N.Y. Nassau Coliseum Workers to File Suits Over Asbestos Exposure

March 27, 2013Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticle1 Comments

More than 100 workers are alleging that long-term exposure to asbestos at Nassau Coliseum has made them seriously ill.

The plaintiffs represent current and former employees of the county-owned arena. They include electricians and carpenters who worked as independent contractors.

Attorney Joseph Dell tells Newsday that 140 people have filed notices of claim, the first step toward filing a lawsuit. He says they’ll name the county, the New York Islands and facility manager SMG.

The lawsuits will claim they failed to protect them from asbestos exposure throughout the arena.

The lawsuits will likely be consolidated into a class action. They’ll seek between $500 million to $1 billion.

The county’s lawyer said “there is no substance behind these claims.”

SMG declined to comment. The islander’s didn’t return calls for comment.

 

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100 Yosemite Workers Tested For Hantavirus

September 28, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

California public health officials have tested 100 workers at Yosemite National Park to determine whether they were exposed to the deadly mouse-borne hantavirus.

Nine people who spent time at the park this year have been infected with the rare virus, the majority after staying at the “Signature” cabins in Curry Village. Three of them died.

KTVU-TV Oakland reported 100 park workers submitted to voluntary testing on Wednesday and they have been ordered not to discuss the testing.

It’s not known when the tests will be completed or if they will be made public.

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Report: Texas Reforms Reduced Costs of Medical Care for Injured Workers

June 26, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

A new study from the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI), an independent, not-for-profit research organization based in Cambridge, Mass., says that costs of medical care for injured workers in Texas have dropped. The study says the drop is largely the result of reforms and an increased focus and effort on managing medical care in the state’s workers’ compensation system.

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Do Safety Incentives Discourage Workers from Reporting Injuries?

May 10, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticle1 Comments

Many employers are in the dark over whether their safety incentive programs encourage or discourage the reporting of injuries and illnesses by their employees, or if they have no effect.

But a new report says employers, and the federal officials who oversee workplace safety, should care what effects the incentives are having.

In March 2005, 15 workers died and 180 others were injured in an explosion at the BP Texas City refinery. A safety incentive program at the refinery rewarded workers with bonuses for achieving low rates of injuries and illnesses. A 2007 study after the explosion found that workers feared reprisals for reporting potentially risky conditions at the refinery.

That accident also prompted members of Congress to ask the federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) to look into safety programs. In 2009, GAO issued a report that found that safety incentive programs

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Central Valley Calif. Grape Grower Sued By Workers

April 12, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

A Hispanic advocacy group is suing a Central Valley grape grower to recover wages for Latino employees it claims were forced to work extra hours without pay.

The Mexican American Legal Defense Fund filed the class-action lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Fresno against Castlerock Farming and Transport Inc.

The suit seeks a court order stopping the alleged illegal practice and the payment of wages and other benefits denied to more than 5,000 workers over the past 11 years.

The suit also alleges Castlerock failed to properly pay minimum wage to hourly workers, refused to provide paid rest breaks and failed to provide meal breaks to employees who work at least five hours.

A Castlerock spokeswoman says the company has not yet seen the suit and could not comment.

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