a slight misunderstanding of the Social Security rules.  Your medical condition, or combination of conditions, that prevents you from working must have lasted or be expected to last a minimum of one year, (or be expected to result in death), in order for you to qualify for Social Security Disability.  That year does not need to have passed, in order for you to file your application.  If your condition is not expected to get better, or if a long course of treatment is planned that would take you out past one year, then you can file your initial application.  If there is clear medical evidence that you will be unable to work for at least a full year, there is no need to wait for the year to elapse before starting!

If you have not been off work for an entire year, but your condition is expected to last at least that long, you should apply right away.

      If your condition is not expected to get better, or if a long course of treatment is planned that would take you out past one year, then you can file your initial application.  If there is clear medical evidence that you will be unable to work for at least a full year, there is no need to wait for the year to elapse before starting!

     If you have not been off work for an entire year, but your condition is expected to last at least that long, you should apply right away. Benefits can’t begin until you have been disabled for five months, and an initial application usually takes 3-5 months (sometimes longer) to process, so the sooner you file your application, the sooner you may get your benefits.

     Of course, Social Security may deny your claim initially anyway, in which case you should appeal the decision.  We have had several clients who hit the one-year duration mark while we were in the appeals process.  A Social Security claim can take up to two years (sometimes longer) from the initial application until adjudication at a hearing, so the sooner you start, the better.

     If your diagnosis is terminal, Social Security will make every effort to expedite the processing of your claim.  I find it heartening that we don’t receive many inquiries for assistance from people with terminal conditions; I take this to mean that Social Security is doing the right thing and approving them right away.

     Social Security has a list of conditions that are automatically approved, called Compassionate Allowances Conditions – if you, or a loved one, are diagnosed with a severe or aggressive condition, you may qualify to be immediately approved!  Check the following list at Social Security’s website:

http://www.ssa.gov/compassionateallowances/conditions.htm

     When you file your application, be sure to point out that you believe your condition is on the list.

     I also receive calls with a variation on this question, from folks who are still working: “How can I get my Social Security started, so I can stop working?”  This call is not from people who are attempting to somehow ‘game’ the system, but rather folks who have been told by their doctors that they should stop working, or people who know that their work activity is exacerbating their medical conditions – but who can’t afford to stop working without a guarantee of income.  Unfortunately, this is one of the many Catch 22s of the Social Security Disability world – there is no way to get your benefits started up, until you stop working*. 

     One of the first things that Social Security will do, when you file your application, is look up your recent and current earnings.  If you are still working at a level considered above SGA (Substantial Gainful Activity), then they will not even order your medical records.  The fact that you are working, proves that you can – whether or not your doctor has said that you shouldn’t, whether or not you are in pain, whether or not working is causing your condition to get worse.

     Please, do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions about Social Security Disability.

*There is a level of earnings under which Social Security doesn’t count your income against you; this level is called “Substantial Gainful Activity”, and it can vary from year to year. In 2013, earnings under $1,040 per month are considered less than Substantial Gainful Activity, though any earnings will cause Social Security to more closely scrutinize your claim (considering, for example, whether you could perform your currently part-time job on a full-time basis, etc.).  A year-by-year look at the Substantial Gainful Activity amounts can be found at http://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/sga.html

Photo credit: Viewminder / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND

The Social Security Administration turns down many worthy applicants when they first apply.

     There is a lot in the news these days about the Social Security Disability Program, with some pundits suggesting people are getting on benefits simply because they are unemployed, or because they claim to be injured or ill when in fact they are able-bodied and fully capable of working. Every day, all day, I work with people filing for Social Security Disability benefits. So I work with the program’s rules – yes, there are rules for deciding these cases – it is not enough just to claim to be disabled. And I come face to face with individuals who are struggling, sometimes with a major health issue such as cancer, or rheumatoid arthritis, or Multiple Sclerosis. Other folks have multiple health problems that have combined to force them from the labor market. All of them have medical records, often reams of them, documenting diagnoses, chronicling surgeries and other treatment regimens. This is one big thing I think the general public does not know: a person must have one or more diagnoses from a qualified physician that could account for the symptoms and limitations he or she is reporting to Social Security. There must be convincing medical documentation. Much of my day is spent obtaining and reviewing the medical records of my clients, and ensuring that the decision-makers at Social Security also see them.

…the medical condition must be not only serious, but also prolonged.

