Brent Adams & Associates Legal Blog

North Carolina Receives “C” On Workers’ Compensation Report Card

A new report released by Work Loss Data Institute (WLDI) says that North Carolina's workers' compensation program is one of the more average in the country. The report gave the NC workers' comp system a "C" rating.

Garner Contractors Sued By ConAgra Workers

Garner Contractors Sued By ConAgra Workers

 

Around two dozen workers at the ConAgra Foods Inc. plant in Garner filed suit today against the town and several contractors and component suppliers. The suit alleges negligence that caused a fatal explosion at the plant last summer.

 

This is the second suit filed in connection with the explosion at the plant on June 9. Three ConAgra workers and a contractor were killed. Previously two other workers sued a mechanical contractor that is not named as a defendant in this suit filed today.

 

It was determined by federal investigators the cause of the explosion was caused by contractors venting natural gas inside the plant while installing the water heater.

 

The state Department of Labor found a total of 27 workplace safety violations at the Garner plant. ConAgra agreed to pay a $106,440 fine and implement policy and procedure changes to address safety issues with contractors.

 

ConAgra is not named as a defendant in either lawsuit.

 

The new suit alleges that Garner inspectors were inside the ConAgra plant on the day of the explosion and were aware that gas was being improperly vented into the building.

 

Town inspectors should have also known that employees of one of the contractors, Midsouth Industrial Refrigeration Inc., did not have proper permits and licenses to work on the gas line in the plant.

 

In addition other contractors and suppliers named as defendants in the new suit are Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., Energy Systems Analysts Inc., Freedom Electric Inc., Fireye Inc., Maxton Corp., Weeks-Williams-Devore Inc., Rockwell Automation Inc., Todd’s Maintenance and Construction LLC, Honeywell International Inc., AJ Antunes & Co., Bacharach Inc., Rexel Inc., IMS Metering Holdings, Invensys Metering Systems N.A. Inc., Sensus Metering Systems Inc., Sensus USA Inc. and Sensus (Bermuda 2) Ltd. Inc.

 

Garner officials were not available for comment.

 

ConAgra officials have announced they would close the Garner plant last August, but officials said the damage limited production too much.

Clerk Assaulted During Robbery

Clerk Assaulted During Robbery

 

A convenience store clerk was assaulted during a robbery in Raleigh on Monday.

 

The two men entered the Kangaroo Express at 3289 Avent Ferry Road and forced the clerk to open the cash register.

 

The clerk was hit in the face by one of the suspects.

 

The incident is under investigation.

Chatham County Deputy Wrecks Patrol Car Enroute To Call

Chatham County Deputy Wrecks Patrol Car Enroute To Call

 

A Chatham County deputy, responding to a call, lost control of his patrol car hitting a sign and a tree this morning on Highway 1 near Exit 79.

 

The deputy, whose name was not released, was transported to UNC Hospital. He was responding at the scene, but would go in and out of consciousness.

 

The deputy was responding to a call in reference to inmates that were being transported from Union County. According to reports one of the inmates had started beating his head on a window and had called for help.

Mechanics Burnt in Fire at Durham Business

Mechanics Burnt in Fire at Durham Business

 

A fire Tuesday evening at a Durham car repair business resulted in two mechanics receiving burns.

 

The majority of the damage came from heavy smoke according to the investigators.

 

Investigation is underway to determine the cause at A Complete Autoshop on Wolfpack Lane in Durham.

Ambulance Responding To Accident Wrecks

Ambulance Responding To Accident Wrecks

 

Amanda Vanschaack, 21, driver, along with an EMT, Henry Daniel were responding to an emergency call when she lost control of the ambulance.

 

According to a report, Vanschaack was speeding when the ambulance ran off N.C. Highway 751 and overturned Saturday morning in Durham. Her estimated speed was 65 or 70 in a 55 m.p.h. zone.  The ambulance belonged to Johnston Ambulance Service.

 

Vanschaack went around a curve speeding, ran off the right side of the road, hit a ditch and overturned several times.

 

Two off duty Rockingham County EMS personnel passed by the accident and assisted both Vanschaack and Daniel. Both of the injured were transported to Duke Medical Center.

 

There was not a patient in the ambulance and no charges were filed. Both were wearing seatbelts.

Roof Collapses On Church And Kills Worker

Roof Collapses On Church And Kills Worker

 

One man was killed Thursday afternoon when the roof of a church he was working on in Sampson County collapsed.

 

According to the Sampson County Highway Patrol, crews were working on the new sanctuary of the Mt. Vernon Baptist Church in Clinton when it collapsed.

