BALCONY New York » Workers Comp

NY Lawmakers File Petition Requiring 9/11 Health Czar to Consider Covering Cancers

kevin — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 21:49:11 +0000

New York, NY – U.S. Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, Peter King, Charles Rangel, Nydia Velázquez, and Michael Grimm; Denis Hughes, President of the New York State AFL-CIO; Pat Lynch, President of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association; Al Hagan, President of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association; John Feal, President of the FealGood Foundation; and 9/11 first responders and survivors gathered at ground zero today to announce that the lawmakers have filed a petition with 9/11 Health Program Administrator Dr. John Howard that will require Dr. Howard to consider within 60 days whether or not to add coverage for cancers under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. A copy of the petition, which was also signed by New York Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand and Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, follows.

Study Suggests Higher Cancer Risk for 9/11 Firefighters

kevin — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 16:58:47 +0000

by Sydney Ember

A new study says firefighters who toiled in the wreckage of the World Trade Center in 2001 were 19 percent more likely to develop cancer than those who were not there, the strongest evidence to date of a possible link between work at ground zero and cancer.

James Zadroga Act Protects 9/11 First Responders

kevin — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 23:05:00 +0000

By Nicholas Kapustinsky

It took nearly ten years and the sustained effort, spirit, and sacrifice of one of the broadest coalitions in New York’s history and on December 22, 2010 the hard work paid off as the U.S. Congress finally passed the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. The bill provides desperately needed medical monitoring, treatment, and compensation to 9/11 first responders, lower Manhattan area residents, workers, volunteers, and students who were exposed to the toxins at Ground Zero on 9/11 and in the aftermath. The bill provides $4.3 billion funding for health and compensation over five years.

Video Report: Safety In The Workplace – a BALCONY Forum, May 6, 2011

kevin — Wed, 25 May 2011 15:14:00 +0000

May 6, 2011, more than 100 New York labor and management safety experts participated in a Safety in the Workplace Conference presented by BALCONY, LABORPRESS, headed by Neal Tepel, and the Mason Tenders at the Milberg Law Firm in New York City.

Nurse attacked at Tryon juvenile facility speaks out after brutal attack by 15-year-old girl

kevin — Tue, 24 May 2011 20:37:41 +0000

Albany - A nurse who survived a violent attack by a 15-year-old girl inside Tryon Residential Center last week shared her story with reporters today in hopes the violence inside the facility will finally be addressed. Cheryl Huxhold has been a nurse for more than a decade and has cared for youth at the Tryon juvenile facility in Johnstown, Fulton County for the past four years.

BALCONY LABORPRESS & MASON TENDERS PRESENT: SAFETY IN THE WORKPLACE

kevin — Mon, 09 May 2011 20:27:00 +0000

More than 100 labor and management safety experts participated in last week's Safety Conference presented by BALCONY, LABORPRESS and the Mason Tenders at the Milberg Law Firm here in New York City. BALCONY Director Lou Gordon, the moderator, asked "How does the current anti-regulatory environment impact worker safety?" Key speakers included Assembly Rory Lancman, Joel Shufro of NYCOSH, John Delgado of Laborers local 79, Matthew Funk of the Pasternack law firm and John Samuelsen, President of TWU local 100. Discussion focused on the federal OSHA and state responsibilities, funding issues, inspections of the workplace and finally the fatalities and injuries incurred by workers on the job. A full BALCONY/ LABORPRESS video report will be issued next week.

Samuelsen Calls for Stricter Workplace Safety Laws

By Myles Nicholas Miller

Loopholes in federal occupational safety laws routinely put MTA employees at risk, Transport Workers Union President John Samuelsen charged at a breakfast forum this morning.

Samuelsen, head of the influential labor group that represents a majority of New York City’s transit workers said safety at the transit agency isn’t regulated under Federal Railroad Law standards. “The MTA must meet or exceed OSHA standards,” said Samuelsen.

During his speech before the Business and Labor Coalition of New York Samuelsen cited specific transit worker fatalities that he says could have been avoided if the federal government regulated occupational safety at the MTA. The Transport Workers Union president said occupational safety bills in Albany and in Washington usually suffer due to partisan bickering.