     Many people are not familiar with Social Security’s definition of disability or the program’s rules, so they do not realize that the disabling medical condition or conditions must be serious enough to have prevented the person from working for AT LEAST 12 continuous months. If the individual has not yet been out of the labor market for a period of at least one year, it must be very clear that this will be the case. In situations where there is doubt about this, Social Security typically turns down the claim. I have had callers who have been unable to work for a few months while going through chemotherapy treatment for cancer, but have been able to get back to work in less than one year. They do not qualify for Social Security Disability benefits. So the medical condition must be not only serious, but also prolonged.

     One broadly held belief about Social Security Disability is, in fact, true: The Social Security Administration turns down many worthy applicants when they first apply. It is necessary to appeal (the first appeal is called a Request for Reconsideration). Often, a second denial follows. Then it is necessary to request a hearing in front of a judge. For a person who is too sick to work, not feeling well, and home alone trying to navigate this system, it can be daunting. One of the joys of my practice is our capacity to lend support to such individuals, to take the reins of the case and drive it forward, so my client can concentrate on taking care of herself or himself while I and my staff handle the legal stuff.

     We are able to offer representation to people at any stage in the process, including initial application. We are happy to talk with callers who are weighing their options, and simply need information in order to know whether to apply for benefits in the first place. There is no charge for such calls, so do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions about Social Security Disability.

Photo credit: Thomas Hawk / Foter.com / CC BY-NC

Bangladeshi Workers Protest Deaths

    The total number of workers killed or injured in the collapse of a building in Savar, Bangladesh on April 24, 2013 is not yet known, as rescuers continue to search for survivors.  As of Sunday, April 28th, the count was at least 377 dead.  Many of those killed were workers at clothing factories housed in the building, known as Rana Plaza, where fire broke out in the wreckage of the building, temporarily suspending rescue efforts as of April 24.  Efforts will restart with the aide of heavy equipment, which had previously been avoided in an effort to not injure those still buried in the rubble.  There no longer are assumed to be any victims remaining alive, although hundreds remain unaccounted for. The death toll surpassed a fire five months ago that killed 112 people and brought widespread pledges to improve worker-safety standards. But since then, very little has changed in Bangladesh.

Human Rights Watch reported on the building collapse, noting that it knows of no cases in which the Bangladeshi government has ever prosecuted a factory owner over the deaths of workers.

    USA Today reported on the tragedy with the news that Mohammed Sohel Rana, the fugitive owner of the illegally-constructed building, was apprehended by a commando force while trying to flee to India.  Rana was returned to Dhaka to face charges of negligence. Rana had been on the run since the building collapsed Wednesday. He last appeared in public Tuesday in front of the Rana Plaza after huge cracks appeared in the building. Witnesses said he assured tenants, including five garment factories, that the building was safe. Hours later, the Rana Plaza was reduced to rubble, crushing most victims under massive blocks of concrete.

    Human Rights Watch reported on the building collapse, noting that it knows of no cases in which the Bangladeshi government has ever prosecuted a factory owner over the deaths of workers. Many factory owners in Bangladesh are parliamentarians or members of the main political parties. In an interview with a government minister in 2011, the minister told Human Rights Watch that it would be “impossible” to improve workers rights so long as factory owners were senior members of political parties. 

    According to the Human Rights Watch report, Bangladesh has notoriously poor workplace safety inspection mechanisms. The Ministry of Labour’s Inspection Department, responsible for monitoring employers’ adherence to Bangladesh’s Labour Act, is chronically under-resourced. In June 2012, the Inspection Department had just 18 inspectors and assistant inspectors to monitor an estimated 100,000 factories in Dhaka district, where the Rana building is located. The garment sector alone employs an estimated 3 million workers. 

    According to the US Department of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs, workers in the Bangladeshi garment factories are primarily women – 75 to 90 percent – and children ranging in age from eight to fourteen years.  Most of the children are girls with an average age of just over 13 years.  Working conditions are described in the USDOLreport as follows:

        Garment factories are located in multi-storied buildings throughout Dhaka including Mirpur, Malibagh and Rampura districts (allegedly one of the worst areas), and the Free School District area. Working conditions in general in Bangladesh are far below western standards. On a par with other factory settings, garment factories are often dimly lit, with poor ventilation, and open for very long hours. However, some factories operate with good lighting and are not overly hot or crowded. The workers, mostly female, work without a break during their shift. Too often the factory doors are locked. Sometimes guards with keys stand by the locked gate; other times no one able to unlock the iron grating is near. Many times the locked gate is the only entrance or exit to a factory. The workers, including children, are frequently locked into their work place at the beginning of the morning shift and not let out until the end of the workday, and in some cases not until the next day. Overtime hours occur during peak periods in the production cycle when manufacturers are rushing to fulfill their export quotas. AAFLI’s 1994 survey of garment factories found that, like adult workers, children typically work 10 to 14 hours a day, with a half-day off on Friday.

