Using Workers’ Compensation Data for Occupational Safety and Health: A Work...
By Anthony Robbins On 19 June, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and other Federal agencies and private sector groups concerned with worker health convened a two-day workshop at...
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North Carolina’s News & Observer has published a terrific in-depth series on “ghost policies” – inadequate workers’ compensation policies that save employers money but leave injured workers without...
View ArticleReport illustrates worrisome trend of painkiller abuse among injured workers
by Kim Krisberg Researchers studying workers’ compensation claims have found that almost one in 12 injured workers who begin using opioids were still using the prescription drugs three to six months...
View ArticleGreat new resource: Workers’ Comp Hub
The US workers’ compensation system isn’t so much a system as it is a collection of state programs with varying rules and requirements. The basic idea is that employers purchase workers-compensation...
View ArticleWorth reading: Older Americans, unplanned births, and workers’ fights
A few of the recent pieces I’ve liked: Two related pieces at ReportingonHealth.org: Rita Beamish, “Older Americans Act limps along at 50” and Ryan White, “Intensive program keeps elderly at home out of...
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The same day that NPR and ProPublica published their investigation into the dismantling of the workers’ compensation system, OSHA released its own report, “Adding Inequality to Injury: The Cost of...
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An injured worker who was featured in the ProPublica/NPR investigation on the dismantling of the workers’ compensation system recently testified before lawmakers in Illinois, cautioning them against...
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Workers who get injured on the job already face significant challenges when trying to access the workers’ compensation system. But for workers who suffer from occupational illnesses related to chemical...
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At NPR, reporter Howard Berkes writes about the failure of federal laws to protect workers who are left out of the workers’ compensation system. He begins his story with Kevin Schiller, a building...
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At The New York Times, writers Kim Barker and Russ Buettner report on the labor investigations being conducted at nail salons throughout New York in the wake of a 2015 New York Times article that...
View ArticleHospital lab technicians’ breast cancer deemed work-related
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled this month that breast cancer can be considered work-related under the country’s workers’ compensation law. The 7-1 ruling supported the case of three women who were...
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At the Detroit Free Press, Jennifer Dixon and Kristi Tanner investigate Michigan’s workplace safety and oversight system and talk to the families of victims who say there’s no justice for workers...
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In a big win for workers, Oklahoma’s Supreme Court has ruled that state law allowing businesses to opt out of traditional workers’ compensation is unconstitutional. At ProPublica, Michael Grabell...
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At the Toronto Star, Sara Mojtehedzadeh reports on the “lethal legacy” of a General Electric plant in the Canadian city of Peterborough, Ontario, where hundreds of compensation claims have been filed...
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At Bloomberg BNA, Stephen Lee reports that with fears of deportation looming, undocumented immigrants are becoming afraid to access legal remedies when they’re injured on the job. The article notes...
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At the Guardian, Krithika Varagur interviewed workers inside the Indonesian factory that manufactures clothing for Ivanka Trump’s fashion line, finding poverty wages, anti-union intimidation and...
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At the Intercept, Avi Asher-Schapiro reports on a new insurance plan that Uber is offering its drivers that could help them recoup wages and cover medical expenses if they’re injured on the job....
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At the Tampa Bay Times, Neil Bedi, Jonathan Capriel, Anastasia Dawson and Kathleen McGrory investigate a June 29 incident at Tampa Electric in which molten ash — commonly referred to as “slag” —...
View ArticleOccupational health, environmental protections the focus of new public health...
The American Public Health Association (APHA) adopted 13 new policy statements during its annual meeting. These well researched policy statements and accompanying recommendations allow APHA to advocate...
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The Teamsters get ready to become a 'sanctuary union'; a Florida bill would protect immigrant workers injured on the job; low-wage workers return to the streets to fight for $15; and the death of a...
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