 

Two of the workers were transported to Sampson Regional Hospital. One of those was later airlifted to UNC Hospital.

 

The man killed & the two injured were construction workers. Their names were not released.

 

At the time of the collapse, crews were replacing wood around the structure that had just been put up hours before, construction worker Orlando Martinez said. The crane operator had just wrapped up his work and the crew was trying to stabilize the building.

 

A worker said every time a two by four was removed, they would hear a sound. And then half of the roof collapsed.

 

There were a total of nine men working when the roof collapsed.

 

The fatally injured worker had been with the crew for two days. Co-workers stated he was so relieved to have a job.

 

The contractor for the construction project is Clifton Halso Building Contractor in Chinquapin.

 

Tony Rackley, chairman of the church's Board of Deacons, said the new sanctuary was being built to coincide with the church's 100th anniversary. Construction of the sanctuary started last October and was expected to be completed by November of this year, Rackley said.

 

Sampson County authorities said representatives with the Department of Labor and Occupational Safety and Health Administration will be at the site on Friday to investigate the structure collapse.

Harnett County Deputy Shot

Harnett County Deputy Shot

 

A Harnett County Sheriff’s deputy was sot in the leg early Tuesday morning.

 

The incident occurred off of N.C. Highway 87 near Spring Lake.

 

Two uniformed deputies were patrolling the area when a man was observed sitting in a ditch in front to the Super Mart convenience store in Cameron.

 

While the deputies were speaking with the man, he drew a weapon and fired at them. One of the deputies was shot in the leg.

 

According to Sheriff Larry Rollins, both deputies shot back at the man. The suspect was shot & killed at the scene.

 

The wounded deputy was treated and released from Cape Fear Valley Medical Center.

 

As a routine when an officer is involved in a shooting, the State Bureau of Investigation was called to investigate.

N.C. Parole Officer Crashes State Vehicle

N.C. Parole Officer Crashes State Vehicle

A N.C. state –owned vehicle crashed into a power pole near the intersection of North Roxboro Street and Olympic Avenue early Friday morning by a parole officer.

The name of the parole officer was not released.

He was transported to Duke Hospital for treatment.

The parole officer stated that he could not remember what caused the accident or the impact. Authorities said they do not believe alcohol was a factor.

The parole officer might have to pay for the destroyed pole, which Duke Power officials were working to replace. No charges will be filed if the driver crashed due to medical reasons, police said.

Young Man Assaults Wal-Mart Greeter

                                                Young Man Assaults Wal-Mart Greeter

 

According to police, a young man assaulted an elderly Wal-Mart greeter with two one- gallon milk jugs.

 

It is believed the greeter thought the young man may have been shoplifting.

 

Austin Stusalite, 25, was charged with simple assault.

 

The greeter, John McClean, said the milk was not in a bag, and when he asked to see a receipt, the man kept walking. As McClean reached for the customer, he was assaulted.

 

Another customer helped detain the young man until the police arrived.

 

It was not confirmed whether or not the milk had been paid for.

Sagebrush Employee Injured In Robbery

Sagebrush Employee Injured In Robbery

 

A male employee at the Sagebrush in Mocksville was alone when he heard the doorbell at the back ring Saturday morning.

 

The employee looked out the front door to see if a car was in the parking lot. Staring back at him was a masked man pointing a gun.

 

This happened before daylight, around 6 a.m. at the restaurant on U.S. 601 North at I-40.

 

According to Mocksville Police Detective Jerry Medlin, the employee unlocked the door and let the man in. The suspect then instructed the employee to go into the office, and give him money out of the safe.

 

After the suspect put the money into a Sagebrush bag, he demanded the employee to get down on his knees and hand, while he threatened him.

 

While the employee was begging for his life to be spared, he was hit in the back with a chair.

 

The shocked employee could hear the robber. The employee walked through the office, and pushed the panic button and entered an adjacent freezer. He remained in the freezer until the police arrived.

 

The employed suffered injuries to his back & head.

Eight Employees Of A Lumberton-based Company Injured In Virginia Explosion

Eight Employees Of A Lumberton-based Company Injured In Virginia Explosion

 

Eight Employees of a contracting company based in Lumberton, were injured Sunday at a middle school in midtown Newport News,Va.

 

According to Newport News Police, the workers received various degrees of injuries. The blast occurred at Crittenden Middle School.

 

The injured were reportedly employees of T.R. Driscoll, Inc. of Lumberton. This report was not confirmed.