“In 2002, a comprehensive track safety bill was passed in Albany,” said Samuelsen. But the labor leader said that the progress was short-lived because Governor George E. Pataki went onto veto it. A bill, which Samuelson called, a “watered down” version passed under Governor Elliot Spitzer in 2006.

“Transit workers put their lives on the line under a push for increased safety,” Samuelsen said. “MTA officials cast doubt against workplace dangers faced by bus and train operators.”

Dead rats and human feces coupled with carrying rails weighing up to 1300 pounds, underscore the issues faced by workers, the union president added.

A MTA spokesman did not immediately return a request for comment.

Parity in Workplace Safety Rules Needed

A Labor leader Friday said that it should be a felony for a non union construction worker to knowingly conceal a workplace injury.

By Myles Nicholas Miller

Speaking at a labor industry breakfast this morning, Laborers 79 Business Manager John Delgado said in many instances developers who employ non union workers don’t seek medical attention for their employees in an effort to skirt worker’s compensation laws.

“Individuals in non union job sites who get hurt get put in a car and taken home because they don’t want to be liable for it,” said Delgado, adding that his union has evidence of this practice being done on multiple occasions. The labor leader noted that “78% of accidents occur in non union job sites.“Non union sites need to be held to the same standards as union sites,” Delgado added. The Chairman of the Assembly Subcommittee on Workplace Safety was quick to express his support for proposed legislation.

“We should make it a crime if a worker gets hurt and is not sent to a hospital,” said Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D – Queens), who, along with Delgado attended the Business and Labor Coalition of New York panel discussion this morning. Lancman said that his office would look into making the practice into State law.

Delgado said developers try to avoid OSHA standards to avoid paying taxes on workers.

BALCONY and Laborpress Host Workplace Safety Conference

By Stephanie West

May 10, 2011

Speaking at a breakfast conference May 10th hosted by the BUSINESS AND LABOR COALITION OF NEW YORK and LABORPRESS, labor leaders said that well funded special interest groups are pushing an anti-safety agenda to save costs.

"The business community is very strongly opposed to workplace safety initiatives," said Assemblyman Rory Lancman who chairs the Assembly Subcommittee on Workplace Safety. Lancman said work sites are able to bypass Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards because they often fall victim to partisan politics at the state level.

SAFETY IN THE WORKPLACE

kevin — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 16:50:42 +0000

Invite you to a presentation with

Assemblyman Rory Lancman
Chair of the NYS Assembly Subcommittee On Workplace Safety

Joel Shufro, Executive Director - NYCOSH

John Samuelsen, President - TWU Local 100

John Delgado, Business Manager
Construction & General Building Laborers Local 79

Matthew A. Funk, Esq.
Pasternack, Tilker, Ziegler, Walsh, Stanton & Romano, LLP

May 6, 2011 -- 8:00 AM - 10:30 AM
MILBERG, LLP - One Penn Plaza, 50th Flr., New York

Sponsored by

MagnaCare’s Vice President of Workers’ Compensation and No-Fault, Steven G. Kokulak, Joins Self-Insurance Institute of America

kevin — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:52:50 +0000

NEW YORK, N.Y.

MagnaCare, a health plan services company with national reach, announced today that Steven G. Kokulak, vice president of Workers’ Compensation and No-Fault, has become a member of the Workers’ Compensation Committee at the Self-Insurance Institute of America (SIIA), a member-based association dedicated to protecting and promoting the business interests of companies involved in the self-insurance/alternative risk transfer (ART) industry, both domestic and international. “Members of SIIA receive the benefit of informational, educational, networking and legislative/regulatory activities,” says Kokulak. “Being a committee member presents me with the opportunity to share my experience with the expertise and resources of other SIIA members. Being involved in this committee will help us establish ourselves as experts in the workers’ compensation marketplace.

