Ruling Leaves Rail Workers With No Comp or Tort Protection

Thirty years after the 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held that New Jersey Transit employees' workplace injuries are covered by federal liability law, the same court has had a change of heart, declaring that the state has sovereign immunity protection against lawsuits. The ruling by the three-judge panel in Quitman Robinson v. New Jersey Transit Rail Operations has thrown the entire workers' compensation system for state rail workers into doubt, leaving thousands with little protection in case of an injury, union leaders and attorneys said. “Right now, we're not cov...