CA - Court Upholds Dismissal of Rideshare Companies' Challenges to Cal/OSHA Citations
10/16/2025 | 0
A California appellate court ruled that the two major rideshare companies could not bypass the administrative review process for challenging citations issued against them for failing to adequately safeguard their drivers.
The court’s decisions in Uber Technologies Inc. v. Department of Industrial Relations and Lyft Inc. v. Department of Industrial Relations were released Tuesday as unpublished opinions.
The case arose from citations that the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health issued to Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. in August 2022 for failing t...
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The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled that an employer’s late filing of an answer to a worker’s claim petition was properly excused.
Case: Lucke v. Kost Tire Distributors Inc., No. 698 C.D. 2024, 10/09/2025, unpublished.
Facts and procedural history: Charles Lucke worked for Kost Tire Distributors Inc. He filed a workers’ compensation claim, alleging that he suffered injuries in April 2018 while trying to mount a large tire.
Lucke’s claim petition listed Kost’s address as in Eynon, Pennsylvania. He did not identify Kost’s insurance carrie...
The U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals said the Merit Systems Protection Board properly found that it lacked jurisdiction over an injured postal worker’s challenge to the denial of his restoration appeal.
Case: Blevins v. Merit Systems Protection Board, No. 2025-1061, 10/09/2025, unpublished.
Facts: Peter Blevins worked for the U.S. Postal Service as a mail handler. After he suffered an injury at work, Blevins began receiving benefits from the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs.
In November 2017, the USPS offered Blevins a modified job assignment after receiving me...
A federal appellate court ruled that an injured worker who received benefits from his employer, a government contractor, could not pursue a civil suit for damages against the government as well.
Case: Williams v. U.S., No. 24-2408, 10/06/2025, unpublished.
Facts: Troy Williams worked for RSD, a U.S. Postal Service contractor. He suffered injuries at work because of the alleged negligence of USPS workers.
Procedural history: Williams filed suit against the U.S. government, asserting a claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act.
The FTCA waives the government’s sovereign immunity in ...
A pivotal issue in settlement discussions is how the claimant’s future medical needs will be addressed. Often, parties look to government programs to fill the gap between available settlement funds and the projected expenses. Negotiators need to be aware that Medi-Cal eligibility rules are changing.
Things were better — for a while
Before July 2022, to qualify for Medi-Cal, an applicant could have no more than $2,000 in countable assets, and the applicant plus spouse could have no more than $3,000 in countable assets. Certain assets, such as the primary residence, w...
An Ohio appellate court upheld the denial of a worker’s request for permanent total disability benefits.
Case: Kaminski v. Industrial Commission, No. 23AP-632, 10/09/2025, published.
Facts: Wayne Kaminski worked for A.P. O’Horo Co. He slipped and fell at work in March 2011.
The Bureau of Workers’ Compensation accepted compensability for a lumbosacral sprain, neck sprain, left shoulder sprain, closed acromion fracture, acromial deformity, left bicipital tenosynovitis, depression, aggravation of preexisting left shoulder rotator cuff tendinosis, and adhesive capsulitis.
In ...
A New York appellate court overturned a grant of summary judgment to a Labor Law defendant.
Case: Gomez-Jimenez v. 50 West Development LLC, No. 2021-04789, 10/08/2025, published.
Facts: Leonidas Gomez-Jimenez worked as a laborer for DiFama Concrete Inc., a subcontractor for a construction project in Manhattan.
DiFama's employees were working in the lobby of a building, stripping plywood from the ceiling, while Gomez-Jimenez was sweeping the debris from the floor. Gomez-Jimenez allegedly suffered injuries when he was struck by a piece of plywood that had just been pulled off the ceiling ...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned the denial of two workers’ claims for occupational pneumoconiosis due to the failure of the Board of Review to consider all evidence.
Case: Boyce v. Quinwood Coal Co. LLC and Sargent v. Alpha Metallurgical Resources Inc., Nos. 24-ICA-346 and 24-ICA-440, 10/01/2025, published.
Facts and procedural history: Wade Boyce and Christopher Sargent individually filed claims for occupational pneumoconiosis against Quinwood Coal Co. LLC and Alpha Metallurgical Resources Inc., their respective employers.
