Two men who suffered significant burns over much of their bodies won a $12.7 million award from a Pennsylvania jury. The injuries were the result of a metal furnace exploding, showering both men with 3,000 degree Fahrenheit molten metal, an article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported. Rudolph Paci, 45, suffered burns over 65 percent of… Read more
The workers’ compensation system ensures that employees injured on the job have access to medical care and financial support throughout the recovery process. This is an important and effective system, but ultimately it is an imperfect solution for a significant problem – workplace injuries. From the perspective of everyone involved in the system, it is… Read more
David Griffiths went to work one August morning in 2000 just as millions of Americans do every day. While on the job that day, however, he suffered a catastrophic injury that left him a C-5 quadriplegic, confined to a wheelchair for life. Thereafter, he underwent a four-month hospital stay and many follow-up medical appointments. He… Read more
In 2006, Kathleen Moberg applied for employment at Twining Village and was told as a condition of employment that she was required to undergo a tuberculin test. After applying, she reported to the facility’s outpatient room for the test. Moberg suffered an adverse reaction to the test and fell to the floor. She sought workers’… Read more
In Pennsylvania, workers generally must be unable to perform any type of work to receive total disability benefits, which also are referred to as “wage loss benefits.” Once the worker returns to employment, then the employer may petition for a modification or termination of the worker’s total disability benefits. Until recently, there was a question… Read more
The Pennsylvania Bar Association will hold the 26th Annual Workers’ Compensation Fall Section Meeting at the Hershey Lodge & Convention Center on October 21-22, 2010. This year Martin LLC will have two senior attorney representatives speaking on a variety of topics. George Martin will review recent case topics, Matthew Wilson will analyze the course and… Read more
An explosion and fire at United States Steel Corp’s Clairton, Pennsylvania, plant — Clairton Coke Works — resulted in the serious injury of at least 14 employees (various sources have stated as few as 14 injuries and as many as 20). Six injured workers, two of them in critical condition, were transported to the burn… Read more
In a recent workers’ compensation case, the Pennsylvania Superior Court determined that an employer may conduct surveillance of an employee even while the worker prays in a public worship space. The court said that a private investigator who videotaped an employee praying in a public place didn’t violate privacy protections. According to the Legal Intelligencer,… Read more
The old saying is that time is money. The Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board recently proved the adage true when it reversed a grant of an injured worker’s claim for compensation. The reason for the reversal: the injury was reported to the employer past the 120-day deadline for notification. The Case in Question In the… Read more
The franchise industry faces many unanswered questions in the wake of the recent decision in Awuah v. Coverall North America. Though the industry had hoped to be reassured that it could continue to classify independent franchisees as distinct from independent contractors for the purpose of denying benefits to these workers, the case offered no such… Read more
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