Cancer Concern Over Newest TSA Airport Body Scanners

Today’s guest post comes to us from our colleague Tom Domer of Wisconsin.

According to a growing number of scientists and doctors the newest TSA airport body scanners, known as Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) scanners, may pose a cancer threat.*

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) insists the scanners are safe, and cites independent studies saying the radiation levels are below acceptable limits. However, according to some doctors, even a small dose of the ionizing radiation that the machines emit could pose a danger.

The TSA has installed about 250 of these body scanners at 40 U.S. airports.

*To proceed beyond mere speculation as to causation, a competent physician would have to indicate that the workplace exposure for a substantial period of time to the radiation from airport scanning was at least a material, contributory, causative factor in the onset or progression of a worker’s cancer condition.

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With over 30 years of experience representing injured workers in Wisconsin, Tom Domer was recently named the 2011 Milwaukee Workers’ Compensation Lawyer of the Year in Best Lawyers. Tom teaches the workers’ compensation course at Marquette University Law School, providing the instruction and training for many other lawyers. He lectures frequently around the nation. He also is a prolific writer, editing the national magazine Workers’ First Watch. He has co-authored over two dozen texts, including with his son and law partner Charlie, West’s Wisconsin Workers’ Compensation Law. Tom earned all his degrees in Wisconsin.

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Distracted Driving: Federal Guidelines Proposed For Automakers

Today’s post is by my colleague Jon Gelman of New Jersey.

After years of accidents in the workplace caused by the use of mobile devices in vehicles, the Federal Government has proposed universal guidelines to encourage automobile manufacturers to electronically disable these devices when a vehicle is in operation.  The enforcement of this safety-first proposal may establish a legal standard to universally bar the use of such devices in vehicles and encourage employees to have a safer working environment.

See: U.S. Department of Transportation Proposes ‘Distraction’ Guidelines for Automakers
“Issued by the Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the guidelines would establish specific recommended criteria for electronic devices installed in vehicles at the time they are manufactured that require visual or manual operation by drivers. The announcement of the guidelines comes just days after President Obama’s FY 2013 budget request, which includes $330 million over six years for distracted driving programs that increase awareness of the issue and encourage stakeholders to take action. “

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Dealing With Adversaries in Positive Ways

Today’s post comes to us from our colleague Len Jernigan of North Carolina.

As a workers’ compensation lawyer, by the time clients come to me they have often already had a series of frustrating interactions with their employers, insurance adjusters and sometimes even medical professionals. Clients come to me feeling stressed by these experiences.

My adversaries are not always easy to negotiate with, and over a long career I have honed in on a few methods that seem to work best for me. When meeting with clients, I try to pass along my methods so they can better navigate some of the new and confusing situations they have been thrust into as a result of a workplace injury.

Recently I came across some advice from Psychologist Jay Carter, who offers tips that closely mirror what I pass on to my clients. The following are some of his tips for dealing with difficult people:

See it for what it is. Rather than internalize the criticism or dwell on what you might have done to deserve the attack, recognize that the nasty person has personal issues.

Get away. Exit the room or the conversation calmly, efficiently, and without saying anything you’d regret.

Diffuse with humor: This is a Continue reading →

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What Young Workers Need To Know About Their Social Security Benefits

Today’s post comes to us from our colleage Ryan Benharris of Massachusetts.

According to a recent article published in the Palm Beach News Post, approximately one in four workers under the age of thirty will become disabled before reaching their full retirement age of 67. What many workers do not realize is that Social Security will pay benefits if you become incapable of performing any substantial gainful activity.

It is astounding that 25% of the population will likely suffer a work ending disability. In a poor economy with job availability flailing and gas prices rising, it is becoming increasingly more important to know your rights to protect yourself and your family if you become unable to work. It is truly a shame that many individuals do not know that they may be eligible for benefits that could provide them with income and medical treatment that they may otherwise not have.

25% of the population will likely suffer a work ending disability

The easiest way to stay informed about your rights is to keep meticulous files of anything you receive from Social Security. Each year, the Social Security Administration sends all American citizens a breakdown of their potential benefits in the system; including a detailed list of your previous year’s earnings. This breakdown specifically outlines Continue reading →

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Unsafe Workplaces = More Injuries Thomas Domer

 

Today’s guest post comes from our colleague Tom Domer or Wisconsin.

