Raleigh Workers Comp | Scudder & Hedrick

Florida Workers' Comp. Rates to Decrease 6.8%

Posted on October 15th, 2009 No Comments

Florida employers are getting a break on workerscompensation insurance. The state’s insurance commissioner said on Thursdaythat he has approved a proposed rate decrease of 6.8 percent. The decreasetakes effect January 1 for all new and renewed workers’ compensation policies.

The National Council on Compensation Insurance, whichsubmitted the rate reduction, expects the decrease to result in around $166million in savings for employers.

The Florida Supreme Court ruled last October that claimantattorneys were entitled to “reasonable fees” in workers compensation insurancecases. Critics of the ruling worried that the decision would result in higherpremiums for businesses. Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty said in a release“If it were not for the legislation, the workers’ compensation industry inFlorida would likely have proposed rate increases instead of decreases in2010.”

If you have been injured in the workplace, please contactthe Raleigh Workers’ Compensation Lawyers of Scudder & Hedrick, PLLC at919-851-3311.

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Wal-Mart to Pay $11M in Class-Action Employee Lawsuit

Posted on October 14th, 2009 No Comments

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will pay $11 million to settle aclass-action lawsuit brought on behalf of 97,000 current and former workers inIowa over allegations that they were forced to skip breaks or work off theclock.

Judge David Sivright of the Clinton County District courtgave the final approval for the deal on Tuesday.

The settlement has been reached more than eight years aftertwo employees filed a lawsuit claiming that the company engaged in uniform andsystematic wage abuse.

Wal-Mart announced last December that it would pay as muchas $640 million to settle 63 different lawsuits across the country over wageand hour violations. The average plaintiff will receive around $113.

If you are looking for any form of compensation from anemployer, please contact the Raleigh Employment Lawyers of Scudder &Hedrick, PLLC, by calling 919-851-3311.

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Meat Packing Workers Say Pace is Brutal

Posted on October 9th, 2009 No Comments

A report from Nebraska Appleseed detailing daunting anddangerous working conditions at Nebraska meatpacking plants shows that nothinghas really changed in the ten years since the conditions first made headlines.Production line sped remains brutally high and might even be accelerating sayworkers.

The report is compiled of interviews with over 450 workersin five communities who told a story of hazardous workplaces, unrelenting linespeed and humiliating treatment and verbal abuse. The national trade organization that represents packers andprocessors, the American Meat Institute, was quick to dispute the allegations.

The high rate of speed at the plants – more than 300 cattleare slaughtered and processed ever hour- can lead to worker injuries likerepetitive motion disorders, as well as threaten food safety. Knife wieldingworkers on quick moving production lines can make more than 10,000 cuts a dayand are particularly susceptible to repetitive motion injuries and disorders.

If you have been injured in the workplace, please contactthe Raleigh Workers’ Compensation Lawyers of Scudder & Hedrick, PLLC at919-851-3311.

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OSHA issues new NEP for Workplace Injuries

Posted on October 9th, 2009 No Comments

In an effort to identify and correct under-recordedworkplace injuries the Occupational Safety & Health Administration hasissued a new National Emphasis Program establishing enforcement procedures toinspect the accuracy of occupational injury and illness recording and reportingrequirements.

This NEP compliments the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ effortto investigate factors accounting for differences in the number of workplaceinjuries and illnesses estimated by the BLS.

Several studies have been released recently demonstratingvarious degrees of under-recording of workplace injuries and illnesses on theOSHA Form 300. OSHA believes the most likely places where under-recordedinjuries and illnesses may exist would be low rate establishments operating inhistorically high rate industries.

If you have been injured in the workplace, please contactthe Raleigh Workers’ Compensation Lawyers of Scudder & Hedrick, PLLC at919-851-3311.

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Sears Settles $6.2M Discrimination Suit

Posted on September 29th, 2009 No Comments

Sears Roebuck & Co.will pay a $6.2 million settlement in a federal lawsuit that claimed thecompany violated the Americans With Disabilities Act by firing disabledemployees instead of accommodating them on the job.

The settlement, whichwas approved Tuesday by a federal judge, is the largest ever obtained by theUnited States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for a single suit. Searsdoes not admit any guilt as part of the settlement.

John Hendrickson, aregional attorney for the EEOC, said the settlement will “provide relief to alot of people… People are going to get some monetary compensation for thediscrimination they suffered.”

If you need helpobtaining workers’ compensation, please contact the Raleigh Workers’Compensation Lawyers of Scudder & Hedrick, PLLC at 919-851-3311.

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