Both men claimed they were exp...
The Workers Compensation Research Institute will present a 30-minute webinar at 2 p.m. Eastern on Oct. 30 to highlight findings from its latest report, "Impact of California’s Heat Standard on Workers’ Compensation Outcomes."
“With policymakers at all levels debating heat safety standards, this study offers measurable evidence of how California’s 2005 heat standard impacted injury frequency in occupations covered by the standard, such as construction, agriculture and transportation,” said Ramona Tanabe, WCRI president and CEO.
Key questi...
CA - Liberty Buys Workers' Comp, Benefits Brokerage
Liberty Company Insurance Brokers announced Wednesday that it has acquired High Ground Insurance Services, a Torrance, California-based brokerage and consultant.
Terms were not disclosed.
High Ground specializes in workers' compensation claims management, employee benefits plan administration and loss-sensitive insurance program design, Liberty said.
The brokerage has about 20 employees, headed by CEO Greg Martin. The industries it targets include construction, manufacturing, nonprofits and retail, according to Liberty.
Liberty is the 42nd-largest broker of U.S. business, according to ...
For the second year, a bill introduced in Pennsylvania would require meatpacking and other food processing companies to better protect workers from injuries and illnesses, including communicable diseases.
HB 1923, pending in the House Labor and Industry Committee after being introduced Oct. 6, would create regulations requiring workplace health and safety committees and establish the position of workers’ rights coordinator in the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. It is nearly identical to a bill introduced in 2024 that failed to gain traction.
The measure calls on emp...
The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board on Monday issued an en banc decision, holding that a defendant must disclose any entities liable for payment, and any insurance policies that impact liability.
The decision from DiFusco v. Hands On Spa is binding precedent on all Workers' Compensation Appeals Board panels and all workers’ compensation administrative judges.
Jillian DiFusco worked for Hands On Spa as a massage therapist. She filed a workers’ compensation claim for various injuries she sustained in July 2008.
In December 2012, a workers’ compensation jud...
The Oregon Court of Appeals reinstated citations issued against two temporary staffing agencies for failing to provide their employees with training relating to hazards on the jobsites of their “host employers.”
Case: Oregon Occupational Safety & Health Division v. Laborworks Industrial Staffing Specialists Inc., Oregon Occupational Safety & Health Division v. Tradesmen International Holdings LLC, No. 871, 10/08/2025, published.
Facts: Laborworks Industrial Staffing Specialists Inc. and Tradesmen International Holdings LLC are temporary staffing agencies that provide ...
The New Jersey Superior Court’s Appellate Division upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s civil claims against his employer but revived his claims against a related entity whose workers’ compensation carrier had paid benefits to him.
Case: Lewis v. Dicks, No. A-2781-23, 10/08/2025, unpublished.
Facts: Al-Jaquan Lewis was a passenger in a box truck driven by Isaiah M. Dicks when the truck collided with another vehicle. Lewis suffered injuries as a result.
Dicks was employed by Vino Trucking Corp., which rented the truck from Ryder Truck Rental, and was deliver...
The Illinois Appellate Court ruled that a police officer who failed to prove his entitlement to duty disability benefits for a wrist injury was barred from pursuing a workers’ compensation claim for the same injury.
Case: City of Zion Police Department v. IWCC, No. 2-24-0758WC, 10/06/2025, unpublished.
Facts and procedural history: James Labonne worked for the City of Zion Police Department as a detective. He filed a pension duty disability application after he allegedly suffered bilateral wrist injuries while performing a “burpee” exercise during firearms training in ...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld an award of permanent partial disability benefits for a worker’s knee injury.
Case: XMV Inc. v. Ayers, No. 25-ICA-128, 09/30/2025, published.
Facts: Frederick Ayers worked for XMV Inc. He filed a workers’ compensation claim, asserting that he had injured his right knee in September 2020.
Ayers underwent a magnetic resonance imaging scan in October 2020, which revealed extensive tearing of the medial meniscus; a medial tear of the free edge of the posterior horn of the lateral meniscus; extensive cartilage loss in the med...