The connection between unsafe workplaces and the increased frequency of work injuries seems like a no brainer. A study released by NCCI Holdings indicated worker’s compensation claims rose by 3% during 2010 (the first rise in frequency in over a dozen years). The study attributed the increased frequency to several factors

Because of these repeat violations, OSHA cited United Contracting and placed the firm on its “Severe Violator Enforcement Program”

including increases in employment since the onset of the recession in 2008, workers possibly being less fearful of losing their jobs for filing claims, and a lack of light duty jobs to which injured workers could return because of the poor economy.

One factor not referenced is the connection between increasingly unsafe work environments and work injuries. Two recent news stories in Wisconsin underscored this connection. OSHA fined a Wisconsin contractor $150,000

for violations while working on two bridges along highways in Wisconsin. The violation is more alarming because the contractors were working under a State contract to repaint the bridges. OSHA charged that the company did not have proper scaffolding at the bridges exposing workers to falls, and in fact one worker was injured in June after falling from a scaffold at one of the bridges. Because of these repeat violations, Continue reading →

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What If An Independent Medical Examination Doctor Doesn’t Agree With My Doctor?

Today’s wise words come to us from my colleague Roger Moore of Nebraska.

As I have written previously,  in Nebraska, you have the right to choose your family doctor to treat you for your work injury.  For purposes of the workers’ compensation court, that person becomes your “treating doctor.”  However, sometimes an employer or insurance provider selects a non-treating doctor for an “independent medical examination” (IME). According to the workers’ group National Association of Injured & Disabled Workers (NAIDW), IMEs are used for three reasons:

  1. “to determine the cause, extent and medical treatment of a work-related or other injury where liability is at issue”
  2. “whether an individual has reached maximum benefit from treatment”
  3. “whether any permanent impairment remains after treatment”

When an IME is scheduled, this probably means your employer or the insurance company is trying to fight some aspect of your workers’ compensation benefits.  An IME doctor frequently bases his or her findings on what is often a very brief visit with a patient.  Sometimes they don’t even perform a physical examination before rendering their opinion.  Rarely do they issue opinions that are favorable to an injured worker.  For that reason, when an examination like this is scheduled, my policy is to Continue reading →

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I Can’t Find Work – Does That Mean I’m Disabled?

Today we have a guest post from our colleague Roger Moore of Nebraska.

Many people believe that if they suffer from a physical and/or mental impairment and can’t find work, this means they should be on Social Security Disability.  This simply isn’t true.

 Disability is not necessarily tied to your ability to obtain work, or your inability to perform one main occupation.  The Social Security Administration (SSA) will review your employability not just in your immediate locality, but also in the state and region in which you live.

While only employment opportunities in your immediate areas are considered for workers’ compensation, the same is not true for social security disability. If you are unable to find work in your immediate area, the SSA requires you to move to a locality where a job exists.  Note that the SSA’s responsibility doesn’t include having to find you employment, but only to establish that you are physically and mentally capable of performing that job if a position became available.

Additionally, your inability to perform the work you’ve done for years or decades does not automatically qualify you for disability.  The SSA will consider skills you’ve acquired from your work life in determining whether those skills allow you to “transfer” to or perform other occupations.  It’s important to also remember that the SSA isn’t really concerned with how much those other occupations may pay.  If you can work full-time in a position that is available in your state and region, this will normally disqualify you from receiving disability.

The conditions which the SSA imposes upon a claimant are unfortunately, not always feasible or fair. Nevertheless, as it is the current state of the law, compliance is required.

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Death by Overwork: Is It Compensable?

Today we have a guest post from my colleague Jon Gelman of New Jersey.

Since the 1960s there has been serious social concern over health problems due to long working hours in Japan. Around that time the term Karoshi, or “death from over work,” became known.

Recent national statistics show that more than 6 million people worked for 60 h or more per week during years 2000 and 2004. Approximately three hundred cases of brain and heart diseases were recognized as labour accidents resulting from overwork (Karoshi) by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) between 2002 and 2005. Consequently, the MHLW has been working to establish a more appropriate compensation system for Karoshi, as well as preventive measures for overwork related health problems.

In 2001, the MHLW set the standards for clearly recognizing Karoshi in association with the amount of overtime working hours. These standards Continue reading →

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