When it comes to workers' compensation insurance, small mistakes cost big money. Businesses across the country are paying too much for workers' compensation insurance, for reasons as simple as mistakes in how their business is classified. But there is something that can be done.
Edward J. Priz, author of Ultimate Guide to Workers' Compensation Insurance, says the two keys to getting classification mistakes fixed are patience and attention to detail. Insurance company underwriters and auditors can do little for a policyholder who is long on indignation but short on detail. Put in writing exactly why you feel the classification used is wrong for your business. Make reference to the specific descriptions in the manuals that you feel support your case. And then follow up like your life depended on it. It's generally a good idea to go through your agent, as most insurance companies prefer it.
Make sure you get their initial response in writing. Set up a file and document it carefully with every letter, fax, and e-mail you receive on the subject. Keep a detailed record of all phone conversations as well, noting date, person you spoke with, and what was said. If they commit to a deadline or timetable for action, don't hesitate to follow up when those deadlines arrive.
If your insurance company refuses to reconsider, you're not out of luck. If your company has already been inspected by a rating bureau, you can communicate with the bureau and point out the specific areas in the report you feel are inaccurate or incomplete. Work your way up through the rating bureau bureaucracy and find the individual most experienced and knowledgeable in classification matters. Then send a detailed written communication to this person.
If a rating bureau has not inspected your company, consider requesting an inspection. Many rating bureaus charge significant fees for this service, so negotiate for the insurance company to pay, or, if they don't agree, for the "loser" to pay. Once the inspection is arranged, prepare carefully and make sure the inspector understands all the key points you want to make. If the results of your inspection aren't favorable, carefully review the inspection report and see if there are any inaccuracies or omissions. If there are, immediately send a written correction and then follow up to make sure it's taken into account.
If you're still unsuccessful and you still feel your argument has merit, every state has some kind of appeals mechanism that employers can use to get classification decisions reversed. Your state's department of insurance can explain the process for your state.
Once the classification is corrected, look into whether you're eligible for a refund from previous years' overcharges. Classification mistakes are one of the most common causes of overcharges in workers' comp premiums--but fixing them is also one of the best ways to get your premiums lowered.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Prevalence of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in Grocery Checkers
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a serious affliction suffered by millions of workers a year. While it starts off as just pain, carpal tunnel syndrome is a very serious disorder that can lead to severe pain and nerve damage. Those most at risk for carpal tunnel syndrome are those who have jobs that involve constant repetitive and/or static motion, particularly of the wrists, arms, and hands. While this might instantly bring office workers to mind, this problem stretches well past the basic cubicles of a call center or of a data entry center. Carpal tunnel syndrome actually afflicts more assembly line workers and grocers than computer workers. Grocery checkers are actually considered so highly at risk for carpal tunnel syndrome that even the federal government has singled them out as a group that needs support to combat this affliction.
Men are found to only be 1/3 as likely as women to have carpal tunnel syndrome. The most recognized reason for this is due to the fact that women incur muscle imbalances at a faster rate and their wrists are generally thinner, thus the carpal tunnel is smaller and so it is easier to damage the median nerve within. Work that requires constant repetition that involves flexing the fingers, or wrists, will increase your chances of carpal tunnel syndrome. Static flexion involving gripping motions such as holding power tools, gripping a steering wheel or holding a pen will also cause the development of carpal tunnel syndrome. Bagging groceries and scanning all the various items, not to mention use of the cash register, is a major reason why grocery checkers are among the most highly afflicted group of workers.
Grocery checkers are so prone to carpal tunnel syndrome and similar injuries, that OSHA has specifically singled them out as a prime example of workers who need special considerations in their environment. The loss from workman's comp and lost time is enough that many employers have worked hard to introduce injury prevention programs. Many of these employers have reported happily that their efforts have actual had a positive effect on work-related injuries and workers' compensation costs. While the following advice was designed specifically for grocery checkers and grocery stores, it is equally valid for fast food, gas station or convenience store clerks, or any workers in a high volume retail environment.
A report by NIOSH revealed that more than 50% of all food cashiers, (jobs predominantly held by women), suffered some degree of carpal tunnel syndrome and other forms of repetitive strain injuries as a result of the physical demands of scanning products at high speed.