 

The company had been doing repairs at the school for about five weeks. When the explosion occurred, the employees were melting tar and re-tarring the roof.

 

It appeared some of the injuries were severe.

 

The explosion tore out a 20-by-50-foot wall. The blast could be felt a good distance from the school.

 

The names of the injured were not released.

 

Jim Driscoll, president of the company, nor his brother Stuart, vice president, did not return calls made to them.

 

Four victims were transported to Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News, which is a Level 11 trauma center. The victims were transported to the Sentara Hampton CarePlex Hospital in Hampton, Va. The other victim was transported to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, another trauma center.

 

Two of the injured at Riverside were later transported to Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. Two others originally taken there were moved to Sentara Norfolk General.

 

The cause of the blast is under investigation. A report states it appeared to be related to the repair work.

 

Due to the fact it was an industrial accident, the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry is conducting a separate investigation.

 

The school is closed today. It appeared the damage was confined to one room.

 

T. R. Driscoll is a third-generation, family-owned-and-operated business that was established in 1924.

Durham Firefighter Injured

Durham Firefighter Injured

 

A firefighter was injured Thursday morning, while fighting a fire at Royal Oaks Apartments in Durham.

 

The fire started at 3545 Mayfair Street shortly before 6 a.m.  Flames were coming from the first floor when the firemen arrived and shortly spread throughout the building. Ft took the firefighters approximately three hours to bring the fire under control.

 

The injured firefighter’s name or condition was not released.

 

Numerous apartments were damaged by fire, smoke and water.

State Fair Worker Injured

State Fair Worker Injured

 

A State Fair worker was injured when he fell 15 feet while dismantling a ride on Sunday, according to Brian Long, fair spokesman.

 

While taking down The Flying Bobs ride, Chris Tomeno, 38, lost his balance and fell.

 

Tomeno injured his back and was transported to WakeMed.

Workplace Injury Causes Death

Workplace Injury Causes Death

 

A Wilmington man was killed Thursday night at Pages Creek Marine on Market Street while at work.

 

Ryan Church, 25-years-old was aligning a boat and trailer when the boat fell. Church was caught between the trailer and boat.

 

Church died at the scene.

Worker Injured While Delivering Papers

Worker Injured While Delivering Papers

 

A man was injured on Monday while trying to climb a wrought iron fence.

 

David Williams, a carrier for the Fayetteville Observer, was delivering papers on Old Street. According to Sgt. Richard Mulcahy, Williams realized he had thrown a paper to a wrong address. Williams was trying to retrieve the paper, when he lost his balance on the fence and impaled his calf through the top of a spike.

 

Williams other foot was tangled in the fence, leaving him hanging upside down for two hours. Someone walking by saw Mr. Williams and called the police.

 

Williams kept his head elevated by using his belt. He had lost a great deal of blood.

 

Williams was transported to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center for treatment.

Former Hospital Employee Claims Wrongful Firing After Filing For Workers' Compensation

A former employee of St. Elizabeth’s Hospital has filed suit against the hospital, claiming that she was wrongfully terminated for filing a workers’ compensation claim after suffering personal injuries while working.

 

According to the suit Cheryl Lynn Scharringhausen filed on August 12 in Illinois’ St. Clair County Circuit Court, on October 15, 2007, she was working at the hospital when an unspecified accident occurred, resulting in her sustaining injuries.

 

Scharringhausen claims that she filed a workers’ compensation claim after the accident, but was fired on October 17, 2007. She claims it was in retaliation for filing the workers’ comp claim.

 

Scharringhausen seeks damages in excess of $50,000, plus costs.

Workers' Compensation Fund Members Hit By Fraud Get Distribution

According to the North Carolina Department of Insurance, checks worth a total of $6.5 million have been sent to hundreds of former members of Phoenix Fund Inc., a self-insured group workers’ compensation fund, that were victims of reinsurance fraud.

On August 10, Insurance Commission Wayne Goodwin said that the $6.5 million had been distributed to 661 former members of the workers’ comp fund, which is based out of San Antonio, Texas.

Since October 2006, Phoenix Fund has been under rehabilitation due to the North Carolina Insurance Department discovering a $20 million scheme which resulted in several insurance entities, which includes Phoenix Fund, without reinsurance.

According to the Department of Insurance, the state agency has recovered nearly $18 million for the Phoenix Fund from Thomas G. Reitz, which the agency described as Phoenix Fund’s “purported insurance broker.”

