In early October, the Hazleton Workers’ Compensation Office of Adjudication, located in Hazle Township, was closed by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry. According to the deputy press secretary for the department, the closing was done in an effort to balance workloads and assure more efficient adjudication. As of…
The law firm of O’Connor Law was started by an attorney with a mission: to help injured workers obtain workers’ compensation benefits and to defend injured workers against insurance companies that would attempt to terminate, suspend, or modify their lost wage benefits. This mission came about through Attorney O’Connor’s first-hand…
An Allentown man, fed up with the daily 10-20 minute security checks that he and fellow employees must go through before work, after work, and during lunch breaks, has filed a class-action law suit against his employer and retail giant, Amazon. According to an article on the WashingtonTimes.com, he is…
A fire tore through a container company in Berwick last night, but no one was injured. According to WNEP.com, the fire started after a mechanic had worked on a machine at Consolidated Container Company. The company makes containers for products such as milk and detergents. Everyone in the building was…
Earlier this week, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry launched a new Workers’ Compensation Automation and Integration System (WCAIS). The goal of the new system is to increase efficiencies for insurers, employers, and claimants. According to a press release, the Department of Labor & Industry Secretary Julia Hearthway said,…
It seems like common sense, but there are still some people that don’t realize the power that posting photos to Facebook has to affect their lives…and in some cases, their pocketbooks. Take the case of an Ohio man who was injured on the job and began collecting workers’ comp benefits.…
After receiving reports of poor working conditions, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) are investigating the nonprofit organization Avenues, located in Pottsville. According to an article on the RepublicanHerald.com, a former Avenues employee filed a complaint with OSHA, saying the facilities are “unsanitary, inadequate, and outdated” for clients and…
Tsudis Chocolate Co. was fined over $87,000 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration after an accident at its Pittsburgh manufacturing facility. According to an article on BizJournals.com, an employee sustained crushing injuries to his right hand and wrist in February after a machine activated while he was setting it…
A new study from the insurance company Allsup, reports that nursing facilities are the 5th most dangerous workplace in the U.S. The report also says that nursing facilities are the most dangerous places to work in Maine. According to an article on McKnights.com, the study analyzed serious workplace injuries that…
At the height of the summer cookout season, a tragedy unfolded this week in central Florida, where propane tank cylinders exploded at a Blue Rhino refilling plant. According to an article on CNN.com, eight plant workers were injured in the blasts that took place Monday night. An evacuation order for…