Think ergonomics. What's that? Well ergonomics is basically a process by which the tools and environment around a worker or specifically designed to help take pressure off the parts of the worker's body that are going to experience the most stress. This can apply to back, shoulders, neck, but it also very commonly is used in reference to wrists and wrist injuries, especially carpal tunnel syndrome. OSHA highly recommends that all employers in retail look for ergonomic solutions, and in general the employers that have gone that route have reported seeing a positive difference. One of the main reasons why the government and employers have taken so much interest, and why it so much focus has been put on carpal tunnel syndrome in grocery checkers, is because how vital a grocery store is to every single community, and because of the huge amount of employment that these stores create.
Grocery store work can be physically demanding. It is not at all uncommon for many grocery store workers, even in small towns, to handle thousands of items every day to stock shelves, check groceries, run the register or prepare inventory. Out of all these actions, the five things to look out for when trying to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome are force, repetition, duration, awkward positions, and static postures, all which contribute to the development of muscle imbalances, the main causative factor of carpal tunnel syndrome.
Trying to find a way to do the work that cuts down on these red flags, and the occurrence of work related injuries would decrease. It is in the employer's best interest to pay attention when an employee gets an injury. There might be some people who don't think carpal tunnel syndrome is a big deal--but they would be mistaken. If an employee has carpal tunnel syndrome, then how is he or she going to do a job that requires constant hand movement, wrist movement or anything else along those lines?
Because of the way scanners are situated, and because of the job itself, there is always going to be the repetitive motions, the turning of the wrist to scan a bar code, all the little things that can cause severe carpal tunnel syndrome in workers who are keeping up a grocery store. Knowing that this is a problem, however, is the first step to dealing with it. Through ergonomics, special stretches and muscle balancing exercises, and implementing job rotation to prevent one person from doing too much of one job, carpal tunnel syndrome can be prevented, which is always better than waiting until an actual treatment is necessary.
Carpal tunnel settlement may be necessary if problems are consistently there.
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a serious affliction suffered by millions of workers a year. While it starts off as just pain, carpal tunnel syndrome is a very serious disorder that can lead to severe pain and nerve damage. Those most at risk for carpal tunnel syndrome are those who have jobs that involve constant repetitive and/or static motion, particularly of the wrists, arms, and hands. While this might instantly bring office workers to mind, this problem stretches well past the basic cubicles of a call center or of a data entry center. Carpal tunnel syndrome actually afflicts more assembly line workers and grocers than computer workers. Grocery checkers are actually considered so highly at risk for carpal tunnel syndrome that even the federal government has singled them out as a group that needs support to combat this affliction.
Men are found to only be 1/3 as likely as women to have carpal tunnel syndrome. The most recognized reason for this is due to the fact that women incur muscle imbalances at a faster rate and their wrists are generally thinner, thus the carpal tunnel is smaller and so it is easier to damage the median nerve within. Work that requires constant repetition that involves flexing the fingers, or wrists, will increase your chances of carpal tunnel syndrome. Static flexion involving gripping motions such as holding power tools, gripping a steering wheel or holding a pen will also cause the development of carpal tunnel syndrome. Bagging groceries and scanning all the various items, not to mention use of the cash register, is a major reason why grocery checkers are among the most highly afflicted group of workers.
Grocery checkers are so prone to carpal tunnel syndrome and similar injuries, that OSHA has specifically singled them out as a prime example of workers who need special considerations in their environment. The loss from workman's comp and lost time is enough that many employers have worked hard to introduce injury prevention programs. Many of these employers have reported happily that their efforts have actual had a positive effect on work-related injuries and workers' compensation costs. While the following advice was designed specifically for grocery checkers and grocery stores, it is equally valid for fast food, gas station or convenience store clerks, or any workers in a high volume retail environment.
A report by NIOSH revealed that more than 50% of all food cashiers, (jobs predominantly held by women), suffered some degree of carpal tunnel syndrome and other forms of repetitive strain injuries as a result of the physical demands of scanning products at high speed.
Think ergonomics. What's that? Well ergonomics is basically a process by which the tools and environment around a worker or specifically designed to help take pressure off the parts of the worker's body that are going to experience the most stress. This can apply to back, shoulders, neck, but it also very commonly is used in reference to wrists and wrist injuries, especially carpal tunnel syndrome. OSHA highly recommends that all employers in retail look for ergonomic solutions, and in general the employers that have gone that route have reported seeing a positive difference. One of the main reasons why the government and employers have taken so much interest, and why it so much focus has been put on carpal tunnel syndrome in grocery checkers, is because how vital a grocery store is to every single community, and because of the huge amount of employment that these stores create.