In 2007, Reitz pleaded guilty to mail fraud and money laundering charges. He was sentenced to more than 70 months in prison in 2008 in addition to being ordered to pay more than $19 million in restitution to the Phoenix Fund.

The agency said that distribution checks were sent to members participating in the Phoenix Fund as of October 17, 2006.

Goodyear Worker Injured

 

Goodyear Worker Injured

 

A man working at the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plant was injured on Tuesday.

 

The man whose name was not released was operating a piece of machinery to remove a pallet. In doing this he became pinned underneath it.

 

The injured was employed by Versatile Loading Service, which does contract work for Goodyear.

 

The unidentified man was transported to UNC Hospital in Chapel Hill.

 

According to reports, Goodyear is investigating.

Legal and financial help for victims of ConAgra Explosion in Garner N. C.

The thoughts and prayers of the entire country are with the victims and the families of the victims of the tragic explosion at the ConAgra Foods Slim Jim Plant in Garner, North Carolina.

The explosion which occurred Tuesday afternoon killed 3 people, critically burned 4 and sent 38 victims to the hospital.

 

Experts across the country are descending upon Garner, North Carolina to try to determine the cause of the tragic blast.

 

Meanwhile, the victims and their families and the families of the 3 deceased victims are in shock at the magnitude of the tragedy which was suddenly thrust upon them.

 

The families are understandably emotionally stressed and certainly their first concern is for the healing of the surviving victims and the comfort of the families of the deceased victims.

 

These victims will also be concerned with how they are going to feed their families while they are out of work and for the financial security of the families of the deceased victims.

 

One sure source of recovery is under North Carolina’s Workers’ Compensation Act.  Workers’ compensation insurance will pay the out of work victims two-thirds of their average weekly wage until they can return to work at suitable employment.

 

The families of the deceased victims will be able to recover workers’ compensation benefits to partially offset the loss of the wage earning capacity of their loved one.

 

Although workers’ compensation insurance benefits are very important to these victims and their families, the benefits under workers’ compensation are extremely limited.  The workers’ compensation system is designed only to partially replace lost wages.  It is not intended to fully compensate victims for the loss of loved ones and for all the injuries suffered by the injured survivors.

 

The only way these victims can recover more than workers’ compensation benefits from their employer is if they are able to prove that the employer’s conduct was “substantially certain” to result in injury or death to the workers.  It will be extremely difficult for workers to meet this heavy burden of proof.  However, it may be possible for these injured workers and their families to recover money in excess of normal workers’ compensation benefits.  If the investigations know being conducted several different agencies and entities reveal that the tragedy was caused by the negligence or defective products of third parties the families could recover from these third parties.

 

If third parties (entities or individuals other than employees of the employer ConAgra Foods, Inc.) the workers may be able to recover for pain and suffering, punitive damages, and possibly other consequential damages which result from this tragedy.

 

You can be sure that, if third parties were involved, their representatives and insurance companies are on the scene right now in an effort to uncover evidence which they hope will prove that their conduct or their products were not responsible for the tragedy.

 

It appears that 3 of the ConAgra employees died in the explosion:  Barbara McLean Spears 43 of Dunn; Lewis Junior Watson 33 of Clayton; and Rachel Mae Poston-Pulley 67 of Clayton.

NC Industrial Commission Makes Changes to Workers’ Comp Website, Forms And Procedures

When you are injured at work, or become ill and can no longer complete your job, the North Carolina Industrial Commission will play a vital role in your process of securing your workers' compensation payments. Their website also has a wealth of information, including news, frequently asked questions, forms, and recent workers' comp court decisions in North Carolina.

Recently, the NC Industrial Commission has announced a few changes. Keep yourself updated with this week's North Carolina workers' comp news:

· The NCIC website is moving to a new address: http://www.ic.nc.gov/, and soon, the website will be re-designed. Although the current site will still function for the time being, they recommend that you switch over your bookmarks now.

· Beginning on Jan. 29, the numbering system for workers' compensation claims will change - all new cases will be labeled with a six-figure number beginning with a W.

· A number of workers' comp forms and procedures have been updated or revised. Some of these changes take place on Feb. 1, while other changes will not go into effect until Aug. 1.


Remember: if you need assistance with your workers' compensation claim, contact us today.

Construction Worker Killed in Oak Island Bridge Accident

Construction Worker Killed in Oak Island Bridge Accident

 

One man was killed and another seriously injured in a construction accident near the second bridge to Oak Island.

 

On Wednesday, December 1, an entire girder collapsed at the new Oak Island Bridge. It is the second bridge to Oak Island. It will be a new route to NC 211 from SR 1104.