BALCONY HAILS PASSAGE OF ZADROGA 9/11 BILL

kevin — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 17:19:50 +0000

12/23/2010 – New York City – BALCONY, the Business and Labor Coalition of New York, today, Thursday, applauded the U.S. Senate, and especially the New York delegation, Senator Kirstin Gillibrand and Senator Charles Schumer, for passing the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (HR 847 sponsored by New York Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Representative Peter King (R-NY), and Representative Michael McMahon (D-NY)). BALCONY further congratulates NYS AFL CIO President Denis Hughes, Dr. James Melius of LECET, and Fire Fighters Union President Steve Cassidy for their commitment and dedication demonstrated in support of the Zadgroda Act.

The bill passed the House in September but was blocked by Republicans in the Senate. A newly reconciled version of the bill passed the Senate and then the House on Wednesday, the final day of the lame duck session of Congress. This critical legislation, nearly a decade the making, will provide long overdue and much deserved assistance to thousands of first responders whose health was negatively affected by toxins at Ground Zero. In a time when partisan bickering threatens to consume the legislative process, BALCONY applauds the members of the U.S. Congress for putting politics aside and ensuring that these heroes are neither ignored nor forgotten. BALCONY will continue to advocate on behalf of 9/11 first responders and support legislation that ensures they have the assistance and compensation they need and deserve.

To read more on the passage of the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act click here (NY Times)

BALCONY Joins with New York State AFL-CIO as it Applauds Passage of James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act

kevin — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 02:43:48 +0000

Today the House of Representatives voted to pass the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. Denis Hughes, President of the 2 ½ million member New York State AFL-CIO today issued a statement...

Changes in the Administration of NYS Workers’ Compensation Law

kevin — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:59:13 +0000

Dear BALCONY and NYCOSH friends,

Changes in the Administration of NYS Workers' Compensation Law:
What Do They Mean for Injured Workers?

Friday, October 1, 2010
Registration at 8:30 a.m. with the program from 9 a.m. - Noon

Click here for additional details, speaker information, and registration: Workers' Comp

We must repay our debt: NY Dem, GOP reps say stories of heroes should inspire passage of 9/11 bill

kevin — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 04:23:05 +0000

By Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler and Peter King

Last month, after years of effort, we finally secured a vote by the full House of Representatives on our legislation, which would provide medical monitoring, treatment and economic compensation for those injured or made sick by the toxic cloud that lingered for weeks following the collapse of the World Trade Center towers.

Emotions ran high during the debate, and we were deeply disappointed that the bill did not achieve the two-thirds majority required for passage under "suspension of the rules," the parliamentary procedure that was used to bring the bill before the House.

Assembly Report Reveals Spike in Violence Against Staff in NYS’s Juvenile Justice Facilities

kevin — Tue, 18 May 2010 17:13:23 +0000

As reported in today's Times Union, Assembly Member Rory Lancman (D-Queens), Chair of the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety, released a report revealing a 42% increase in assaults on staff at the state Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS), which runs the state's forty-seven juvenile justice facilities, based on Workers' Compensation claims filed between 2008 and 2010.

City appeals judge’s stay of $657M deal for ill 9/11 workers

kevin — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 14:25:40 +0000

By Ari Paul

Lawyers for the city are appealing U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein’s stay of a settlement between the city and more than 10,000 response workers suffering 9/11-related illness on grounds that the Judge overstepped his authority.

PEF renews call for metal detectors after officer is shot

kevin — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 19:18:09 +0000

Albany - A member of the New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) who works for the state Division of Parole was shot as he sat at his desk in his downtown Brooklyn office Thursday night. Parole Officer Samuel Salters suffered a gunshot wound to his shoulder and remains in stable condition at Bellevue Hospital Center. Salters was shot by a paroled murderer who eye witnesses said sat in the waiting room of the parole office until his name was called, then calmly approached Officer Salters and shot him.

9/11 heroes likely to suffer ‘World Trade Center Cough’ for life: study

kevin — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 15:25:14 +0000

BY Helen Kennedy
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, April 7th 2010

The so-called "World Trade Center Cough" appears to be permanent.

A sweeping new study of firefighters and EMTs workers who inhaled toxic Ground Zero dust found that their lungs have unexpectedly failed to recover since the 2001 disaster.