Grocery store work can be physically demanding. It is not at all uncommon for many grocery store workers, even in small towns, to handle thousands of items every day to stock shelves, check groceries, run the register or prepare inventory. Out of all these actions, the five things to look out for when trying to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome are force, repetition, duration, awkward positions, and static postures, all which contribute to the development of muscle imbalances, the main causative factor of carpal tunnel syndrome.
Trying to find a way to do the work that cuts down on these red flags, and the occurrence of work related injuries would decrease. It is in the employer's best interest to pay attention when an employee gets an injury. There might be some people who don't think carpal tunnel syndrome is a big deal--but they would be mistaken. If an employee has carpal tunnel syndrome, then how is he or she going to do a job that requires constant hand movement, wrist movement or anything else along those lines?
Because of the way scanners are situated, and because of the job itself, there is always going to be the repetitive motions, the turning of the wrist to scan a bar code, all the little things that can cause severe carpal tunnel syndrome in workers who are keeping up a grocery store. Knowing that this is a problem, however, is the first step to dealing with it. Through ergonomics, special stretches and muscle balancing exercises, and implementing job rotation to prevent one person from doing too much of one job, carpal tunnel syndrome can be prevented, which is always better than waiting until an actual treatment is necessary.
Carpal tunnel settlement may be necessary if problems are consistently there.
Worker's Compensation California
The Worker's Compensation System is a sort of compromise between employers, employees, and the government. Its goals are to provide employees with a stable and consistent pool of funds from which they can get money if they are injured on the job. It has done well in this regard. Unlike the common tort system, where payouts are often unpredictable, almost everyone who is injured on the job while in the state of California, hired in the state of California, or are working for a company based in California can get their health and employment loss related costs covered. In this respect, Worker's Compensation, or Workman's Comp. as it is often referred to, is a great benefit to employees.
But like all compromises, there must be a payoff for the other side as well, in this case employers. In return for agreeing to not fight most on the job injury claims, employers get the benefit of limiting the payouts for injured workers to health expenses and economic losses such as not being able to work as a result of the injury. Ostensibly, the compromise cuts out any emotional damage payments as well as most punitive damages. These two damages often varied quite wildly, depending in large part upon how sympathetic the injured person appeared to the jury at trial, and were less dependent upon the actual costs or negligent harms that were committed. So, as you can imagine, these damages were hard to predict for an employer going into the trial. Additionally, and maybe most importantly, employers got to opt out of the trial system, and now all on the job injury claims are handled through arbitration. Arbitration is less formal way of deciding a case in which the parties just sit down in front of a person, often a former judge, who decides the case more quickly and thus more cost-efficiently. This means that employers now get relatively predictable and, on average, smaller payouts for injuries on the job, so they can factor these costs into their annual budget.
In California workers compensation, the way in which the system typically plays, is that an injured employee first files a claim. If there is no problem from the employer's point of view, the money is simply paid out quickly and easily. But, if there is a dispute with their employer about their right to receive benefits under Workers Comp. then the case goes to arbitration. Next, the parties will typically both bring an attorney to their arbitration hearing, the location of which is determined by a number of fact specific factors. There the arbitrator will listen to each side and make a determination on the case. If the employee wins, he gets his or her costs covered, and if the employer wins, then there is no payout.
But like all compromises, there must be a payoff for the other side as well, in this case employers. In return for agreeing to not fight most on the job injury claims, employers get the benefit of limiting the payouts for injured workers to health expenses and economic losses such as not being able to work as a result of the injury. Ostensibly, the compromise cuts out any emotional damage payments as well as most punitive damages. These two damages often varied quite wildly, depending in large part upon how sympathetic the injured person appeared to the jury at trial, and were less dependent upon the actual costs or negligent harms that were committed. So, as you can imagine, these damages were hard to predict for an employer going into the trial. Additionally, and maybe most importantly, employers got to opt out of the trial system, and now all on the job injury claims are handled through arbitration. Arbitration is less formal way of deciding a case in which the parties just sit down in front of a person, often a former judge, who decides the case more quickly and thus more cost-efficiently. This means that employers now get relatively predictable and, on average, smaller payouts for injuries on the job, so they can factor these costs into their annual budget.
In California workers compensation, the way in which the system typically plays, is that an injured employee first files a claim. If there is no problem from the employer's point of view, the money is simply paid out quickly and easily. But, if there is a dispute with their employer about their right to receive benefits under Workers Comp. then the case goes to arbitration. Next, the parties will typically both bring an attorney to their arbitration hearing, the location of which is determined by a number of fact specific factors. There the arbitrator will listen to each side and make a determination on the case. If the employee wins, he gets his or her costs covered, and if the employer wins, then there is no payout.