 

Jose Montalvo of Sumter, S.C. was killed in the accident, when one of the beams holding up the bridge fell. He was strapped to a beam for safety but went down when that beam touch another one. He had been employed with the construction company for seven years. He was married with three children.

 

Ricky Bryant of Supply, N.C. was taken to New Hanover Regional Hospital with serious injuries. He is married with two children.

 

Roberto Hernandez was also injured in the accident.

 

They were employed by Lee Construction of the Carolinas. They mostly work in the southeast. The company is based out of the Charlotte area and has been operating since 1935.

 

According to OSHA records, this is the third accident investigation in the past eight years. They were penalized in the previous two, due to violations.

North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Approves Workers’ Comp Rate Reduction

The cost of insuring workers will fall for businesses. According to the Insurance Journal, NC Insurance Commissioner Jim Long has approved a request from the North Carolina Rate Bureau to decrease the Workers' Compensation rate. The North Carolina Rate Bureau is an organization that represents all of North Carolina's workers' compensation insurance companies, about 150 businesses.

The rate decrease will go into effect on April 1, 2009, and cause a 4.4 decrease in the voluntary market and a 3.8 percent decrease in assigned risk markets. The decision made by Long should save businesses $65.6 million, according to the North Carolina Department of Insurance.

The current average rate for workers' compensation in the voluntary market is now 2.17 of payroll. This will be the first decrease in workers' comp rates since 2004. It reflects efforts to improve safety in the workplace and lower claim costs in recent years.

Long Overtime Hours Are No Basis For Workers' Compensation Benefits

The high court of Massachusetts has ruled that a construction worker for the “Big Dig” highway project in Boston, Massachusetts has no entitlement to benefits for workers’ compensation for the personal injuries he suffered as a result of falling asleep while driving home late from work.

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, in a reversal of an Industrial Accident Board ruling, said that the worker who had worked 27 hours before his drive home had no entitlement to benefits because there was not sufficient proof that he had been required to work the long shift.

Involved in the case was the so-called “going and coming” rule, which provides that compensation is not typically granted for personal injuries employees suffer on their travels to and from work.

According to court records, on August 3, 2001, the day before the accident, Michael Haslam began work at 5 a.m. He was a foreman supervising a carpentry crew building forms for road supports. During the day, various circumstances delayed the project and the pouring of concrete into the forms did not start until 1 a.m., nearly 20 hours after Haslam’s shift began. He testified that his shift was to end at 3:30 p.m. and he was not scheduled for overnight work, but he remained because a carpenter has to be present while the concrete’s being poured and no one else was there to finish what he had been doing until around 8 a.m. He said that he continued on because he believed if he didn’t finish, he would no longer have a job.

However, the on-duty construction crew supervisor for the night testified that there was a number of people he could rely on if a problem arose, so he could have called someone to get more personnel. He said that Haslam had not asked for assistance that night.

North Carolina applies the "going and coming" rule to deny benefits to workers who are injured while traveling to and from work. There are a number of important exceptions to North Carolina's going and coming rule but exhaustion and sleep deprivation from working long hours is not one of those exceptions. Therefore, North Carolina courts would likely have ruled the same as the Massachusetts court did in this case.

 

New York State Corrections Settles Gender Discrimination, Workers Compensation Lawsuit

 

To settle a gender discrimination lawsuit, the New York State Department of Correctional Services will pay nearly $1 million, it was reported by various media outlets. The suit jointly was filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

EEOC and the United States had charged the Corrections Department at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in Ossining, N.Y. with violating federal law by providing inferior benefits to female employees on maternity leave, said the Occupational Health & Safety web site, ohsonline.com.

The Corrections Department is the New York state government entity responsible for the confinement and rehabilitation of approximately 63,000 inmates held at 69 state correctional facilities across the state, including approximately 1,700 at Sing Sing.

The lawsuit, filed under the Equal Pay Act of 1963 charged the Corrections Department gave male employees with work-related injuries up to six months of paid worker's compensation leave. Although female employees were granted similar leave, pregnant employees on leave were involuntarily switched to maternity leave at or around the time they gave birth.

EEOC maintained switching women from worker's compensation to maternity leave resulted in lesser benefits for women due to their sex and thus violated the Equal Pay Act, a federal law requiring employers pay men and women equally.

In late May 2008, the court granted an Order and Stipulation Providing for Injunction and Affirmative Relief, providing $972,000 in compensatory damages, liquidated damages, back pay and interest to 23 female Corrections employees.