Sound judgment: 9/11 responders are lucky to have Judge Alvin Hellerstein

kevin — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:28:49 +0000

Finally, after almost nine long, painful, shameful years, someone has stood up for the rights and the well-being of the Forgotten Victims of 9/11.

Hurdles Still Remain for Ground Zero Settlement

kevin — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:37:56 +0000

by Mireya Navarro

Sgt. Dawn Sorrento says she looks on the years since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks as a blur of doctor’s visits, ambushes by illnesses she had never heard of and growing resentment toward the city that challenged her injury claims.

Ground Zero Workers Reach Deal Over Health Claims

kevin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:12:56 +0000

By MIREYA NAVARRO

A settlement of up to $657.5 million has been reached in the cases of thousands of rescue and cleanup workers at ground zero who sued the city over damage to their health, according to city officials and lawyers for the plaintiffs.

RALLY SUPPORTS HEALTH CARE FOR SEPTEMBER 11TH WORKERS

kevin — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:56:03 +0000

Labor leaders and elected officials gathered near the World Trade Center site today to call on Congress to pass the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

Multiple Myeloma in World Trade Center Responders: Mt Sinai School of Medicine August 10, 2009

kevin — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:18:44 +0000

Emergency personnel that responded to the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers may be at higher risk for multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer. The findings, which were published, early August, in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, are still very preliminary, but suggest that airborne toxins may have damaged the rescue workers' lungs.

Since 2006, BALCONY has made the monitoring of rescue workers at the World Trade Center a top policy priority , joining the larger coalition advocating for treatment and extended benefits,” stated Lou Gordon, Director of BALCONY. “ In fact, we produced several TV and Radio PSA’s featuring actress Sigourney Weaver and former boxing champ, the late, Jose Torres, alerting those involved in cleanup , rescue and recovery to register and to be regularly screened so as to qualify for New York State workers’ compensation benefits should they become ill.”

$70 million for 9/11 Health Care in President’s Budget

kevin — Fri, 08 May 2009 20:48:59 +0000

Press statement from Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Peter King (R-NY), and Michael McMahon (D-NY)

Washington, D.C. – Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Peter King (R-NY), and Michael McMahon (D-NY) today applauded the inclusion of $70,723,000 in funding for the World Trade Center Health Programs in President Obama’s budget for Fiscal Year 2010. The lawmakers are sponsors of the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (H.R. 847), which would provide more than $10 billion for critical health care and compensation for those sickened or injured in the aftermath of 9/11. The Members of Congress hope to pass the bill with President Obama’s support by the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Exams of Injured Workers Fuel Mutual Mistrust

kevin — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 05:33:05 +0000

by N. R. Kleinfield

Dr. Hershel Samuels, an orthopedic surgeon, put his hand on the worker’s back. “Mild spasm bilaterally,” he said softly. He pressed his fingers gingerly against the side of the man’s neck. “The left cervical is tender,” he said, “even to light palpation.”

The worker, a driver for a plumbing company, told the doctor he had fallen, banging up his back, shoulder and ribs. He was seeking expanded workers’ compensation benefits because he no longer felt he could do his job.

For Injured Workers, a Costly Legal Swamp

kevin — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:16:31 +0000

By N. R. Kleinfeld and Steven Greenhouse

The hurt workers wait on benches at the Queens office of the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board.

People like Hopeton Watkis, 64, a laborer, who lost two teeth when he fell and hit a wheelbarrow.

Or Rajcoomar Jagan, 50, a construction worker, who injured a leg falling off a scaffold.

Or Vicki Marquez, 32, a retail sales associate, who hurt her elbow hauling clothes.

They come to the board seeking authorization for medical treatment and replacement wages — in short, a quick and fair resolution from a system set up to replace fractious court fights between employers and employees.

BALCONY Calls for President Obama to Reappoint Dr. John Howard as Federal 9/11 Health Coordinator

kevin — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:08:40 +0000

BALCONY, the Business and Labor Coalition of New York, today (Wednesday) called upon President Obama to re-appoint Dr. John Howard as the federal government's 9/11 Health Coordinator. As the Director of the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Dr. Howard held this position for two years from 2006 to 2008 before the Bush Administration declined to re-appoint him when his term expired.