Tag Archives: working people

Governor Cuomo’s Proposal Benefits Big Businesses, Hurts Working People

As an attorney practicing in the field of Workers’ Compensation for more than 25 years, I have represented thousands of injured workers. My job as their advocate has been extremely rewarding.   Most of my clients are honest, hardworking people who got up one day, went to work, and suffered an unforeseen accident. Not every case was easy, but in the end, the injured worker would usually prevail in getting adequate wage replacement and prompt medical treatment because the system was reasonable and the fight was fair. 

Unfortunately, the last 10 years have not been kind to injured workers. I have seen a shift in attitude in some of my clients. Many feel the need to explain that they are truly hurt as if there was any doubt in my mind. I realized that this was happening as a result of the propaganda perpetrated against the injured – that somehow they were faking their accident, or didn’t really deserve the benefits they were receiving. It dawned on me that this attitude has been influenced by a large-budget marketing strategy aimed at making the general public believe that those who get hurt are perpetrating a fraud against the system or filing frivolous lawsuits in order to obtain benefits they don’t deserve.

Big business has made the injured worker the scapegoat for the failing economy and the cost of doing business not only in New York but across the country. In fact, Governor Cuomo even seems committed to the Pro-Business Agenda to reduce costs and increase profits. A couple of weeks ago I outlined the Governor’s budget proposals that were not a part of his public address, as well as the Business Council’s wish list that would ensure cost savings at the expense of the injured worker. Some of these proposals included a reduction in the amount of wage replacement injured workers receive, as well as a limit on their medical treatment and choice of treating doctor. It also would limit worker access to the Workers’ Compensation system by limiting – or even eliminating – hearings before a judge, or giving the Board the ability to handpick judges to listen to certain types of cases. These limitations are designed to “save money” at the expense of the injured worker. The Governor has said that one of his motivations for adding these “reforms” to the budget was based on increasing costs to employers. The Business Council has lobbied for changes saying that costs to employers have gone up, not down. However, this directly contradicts Governor Cuomo’s statement in 2014 announcing that the 2013 Business Relief Act had cut Workers’ Compensation employer costs by 30%.   

The line in the sand has been drawn. The average worker in this country works paycheck to paycheck and does not have the funds for a big budget marketing strategy to counter this position. However, as a result of the attacks on workers in this state, a number of groups have indicated their opposition to the Business Council’s proposals. The New York Workers Compensation Alliance points out that after the 2007 reforms, Workers’ Compensation has replaced less than 10% of the lost wages of permanently disabled workers, and the current proposals made by the Business Council would render Workers’ Compensation virtually meaningless as a source of wage replacement benefits.  

The New York Committee for Occupational Safety & Health (NYCOSH) slammed the Business Council for putting profits over safety. The NYS AFL-CIO is opposed to the changes noting that they would “alter the system to such an extent that many injured workers could never expect to maintain a decent standard of living”.  Let your voice be heard. Call your State Legislators. Let them know while no one goes to work expecting to be injured, it can happen to any of us at anytime and everyone deserves to be treated fairly.

 

Catherine M. Stanton is a senior partner in the law firm of Pasternack Tilker Ziegler Walsh Stanton & Romano, LLP. She focuses on the area of Workers’ Compensation, having helped thousands of injured workers navigate a highly complex system and obtain all the benefits to which they were entitled. Ms. Stanton has been honored as a New York Super Lawyer, is a past president of the New York Workers’ Compensation Bar Association, past president of the Workers’ Injury Law and Advocacy Group, and is an officer in several organizations dedicated to injured workers and their families. She can be reached at 800.692.3717.

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“Reform” Warning – Governor Cuomo’s Proposed Budget Reduces Workers’ Compensation Benefits

Recently Governor Cuomo delivered his State of the State address for 2016. I heard the live telecast and noticed that many of the proposals in the budget are positive and beneficial to working class people, including allocating an additional $2.1 billion in school funding; rebuilding the infrastructure to improve roads and mass transportation; increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour; and bolstering public safety. In reviewing the actual budget proposal itself, however, there appears to be amendments to the Workers’ Compensation system that will not benefit injured workers and their families.

In order to understand the so-called “reforms” on workers, you need the historical perspective. Prior to the enacting of state Workers’ Compensation statutes, simply put, workers were allowed to sue their employers for negligence. In the early 20th century, spurred on by social reformers and the tragedy of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire that killed almost 150 women and girls, laws were enacted to protect workers. Known as the “great compromise,” workers gave up the right to sue their employers in exchange for timely payment of medical and indemnity benefits. For much of that century, Workers’ Compensation laws were expansive and assisted injured workers in getting treatment so they could eventually return to work or receive ongoing benefits in the event they could not.

Today most states have seen changes where the concept of medical treatment and wage replacement for injured workers is being substantially eroded. This agenda to reduce benefits to the injured worker has been part of a nationwide effort starting more than 20 years ago by the Business Council (aka the Insurance Industry). Their agenda was put into effect almost nine years ago here in New York when workers gave up many benefits under the guise of “reform.” These included a reduction in the amount of wage replacement injured workers receive and a limitation on medical treatment in exchange for increasing the weekly benefits more in line with the state average.

Now the Business Council is back to further chip away at injured worker benefits. It has put together a wish list in hopes of further reducing medical benefits and monetary benefits to injured workers who should be able to rely on their treating doctors to determine the best course of treatment. However, one of their proposals is that treatment would be determined by a “panel” for the first 90 days of treatment. This panel, of course, would not include a doctor of the injured workers’ choice, but would be determined by the insurance company for the employer.

Additionally, the Council is proposing a cap on benefits based upon a fixed timeframe as opposed to when injured workers finish their treatment and/or surgical procedures. These measures are being proposed strictly based upon the cost savings realized by the insurance industry and have nothing to do with compensating injured workers or ensuring them of the best treatment available for their particular injury. What this will do, in essence, is shift the cost of medical treatment and wage replacement to other sources such as federal programs and state programs that are paid for by the tax payer instead of the employer’s insurance company. This will ensure continued growth in profits for the insurance industry at the expense of injured workers and their families.

Governor Cuomo’s budget proposal contains some of the Business Council’s “wish list,” but thankfully not everything – at least not yet. Please contact the Governor, your State Senator or Assembly Person and tell them that our rights and benefits should never be negotiated away. Workers are the backbone of this country. They have built this nation and rebuilt New York. We must ensure they are taken care of when they get hurt.

 

Catherine M. Stanton is a senior partner in the law firm of Pasternack Tilker Ziegler Walsh Stanton & Romano, LLP. She focuses on the area of Workers’ Compensation, having helped thousands of injured workers navigate a highly complex system and obtain all the benefits to which they were entitled. Ms. Stanton has been honored as a New York Super Lawyer, is the past president of the New York Workers’ Compensation Bar Association, the immediate past president of the Workers’ Injury Law and Advocacy Group, and is an officer in several organizations dedicated to injured workers and their families. She can be reached at 800.692.3717.

Prior results do not guarantee outcomes.
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