    The similarities  are chilling to the working conditions of American garment workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory prior to the tragic fire on March 26, 1911 that forever bears the same name. The horrific deaths from the Triangle fire, witnessed through photographs printed in the news media around the world, spurred a swift and aggressive response by workers and labor activists. Their response led to the establishment of many of the protective organizations American workers now rely on, including the workers’ compensation system, the American Society of Safety Engineers, and the U.S. Department of Labor.

    As with the Triangle fire, this should be a call to action as well as a time for reflection.  We, as consumers, are tied to the businesses in Bangladesh that supply garments to American companies.  That connection gives us the power to effect change in the working conditions of the Bangladeshi factories by insisting that American corporations purchase garments for sale in the US from safety-inspected factories that meet minimal international standards for basic worker protection.

Photo credit: dblackadder / Foter.com / CC BY-SA 

Today’s post comes from guest author Jon Gelman from Jon Gelman, LLC – Attorney at Law.

While reviewing some historical cases today, I realized that what is missing from the workplace is the concept of “a job.” America’s economy has dramatically changed, and so have jobs that were once available its workforce.

Even clearer is the fact that the concept of a job has disappeared. The idea of getting up in the morning and going regularly to a job has even vanished. The evolution changed slowly with the young generation claiming that a job cycle transformed from a lifetime position to one lasting two years. Then the next stage in the evolution occurred, where the employee became a transient worker and daily the job changed and no stable employer really exists.

This evolution has eroded the underlining framework of a functional workers’ compensation program and the delivery of benefits. The injured worker becomes lost to the system, and a safe and secure workplace becomes an illusion. Lost in the complexity is the adequate reporting of accidents and occupational disease, and the ability to accurately folllow the evolution of latent diseases and medical conditions.

“A new trend in the U.S. labor market is reshaping how management and workers think about employment, while at the same time reshaping the field of occupational safety and health. More and more workers are being employed through “contingent work” relationships. Day laborers hired on a street corner for construction or farming work, warehouse laborers hired through staffing agencies, and hotel housekeepers supplied by temp firms are common examples, because their employment is contingent upon shortterm fluctuations in demand for workers. Their shared experience is one of little job security, low wages, minimal opportunities for advancement, and, all too often, hazardous working conditions. When hazards lead to work-related injuries, the contingent nature of the employment relationship can exacerbate the negative consequences for the injured worker and society. The worker might quickly find herself out of a job and, depending on the severity of the injury, the prospects of new employment might be slim. Employerbased health insurance is a rarity for contingent workers, so the costs of treating injuries are typically shifted to the worker or the public at large. Because employers who hire workers on a contingent basis do not directly pay for workers’ compensation and health insurance, they are likely to be insulated from premium adjustments based on the cost of workers’ injuries. As a result, employers of contingent labor may escape the financial incentives that are a main driver of business decisions to eliminate hazards for other workers.”

Click here to read “At the Company’s Mercy: Protecting Contingent Workers from Unsafe Working Conditions”

Today’s post comes from guest author Brody Ockander from Rehm, Bennett & Moore.

No one ever intentionally plans to get in a car accident or get hurt at work. But unfortunately bad things sometimes happen in life. And a person’s response to those situations can sometimes affect what happens from a legal perspective. Also remember that if you travel as part of your job, or if traveling is your job, like in the case of truck drivers, vehicle accidents are often covered under workers’ compensation. Here are some recommended tips to avoid potential legal pitfalls later.

What to do when you’ve been in a car accident:

1. Call the police (or 911 if necessary).
2. Exchange information with the other driver (name, contact info, driver’s license number, license plate, auto insurance).
3. Obtain witnesses: Get names and contact info for any witnesses even if the police have already spoken to that person. If possible, obtain written statements from willing witnesses.
4. Gather evidence: Take pictures or videos of the accident scene, the damage to all vehicles, and any noticeable injuries.
5. Write notes of the date, time, location, weather, how the accident happened, and any other details that you can remember (speed, traffic signals, turn signals, headlights, brake lights, cell phone usage, etc.).
6. Go to your doctor: make sure to tell your doctor how you were injured, and be sure to discuss all injuries, even ones that seem insignificant at that time.
7. Contact your insurance company, and report the accident. Your auto insurance will likely pay for at least some of your medical bills.
8. Do not give a recorded statement without contacting a lawyer.