Workers Compensation
Workers compensation, or as it is often called, "Worker's Comp", is the name that refer to a system of laws that offers protection to injured workers. Its intended goal is to make sure that anyone who is injured at work receives medical care appropriate to their injury. The laws also provide for recovery of lost wages. When necessary, it provides for the retraining and rehabilitation necessary to return to the workforce. In the event a worker is killed on the job, benefits would extend under most circumstances to the worker's family. Although the system of laws governing Worker's Comp makes recovery of benefits easier than in normal personal injury cases, it is not unusual to need the services of an attorney to protect your rights and to insure that you receive all the benefits to which you are entitled. There are attorneys that specialize in Worker's Comp laws, and it is advisable to seek one of them. Not only do laws vary from state to state, but often courts vary from city to city, so by all means, if your injury occurs in, say, Boston, than be sure to hire Boston personal injury attorneys to represent you.
There are a few things that could exclude you from coverage under Worker's Comp laws. Although this does depend on the jurisdiction, employees may lose their benefits if their injuries or death results from either willful misconduct or from intoxication.
In addition to normal Workers Comp benefits there are some special federal laws which provide additional protection to certain classes of workers.
-----The Jones Act. Intended for seaman on U.S. flagged vessels
----The Federal Employment Liability Act (FELA). For employees of railroads engaged in interstate commerce.
----The Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act (LHWCA). For employees of certain classes of private maritime employers
----The Black Lung Benefits Act. For miners suffering from black lung disease.
It is not unusual for an injured employee to have some difficulty with either their employer or with the Worker's Compensation system. The employee usually has little knowledge of his rights although the employer is usually pretty sure about them. The employer also has some little tricks up their sleeves for minimizing their liability. The worker is walking through a minefield here, and this is where that Boston personal injury lawyers come into the picture.
It is hard to even trust the doctor in these cases. Employees are often told they are fine to return to work by a doctor whose loyalty is much stronger to the employer than the employee. Another practice that is sometimes used by employers to limit Workman's Comp liability is to return the employee to work at a different position. This special position is a promotion that involves much less physical exertion, and the employee accepts it, and then in a couple of weeks he finds himself laid off and the position eliminated. Once he returned to work his Workers Comp benefits ceased, and now he has lost them.
The attorney can guide you, and make sure you receive what you have coming to you under the law. These cases are procedural, and are not lawsuits as in non-work related personal injury. However, an exception is made when the injury is caused by a deliberate action of the employer, or when the employer fails to carry Workers Comp Insurance even though required by law to do so. You then have the right to sue the employer outside the Workman's Comp system.
There are a few things that could exclude you from coverage under Worker's Comp laws. Although this does depend on the jurisdiction, employees may lose their benefits if their injuries or death results from either willful misconduct or from intoxication.
In addition to normal Workers Comp benefits there are some special federal laws which provide additional protection to certain classes of workers.
-----The Jones Act. Intended for seaman on U.S. flagged vessels
----The Federal Employment Liability Act (FELA). For employees of railroads engaged in interstate commerce.
----The Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act (LHWCA). For employees of certain classes of private maritime employers
----The Black Lung Benefits Act. For miners suffering from black lung disease.
It is not unusual for an injured employee to have some difficulty with either their employer or with the Worker's Compensation system. The employee usually has little knowledge of his rights although the employer is usually pretty sure about them. The employer also has some little tricks up their sleeves for minimizing their liability. The worker is walking through a minefield here, and this is where that Boston personal injury lawyers come into the picture.
It is hard to even trust the doctor in these cases. Employees are often told they are fine to return to work by a doctor whose loyalty is much stronger to the employer than the employee. Another practice that is sometimes used by employers to limit Workman's Comp liability is to return the employee to work at a different position. This special position is a promotion that involves much less physical exertion, and the employee accepts it, and then in a couple of weeks he finds himself laid off and the position eliminated. Once he returned to work his Workers Comp benefits ceased, and now he has lost them.
The attorney can guide you, and make sure you receive what you have coming to you under the law. These cases are procedural, and are not lawsuits as in non-work related personal injury. However, an exception is made when the injury is caused by a deliberate action of the employer, or when the employer fails to carry Workers Comp Insurance even though required by law to do so. You then have the right to sue the employer outside the Workman's Comp system.
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