Teamster strike, local picketing, ends in pipeline industry

From the Towanda Daily Review:

A strike by Teamsters Union members working in the gas and oil pipeline construction industry has ended, though some issues remain unresolved. 

During the strike, which began the during the first week of January, Teamsters Union members picketed against pipeline contractors in Troy and North Towanda Township. Teamster workers across the country in the pipeline construction industry returned to work Friday following an agreement between the union and the Pipe Line Contractors Association (PLCA) to extend the previous labor agreement for three months, according to a press release posted by the Teamsters Union on its national website. 

This will mark the third time the National Pipe Line Agreement, which expired on Jan. 31, 2011, between the Teamsters and the PLCA has been extended. The full term of the extension will run from Nov. 15-April 13, 2012.

Hotel workers routinely taken advantage of...

From The HuffingtonPost.com:

More than a dozen low-level hotel workers in Indianapolis have filed a class-action lawsuit against ten of the city's hotels and a labor staffing agency, claiming they were routinely cheated out of pay with the knowledge of hotel management. 

The workers -- most of them Hispanic immigrants employed as housekeepers, dishwashers and bussers -- say they were forced to work off the clock and through their unpaid breaks, sometimes pushing their earnings below the minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. The suit could potentially involve more than a thousand workers and millions of dollars in claims, according to the hotel workers union UNITE HERE, which is organizing workers in Indianapolis.

I wonder if this type of thing goes on in our area.  This article caught my attention due to the many hotels being built in our area.  There are two new hotels that will constructed in the Valley on Elmira Street in Athens Township.  A few years ago a Hampton Inn opened up on Elmira Street.  There are two new hotels in Towanda with a third one planned.

Gas Pipeline Safety Regulations

Here is an article from the Rocket Courier of Wyalusing about the enactment of legislation that would enhance the safety of gas pipelines in Pennsylvania.  House Bill 344 permits the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) to have regulatory oversight of natural gas lines.

“Currently, Pennsylvania is one of a very few states that produce natural gas that does not give the authority of gas lines to a state entity, and as a result, there is no designated agency to ensure compliance for a number of safety regulations,” Pickett said. “The influx of activity in the Marcellus Shale region and the increasing demand for this type of energy has necessitated action on this legislation, and I am pleased to see this bill finally moving to the governor.”

The legislation gives the PUC the power to inspect and investigate natural gas pipelines with the Commonwealth in coordination with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (U.S. DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration.

The article's slant is toward protecting landowners, which is important, in and of itself.  But it will also protect gas workers.  There has been rash of gas pipeline explosions that has killed and injured dozens throughout the state.  Hopefully this legislation will cut down those types of injuries.  We will have to wait and see.

Wage protections for home health care workers

This is great news. This class of employee has been taken advantage of for years and years. As our population ages, home health care workers have a daunting job.

Here is a link to the article from the New York Times.

Layoffs at Wyalusing's Cargill Plant

From the Towanda Daily Review:

The Cargill Meat Solutions plant in Wyalusing has eliminated ten positions as part of a worldwide reduction in the company's workforce. The cuts amount to about one percent of the Wyalusing plant's 1,100-person workforce, said Cargill Meat Solutions spokesman Mike Martin. The eliminated positions come from a variety of departments within the plant, Martin said.

The only reason I highlight this article is to point out and remind workers that if you're laid off due to economic conditions AND you're still on light duty from an accepted work injury, then your workers' comp wage benefits automatically get reinstated-- no questions asked.  If the insurance company refuses to immediately reinstate your weekly wage benefits, then you need to contact a lawyer so he/she can file a penalty petition with the workers' compensation judge.  This rule even applies to old injuries.  As long as you're still on restricted duty from a work injury and you get laid off, then your benefits are reinstated.

Hope this helps.  And my heart goes out to the laid off workers and their families.  Tough time of the year to be unemployed.  Good luck to them.

Less regulation means more death and injuries in the gas industry

Here's a great article about the unsafe practices of the gas industry, specifically related to the construction of the gas pipelines that criss-cross the Commonwealth. Less regulation and enforcement of those regulations will lead to more worker death and injury. It's a simple fact. And no matter how many billboards the gas industry erects toting how wonderful they are will not change this simple fact.

If you're a gas worker and you are injured, don't be afraid to contact a good workers' compensation lawyer. There are several great comp lawyers in our region that will help you and protect you.

Crazy Commonwealth Court Decision

I think the Commonwealth Court has lost it marbles. In a recent decision, Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board v. WCAB, the court addressed what is an abnormal working condition while working at a liquor store.

As we all know from my past blog entries, you can receive workers compensation benefits for a psychological injury but only if you prove that the event that caused the psychological injury (stress, anxiety, nightmares, post traumatic stress disorder) was caused by an abnormal working condition. Obviously, these cases are extremely fact sensitive and it depends upon the specific jobs being looked at.

For example, in the above case, the employee worked for a liquor store who suffered an armed robbery while working. The court held that this incident was not an “abnormal working condition” because four other liquor store robberies had occurred in the same general area of the store that the robbery took place. Therefore, the court must have felt that this one particular liquor store clerk who experienced a traumatic armed robbery, should have expected to undergo this event.

This is why I think the Commonwealth Court has lost its marbles. How insane are they to believe that this is a normal working condition? Being held up at gun point and suffering a traumatic, emotional/psychological injury because of it is normal?!?! I'm dumbfounded...