Worker advocates in Illinois have expressed their fears regarding gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner, a millionaire venture capitalist from Winnetka, claiming that the GOP candidate is bad for Illinois workers, Progress Illinois reported on September 22. Northern Illinois Jobs with Justice member Mary Shesgreen said Rauner’s views would be detrimental to the labor sector in the state, as… Read More
The non-profit National Safety Council, which is chartered by Congress, and BRONZ, a company that assesses workplace safety, will work hand in hand to make workplaces across the country safer by crafting initiatives based on the Journey to Safety Excellence principles. According to national records, 5 million people are injured at work each year, while… Read More
Illinois-based Champion Roofing Inc. has been cited by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for forcing workers to work on a low-sloped roof, 13 feet above the ground, without the necessary means to protect them from falling. This comes after repeated violations in the past five years for the same problem. OSHA… Read More
In the face of national data that declares Illinois the third worst state in the country for businesses, news that Illinois’ workers’ compensation rates will again decrease has been met with widespread support, Illinois Watchdog.org reported on August 4. Illinois Governor Patrick Joseph Quinn III announced that the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) suggested a drop… Read More
An Illinois Appellate Court declared that a plaintiff, the estate of James Folta, can pursue asbestos personal injury claims against Folta’s former employer, Ferro Engineering, despite the statute of limitations for workers’ compensation cases, Lexology reported on July 2. According to court documents, Folta received exposure to asbestos while he was working in the defendant’s plant… Read More
President Barack Obama stated at the White House Summit on Working Families that women in the United States should get paid maternity leave, the Associated Press reported on June 23. In response to Obama’s proposition, Florida Republican Senator Marco Antonio Rubio, who is rumored to run in the 2016 presidential elections, said he will start working on a… Read More
Former workers’ compensation hearing officer Jennifer Carril continues to pursue a $25,000 settlement before the Fourth District Appellate Court in Springfield, Illinois for a disability that she claims is related to her typing duties as a hearing officer, the Belleville News-Democrat reported on May 31. Governor Pat Quinn dismissed Carril in 2011 from her $115,000 per year post… Read More
A three-year investigation made by the Department of Insurance, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District, and the Department of Justice to learn whether prison guards in Illinois have been fraudulently submitting workers’ compensation claims has yet to bear fruit, InsuranceNewsNet.com reported on May 24. The investigation was instigated by a series of… Read More
The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently fined Indiana-based roofing company Five Star Commercial Roofing Inc. $49,000 due to unsafe working conditions at a site in Bartonville, the Journal Star reported on May 1. According to an investigation conducted by OSHA, Five Star’s employees were found to have been working almost… Read More
The presence of electrical equipment at work poses the risk of occupational injuries and accidents, especially if workers do not have proper training as to how to manage such equipment or if the company is not careful about providing a safe workplace. Data from the Electrical Safety Foundation showed that it takes at least 13 work… Read More