Today we’ve got some surprising–even unsettling–follow-up on cases we’ve discussed.

Most recently, we took a look at increasingly heated controversy over proposed legislation to change the workers’ comp system in Montana (final item here, “In Montana, the dust is flying”).  In September, we discussed the case of Mitch Mitchell, a former state trooper who was seeking benefits for injuries sustained in a car crash that killed two teenage girls. In January, we found a mention of the workers comp arbitrator in the case, in another story about the number of workers comp workers seeking their own benefits packages; now we learn Ms. Teague is making news for trying to hide a crucial hearing in the Mitchell case.

House Bill 334 ‘undermines’ a better bill?

According to an early January piece at Big Sky Business Journal, “A newly crafted workers’ compensation bill cleared a legislative hurdle Wednesday, but not without criticism from opponents who said it was unfair to employees and undermined a bill much longer in the making.

“House Bill 334 by Rep. Scott Reichner, R-Bigfork, is one of two major proposals for workers’ compensation reform working its way through the Legislature. Montana is ranked as having the worst workers’ compensation rates in the country and paid nearly $400 million in workers’ compensation rates last year, officials said. Lawmakers say while on the campaign trail they consistently hear from business owners that the high rates are keeping them from expanding their business, paying employees better or forcing them to move out of state.”

A Jan. 10 piece at Bloomberg.com elaborates: “The plan is supported by Republican leaders and many business interests as the most effective way to quickly lower Montana’s work comp insurance rates, which most agree are among the most expensive in the nation.

Labor groups favor the alternate measure

“But a Senate committee on Wednesday was reviewing a different compromise bill four years in the making. Labor groups and Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s administration support it, but doctors don’t like how it reduces payments to them. Doctors, hospitals and insurance companies favor the House Republican plan.”

Among the highlights in the 37 pages of the proposed measure, according to Big Sky, are “are ending medical benefits 60 months after the day the injury occurred instead of the last time medical services were used and it also creates a list of doctors that injured workers can see rather than letting them request their personal doctor.”

Proponents of the bill praise it for its potential savings (estimated at $84 to $183 million), but opponents characterize it as making Montana’s workers comp system “the most restrictive” in the nation, if passed.

A stab at secrecy in Illinois

The Belleville (Illinois) News-Democrat has done some bang-up reporting on the Jennifer Teague-Mitch Mitchell case being handled by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission (IWCC). At its online site, BND.com, there’s a Feb. 8 piece by reporters Beth Hundsdorfer and George Pawlaczyk with the following lede:

A state workers’ compensation arbitrator who will decide whether former Illinois State Trooper Matt Mitchell should be compensated for his injuries wanted to keep the public hearing secret, according to e-mails between the arbitrator, Mitchell’s lawyer and an assistant attorney general, who represents taxpayers.

“We are going to do it on the sly with no press,” wrote Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission arbitrator Jennifer Teague in an e-mail to her court reporter. Thousands of Teague’s e-mails were obtained by the Belleville News-Democrat under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act.

‘More than willing’ to schedule unknown place & time

A day later, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported:

Mitchell’s hearing, originally was scheduled for Dec. 20 in Belleville, was pushed up to Dec. 17 and relocated to a Collinsville office without public notification. A decision on compensation has yet to be made.

“There is nothing I can do to keep them (reporters) out of a public hearing, but will be more than willing to do a special setting and an unknown place and time!” Teague wrote to Mitchell’s lawyer, Kerry O’Sullivan, on Oct. 18.

O’Sullivan, in a November reply to Teague with a copy to Assistant Attorney General Bill Schneider, suggested an “off-docket trial of this matter to prevent or reduce media attention.”

Tip leads reporter to hearing

According to the News-Democrat, one of its reporters was tipped off that the hearing date had been changed.  After arriving at IWCC regional office in Collinsville a few minutes after the hearing had begun, the reporter knocked on a closed door and was subsequently admitted into the room.

The story began in 2007, shortly after Thanksgiving, when Mitchell was on duty and en route on I-64 to the scene of an auto accident. According to court documents, Mitchell was using his cell phone to send messages while driving at speeds as high as 126 mph. Subsequently, his state trooper vehicle crossed the median and “bisected” the the oncoming vehicle of sisters Jessica and Kelli Uhl, killing both.

After spending nearly two years suspended from duty while drawing a salary, Mitchell eventually pleaded guilty to two counts of reckless homicide in a deal that netted him 30 months’ probation. By September 2010, the request for workers’ comp benefits had been filed, seeking an award for injuries sustained in the line of duty.

Opinion piece asks some tough questions

Given the reportage, perhaps it’s only fitting that the News-Democrat (BND.com) seems to be the only news organization we’re aware of that has a public, editorial stand on this case, as witnessed by this Feb. 10 opinion piece, headlined “It’s no secret what to do on Mitchell worker’s comp hearing ploy“:

As for Teague, the Workers’ Compensation Commission needs to fire her. The commission’s credibility is already in doubt because of many questionable awards to Menard prison workers. It cannot keep an arbitrator on the payroll who either doesn’t understand, or doesn’t care, that her job is the people’s business.?

Now, here’s the really, really big question: Given the Mitch Mitchell case, how is it that the state can deny any knowledge of  Menard?

