Handy App Faces Labor Violations Lawsuit from Two Former Independent Contractors Self-employment through mobile apps and websites is booming – businesses like Uber and Lyft hire drivers under 1099 tax forms so the employees use their own vehicles; AirBNB allows individuals to rent out rooms in their homes for various amounts of time so travelers have a nice place to stay; and apps like TaskRabbit and Handy allow people with extra time to run errands and perform cleaning services at various rates for individuals who hire them. However, all of … [Read more...]
Firefighter Finally Gets Workers Comp Disability Benefits
March 9, 2020 by
Judge Says Firefighter Wrongfully Denied Workers Comp Disability After receiving a serious personal injury while trying to save two people from a house fire, a firefighter in New Jersey has finally been granted his workers comp disability pension, although the benefits were originally denied because his work-related injury was not an “accident.” James Moran, a resident of New Jersey, was dispatched in early January 2010 to a house that appeared to be deserted, but was on fire. Before the truck company could arrive, however, Moran heard … [Read more...]
BP Argues Validity of Toxic Spill Workers’ Comp Claims
January 12, 2020 by
Texas Lawsuit Plaintiffs Allege BP Must Pay Workers' Comp Claims Due to Toxic Spill In February 2013, BP sold a Galveston, Texas-area refinery to Marathon Petroleum. However, some former employees at the plant filed a lawsuit two months later, claiming that injuries related to release of toxic chemicals at the plant led to serious chronic and potentially lethal health issues, and BP was responsible for the workers' comp claims to cover the long-term healthcare costs. "From November 10, 2011 through possibly early December 2011, BP … [Read more...]
Workers Comp Insurance Company Outlines Ebola Rules
December 23, 2014 by
Insurance Company Creates Guidelines for Workers Comp Coverage of Ebola Illness On Wednesday, December 17th, GENEX Services LLC, a workers comp insurance company, published a list of guidelines for workers comp coverage of claimants who contract Ebola during the course of their employment. The guidelines, titled “Hemorrhagic Fever Viruses: Ebola and Marburg,” go beyond the standard clinical directives offered by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control. “GENEX developed the guidelines at the requests of both … [Read more...]
Google Faces Independent Contractor Class Action
November 19, 2014 by
Class Action Filed Against Google for Mislabeling Workers as Independent Contractors On Wednesday, November 12th, a former Google employee filed a class action lawsuit against the tech company for misclassifying him as an independent contractor, which allowed the company to avoid paying federal taxes, give him overtime, or pay his workers comp. The lawsuit was filed in a New York federal court, and although there is only one plaintiff so far, the lawsuit seeks to consolidate as a class action to fight for other current and former Google … [Read more...]
Exotic Dancers Ruled Employees and are Due Workers Comp
November 6, 2014 by
Las Vegas Exotic Dancers are Due Workers Comp for Injuries After Being Ruled Employees of Club The Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club in Las Vegas, Nevada, erroneously classified their exotic dancers for years as independent contractors, rather than employees, in order to avoid taxes and workers comp payments. Now, the Nevada Supreme Court has overturned a previous ruling that the dancers are not due workers comp coverage, finding that the dancers are full employees of the club, and are therefore due workers comp for injuries sustained on the job, … [Read more...]
Omaha Store Manager Receives Full Workers Comp for PTSD
April 18, 2014 by
PTSD, Anxiety Treatment Covered Under Workers Comp for Store Manager The Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Court ruled last year that a store manager who was shot 9 times for reporting an earlier robbery should receive temporary total disability benefits and workers comp to help his treatment. As of Friday, April 11th, of this year, the decision has been upheld by a higher court after the workers comp ruling was appealed. Matthew Kim is, according to courts, entitled to workers comp and disability benefits to help treat his post-traumatic … [Read more...]
Tina Fey Fined for Failing to Pay Workers Comp
April 4, 2014 by
New York Court Rules Tina Fey to be Fined for Failing to Pay Workers Comp Comedian and television star Tina Fey has been fined by New York workers comp court for lapsing on required employee insurance since 2012. The New York State Workers Compensation Board ruled on Friday, March 28th, that the writer and actress owed $79,000, reportedly for both lapsed workers comp coverage and “penalties.” The bill reportedly covered the period between November 20th, 2012, and February 2nd, 2014. However, the bill was sent to an outdated office … [Read more...]
Arizona Workers Comp Bill Shelved Until Next Year
March 28, 2014 by
Arizona Shelves Workers Comp Bill Until 2015 Session A bill in Arizona that proposed to prohibit workers from filing workers comp lawsuits if they were denied workers comp payments has been shelved for one year, until 2015. The proposed bill, HB 2455, passed the House Committee on Insurance and Retirement 4-3, and will advance to the Rules Committee. HB 2455 proposes to give exclusive jurisdiction of bad faith claims against workers comp companies to the Industrial Commission of Arizona. If the Industrial Commission determines that the … [Read more...]
Medical Marijuana Legalization Raises Workers Comp Questions
March 9, 2014 by
States with Legal Medical Marijuana Use Struggle to Understand Workers Comp Impact Although marijuana is still technically legal at the federal level, 20 states and Washington DC have passed laws allowing marijuana to be used for medical reasons (additionally, Washington State and Colorado allow recreational marijuana use). However, with marijuana dispensaries becoming more common, state regulators are now beginning to question whether medical marijuana should be covered under workers comp insurance. “I think that most insurance companies … [Read more...]
