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Safety Board: Chemical Leak That Killed 6 Georgia Poultry Workers Was Preventable

A chemical leak that killed six workers at a Georgia poultry plant in 2021 resulted from a poorly designed freezer that spilled deadly liquid nitrogen as well as a failure by the plant`s owner to install safety equipment and properly …

Service Workers Union Asks Feds to Oversee South Carolina’s ‘Lax’ Safety Agency

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — One of the largest labor organizations in the United States petitioned the federal government on Thursday to wrest workplace safety oversight from South Carolina regulators accused of failing to protect service employees. South Carolina is one …

Florida Weekly Wage and Max Workers’ Comp Benefit See Biggest Jump Since 1980

The Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation has released the maximum weekly wage benefit for 2024 and it’s the largest two-year jump in wages in more than four decades. Florida law sets the maximum indemnity benefit for injured workers at 100% …

During Pandemic, Surgeries Delayed, but Care on Track for Injured Workers: WCRI

Injured workers got timely initial help during the COVID-19 pandemic but faced a longer wait for surgery compared to pre-pandemic years. A new Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) FlashReport examined the time from injury to first medical service among workers’ …

WCRI Report Examines Challenges of Low Back Pain and Comorbid Health Issues

Workers’ compensation patients who report comorbidities, especially mental health comorbidities (anxiety, depression, sleep dysfunction), had a stronger association with smaller functional recoveries than those who only reported physical health comorbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity. That’s according to a recent …

State Supreme Court Upholds Attorney Fees in Tennessee Workers’ Comp Case

In what could be seen as a rare win for the claimants’ bar in Tennessee, the state Supreme Court upheld a $50,500 award of attorney fees, an amount that is almost double the workers’ compensation benefits paid to the injured …

Maine, Louisiana, Kentucky Most Injury-Prone States, Group Says

Maine, Louisiana and Kentucky were the most injury-prone states in 2018, while Hawaii, Maryland and Nevada have the lowest injury rates, according to data analyzed by a group of New York pain physicians. Maine saw 596 emergency department visits per …

Florida OIR Approves Record Workers’ Comp Rate Cut, Despite Roofers’ Concerns

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation and the state insurance commissioner have approved a 15.1% average decrease in workers’ compensation rates, despite calls from roofing contractors to freeze rates for a while. The decrease takes effect for new and renewal …

At SpaceX, Worker Injuries Soar in Elon Musk’s Rush to Mars

One windy night at Elon Musk’s SpaceX facility in McGregor, Texas, Lonnie LeBlanc and his co-workers realized they had a problem. They needed to transport foam insulation to the rocket company’s main hangar but had no straps to secure the …

Georgia Law Officers Call for Full Salary Benefits Under Workers’ Comp

Georgia law enforcement leaders are urging state lawmakers to grant injured officers their full salaries while they recover, a move that could significantly alter the nature of workers’ compensation insurance. News outlets in the state reported that sheriffs and police …