Basically, what we’re asking is, “Exactly, what is going on?”

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Frequently enough, a worker’s compensation case may be so complex as to demand legal representation. However, sometimes what seems like a cut-and-dried situation to an injured worker may result in a smaller award than envisioned–or even a denial. Have you, a friend or a loved one been injured on the job? Whether you’re merely seeking answers about your rights or believe a lawsuit may be necessary, be sure to seek counsel with attorneys trained and experienced in workers’ compensation. Here’s some resources:

Workers compensation basics

Injury on the job

Filing a claim

Is workers’ compensation in Illinois a subject that interests you? If you live and work in Illinois, and if you have been injured on your job or become ill due to the nature of your job, workers’ compensation in Illinois probably holds great interest for you. You or a friend or loved one may be in a dispute with their employer regarding workers’ compensation benefits, right now.

If this is the case, remember what workers’ compensation is. Workers’ compensation is a kind of business insurance that is provided by your employer that gives you and/or your family benefits in the form of income, medical coverage and rehabilitation in the event that you suffer injury, illness or death as a result of, or in the course of, your job. This is true no matter who is at fault for your injury or illness.

If you were to lose your life on your job, these financial benefits can be given to your surviving spouse and/or children or dependents. These benefits come as a matter of “right” to you or your dependents or survivors. Your employer is not allowed to resort to any legal defense. In return for this, you cannot sue your employer, nor can your spouse and/or children or dependents.

Workers’ compensation laws came about so you would not have to prove that your injuries or illness was the “fault” of your employer. They were also established to reduce the need for litigation. Workers’ compensation laws were first passed in Maryland in 1902. The first federal workers’ compensation law came in 1906. By 1949, every state had passed some form of workers’ compensation law.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) ensures your safety and health on the job at the national level. State laws that vary from state to state complement the national regulations of OSHA.

This is not true regarding workers’ compensation. Each state has its own workers’ compensation laws because there in no national agency to administer workers’ compensation.

The Illinois Department of Labor administers the laws regarding employment and labor in the state. The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission operates the state court system for workers’ compensation cases.

Illinois regards workers’ compensation as a no-fault system of benefits paid by employers to workers who experience job-related injuries or diseases. Workers’ compensation in Illinois is mandatory. Employers are required to provide workers’ compensation insurance. No waivers are permitted, but in some instances employers with two or less employees do not have to provide workers’ compensation coverage.

The first workers compensation act in Illinois was passed in 1912. Since that initial act was passed, workers’ compensation laws have been reformed and amended several times. The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act was lasted amended in on August 21, 2007. Illinois also refers to workers’ compensation as ‘work comp’ and ‘on-the-job injuries’.

Again, it is important for you to keep in mind that workers’ compensation, with a few exceptions, is required of your employer. Your employer has the option to purchase workers’ compensation coverage from a licensed insurance company, be self-insured or be a part of group self-insurers who have pooled their liabilities.

There are good workers’ compensation benefits in Illinois. These benefits include:

• Choice of physician – You are allowed to choose the first two doctors that you want to treat you. If you choose a third physician without your employer’s approval, your employer is not required to pay for those services.
• Medical benefits – Your employer is required to pay for all medical care that is reasonably necessary to cure or relieve you from the effects of your injury.
• Temporary total disability (TTD) benefits – These are benefits that are paid during the period in which you are either temporarily unable to return to work or you have been released by your doctor to do light-duty work but your employer is unable to accommodate you. The payment amount is based on a percentage of your average weekly wage. This is paid until you have returned to work or finished healing. There are caps on these temporary total disability benefits.
• Temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits – These are benefits that are paid during the period in which you are healing and are working light duty, on a part-time or full-time basis and earning less than during your pre-injury job. Again, the amount is based on a percentage.
• Vocational rehabilitation/maintenance benefits – These benefits include treatment, instruction and training necessary for your physical, mental and vocational rehabilitation when you cannot return to you pre-injury job.
• Permanent Partial Disability (PPD) benefits – These are benefits that are paid if you experience some permanent physical loss. The amount is based on a percentage with caps.
• Permanent Total Disability (PTD) benefits – These are benefits paid to you if you experience the loss of certain body parts, or you are permanently unable to do any kind of work for which there is a reasonably stable employment market. Amounts are again based on percentage with caps.
• Death/Survivors’ benefits – These benefits are payable in the event of your death on the job to your surviving spouse and/or children or dependents. The amount is based on a percentage of your wages. There is also a burial benefit.
• Limited attorney fees – Attorney fees are usually 20% of your settlement.

If you have a dispute with your employer over workers’ compensation benefits because of an injury or illness, your first step is to have your case tried by an arbitrator. The decision of the arbitrator can be reviewed by a panel of three commissioners from the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission. Additional appeals can allow a workers’ compensation claim to go all the way to the Illinois Supreme Court. However, the vast majority of claims are not appealed after being reviewed by the commissioners.

Once again, you or a friend or loved one may be currently in a dispute regarding workers’ compensation benefits. You will probably need the help of a legal professional to settle this dispute because of the legal process involved.

The Illinois workers’ compensation attorney that you choose could make all the difference in the world.