Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Lawyers Blog

According to a press release from the Pennsylvania Department of Insurance, a 5.7 percent decrease in overall workers’ compensation costs has been approved that could result in $160 million in savings for Pennsylvania employers.

“Pennsylvania employers are able to benefit from the outstanding job they are doing to provide safer workplaces,” said Labor & Industry Secretary Julia Hearthway. She added, “There are 9,652 businesses enrolled in our Certified Workplace Safety Committee program, so they will receive an additional five-percent discount. More than 1.3 million people work at businesses with a certified safety committee.”

Although some will see rates go up and some will see no change, employers can expect a 5.7 percent rate decrease on average in 2012.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently cited QG LLC for eight serious violations of the process safety management standards at its Atglen facility in response to an employee complaint.

According to the OSHA website, proposed penalties on the North Haven Connecticut based web offset printing company total $54,000.

About 240 employees work at the Atglen site located in Chester County.

One UPS driver in Ohio really takes his driving job seriously – as he just logged 50 years of service without an accident. This record is a first for UPS.

The driver has a 306-mile round-trip route between Ohio and Kentucky that he drives five days a week. When asked how many miles he has driven in total for UPS, he estimates it to be more than 4 million.

According to an article in the Business News section of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, UPS has more than 5,200 drivers who have gone 25 years without an accident.

The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Dec. 2011 was 7.6 percent, down from 7.9 percent in November, according to the state’s Department of labor and Industry.

Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was below the U.S. rate of 8.5 and has been below the national rate for 62 consecutive months.

The rate was down .9 percentage points from Dec. 2010.

The state Department of Labor and Industry believes filing and managing unemployment compensation claims online is the easiest, most convenient way for claimants to work with the department.

In a recent news release, L&I Secretary Julia Hearthway said many unemployment compensation services are available online, 24 hours a day, seven days a week and providing these online services gives claimants the opportunity to file and manage their claims from their own homes, a CareerLink office, public library, or any location where an Internet connection is available.

The unemployment website enables the claimants to file an initial claim, reopen a claim, file a biweekly claim, check a claim status, view payments, manage account information, and receive answers to frequently asked questions.

There may be some good news this week for the labor market. According to an article on CNNMoney.com, the Labor Department reported that 352,000 people filed initial unemployment claims last week, down from 402,000 claims the previous week. This is the lowest number filing for unemployment since the week ending April 19, 2008.

The article continued to say that when initial jobless claims fall below 400,000, it is often a sign of an improving labor market.

“Claims rarely go below 300,000, so when you’re around 350,000 you’re close to the job market being back to normal,” said Robert Brusca of FAO Economics.

The article also said that the number of people who continue to receive unemployment benefits dropped 215,000 from the previous week, another positive sign.

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We were sorry to hear the news reported on the TimesLeader.com that Kraft Foods Inc. will eliminate 60 positions at its Hanover Industrial Estates location as a result of company restructuring. In total, 1,600 Kraft jobs will be lost in North America this year.

In the article, Kraft’s corporate spokeswoman Valerie Moens said, “We are working to minimize the impact wherever possible through attrition and open positions.”

It was reported that the Kraft announcement happened just days after Offset Paperback Manufacturers said it would cut 69 positions at its plant in Dallas.

Lawrence M. Newman, vice president of Policy, Planning and Development for the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Business & Industry, is quoted in the article as saying, “The unfortunate reality is that we continue to have an increasingly globalized marketplace and we continue to have an economy that still has not regained its appetite for consumer spending. And so there continue to be ramifications like the one that you say today.”

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A Lansdale company is looking out for both injured workers and insurers in the face of U.S. Post Office closings that could delay workers’ compensation checks. In response, InsurCard will begin offering the InsurCard Visa ® Prepaid Card for Workers’ Compensation payments.

With more than 487 Post Office closings across the U.S., printed and mailed claim-payment checks may not arrive as promptly to workers’ comp claimants. But those who use an InsurCard Visa Prepaid Card are guaranteed on-time payments, since payments are deposited onto the card electronically so that funds are available immediately. The cards are accepted by ATMs, banks, and merchants, and wherever Visa debit cards are accepted. For insurers, payments are delivered to claimants on time, with no concerns for lost or stolen checks.

To see if this is an option for you, or for more information, visit InsurCard’s website at fwww.insurcard.com.

Gov. Tom Corbett announced Jan. 9 the appointment of John E. Stevens as chairman of the state Civil Service Commission. Stevens was sworn in Jan. 3 after a unanimous senate confirmation Dec. 13. He will complete the four years remaining on the six-year term of former commissioner Marwan Kreidie.

The State Civil Service Commission, a three-member, bipartisan, independent

administrative agency, manages the state’s merit employment system, which