You should talk to a lawyer when you’ve been in a car accident IF: 

1. You don’t know what kind of compensation/money you are entitled to
2. The insurance company is asking you for a recorded statement
3. The insurance company denies your claim
4. There is a question of which driver is at fault
5. The police report is incomplete or inaccurate
6. The other driver does not have insurance or does not have enough insurance coverage
7. You have unpaid medical bills
8. You have permanent disability or constant pain
9. There are complicated legal or medical issues
10. You have missed more than a few days of work

Do your best to drive defensively, and safe travels.

Diesel Fumes Cause Lung Cancer

Today’s post comes from guest author Leonard Jernigan from The Jernigan Law Firm.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States. It’s greater than breast and colon cancer in women and greater than prostate, colon, pancreatic and liver cancer in men. If diagnosed early there is a 70-80% survival rate for 5 years, and a low-dose CT scan of the chest can detect 60-70% of lung cancers at an early stage. Unfortunately, there has been no significant progress in the treatment of lung cancer in 40 years and between 10,000–20,000 occupational lung cancer deaths occur each year in the United States.

One area of concern is the relationship between diesel exhaust exposure and lung cancer. In June of 2012 the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified diesel engine exhaust as carcinogenic to humans, and studies of underground miners support that statement and also indicate that others who are around diesel fumes may be at an increased risk. Toxic chemicals in diesel gas are nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, carbon monoxide, benzene, PAHS (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), aldehydes and nitro-PAHS.

Railroad workers, miners, truck drivers, bus operators, longshoremen and others who have been heavily exposed to diesel fumes are obviously at greater risk than those with less exposures, but even minimal exposures may cause harm. In urban areas, like lower Manhattan, there is concern that diesel exposures may be a public health hazard and detection systems have been placed in areas to collect exposure data. As for workers who have experienced intense, short-term duration to diesel fumes, a chemical called 1-hydroxypyrene may be elevated in urine, but the test for this marker is not performed by most commercial laboratories. The Mount Sinai – Irving J. Selikoff Center for Occupational & Environmental Medicine is studying diesel exposure and may be a good resource for future information, as well as the National Clean Diesel Campaign: www.epa.gov/diesel.

The agency has hosted a ceremony for Worker Memorial Day for 20 years.

A young fisherman, a veteran truck driver, a bridge painter, and an office manager working at her desk – these are among the 66 people who will be honored this year at the 2013 Worker Memorial Day ceremony April 23rd. The parents, spouses, children and other relatives of those who died from a job-related illness or injury last year have all been invited to the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries’ (L&I) annual Worker Memorial Day ceremony.

“We honor those who died last year by pledging to do everything in our power to prevent these tragedies from being repeated.” - Director Joel Sacks

The 66 workers to be honored include young people, such as the 22-year-old college student working as a commercial fisherman, to seniors in their 80s who died from diseases caused by workplace exposure to asbestos while they were in their prime working years. Some worked in jobs considered hazardous, like logging, construction and fishing, and others were in less hazardous professions, such as insurance, research, or sales.

“Worker Memorial Day is a somber reminder that there is still much work to do to make sure every worker in Washington returns home safely at the end of the day,” said L&I Director Joel Sacks. “We honor those who died last year by pledging to do everything in our power to prevent these tragedies from being repeated.”

The ceremony begins at 2 p.m. at L&I’s central building in Tumwater, 7273 Linderson Way S.W. The agency has hosted a ceremony for Worker Memorial Day for 20 years.

Governor Jay Inslee is scheduled to attend, as well as representatives of the Association of Washington Business, the Washington State Labor Council, and the Washington Self-Insurers Association. While the relatives of all the workers who died in 2012 have been invited, the observance is also open to their friends, colleagues, and the general public.

The ceremony includes a reading of the names of the workers who died, accompanied by bell ringers from the Washington State Council of Fire Fighters. After the ceremony, the families are invited to ring the brass bell in the Worker Memorial garden on the grounds of the L&I building.

A book in the lobby of L&I’s Tumwater building contains the names of all the fallen workers. For a complete list of those being honored, visit www.WorkerMemorialDay.Lni.wa.gov.

To connect with L&I: Facebook (facebook.com/laborandindustries) and Twitter (twitter.com/lniwa)

Photo credit: Mauigirl 2011 / Foter.com / CC BY-ND