Martinez, CA – The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office recently charged Maria Mendoza with numerous counts of insurance fraud and investigators with the DA’s Office arrested her this past Friday. The investigation originated after reports of a staged slip and fall in October 2017 at an Olive Garden restaurant located in Pittsburg. The suspect’s… [Read more]
Work Force & Human Resource News
CA State Fund Launches AB 5 Resource Center for California Businesses
Pleasanton, CA — California Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5) takes effect for workers’ compensation on July 1, 2020. To prepare California employers for the upcoming changes to the Labor Code and help them determine how employment status impacts their workers’ compensation policy, State Compensation Insurance Fund (State Fund) has created an online Employment Status Resource… [Read more]
Texas Mutual Reports Man Convicted of Workers’ Compensation Fraud
Austin, TX – Texas Mutual Insurance Company recently reported that a Travis County district court sentenced Ever Miranda of Horizon City, Texas, on workers’ compensation fraud-related charges. Miranda reported an on-the-job injury while working as a pipelayer for Michael Mowles, Don Russell, Octavio Renteria, doing business as El Paso Underground in El Paso, Texas, and… [Read more]
ICW Group Announces 2020 Workers’ Compensation Safety Webinar Series
San Diego, CA – To educate workers’ compensation policyholders on best practices that keep workers safe, ICW Group Insurance Companies recently announced its 2020 Safety Webinar Series covering a variety of topics including, slips, trips and falls, food worker safety and safety management. This free series, which includes bi-monthly, 60-minute webinars over the course of… [Read more]
Ohio Business Owners Owe BWC More than $800K Following Fraud-Related Convictions
Columbus, OH – Three Northeast Ohio men owe the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) more than $800,000 after investigators discovered they were operating their businesses without workers’ compensation coverage. “These business owners learned the hard way they cannot operate their business without workers’ compensation coverage, and now they owe us hundreds of thousands of… [Read more]
NJ Governor Murphy Signs Legislative Package to Combat Worker Misclassification
Trenton, NJ – Governor Phil Murphy recently signed a legislative package combatting worker misclassification and exploitation. The bills will crack down on employee misclassification in businesses by allowing stop-work orders against employers violating state wage, benefit, and tax law; providing assessment of penalties for violations in connection with misclassification of employees; and requiring employers to… [Read more]
New NSC Report Shares How Existing Technologies Can Save Employee Lives
Itasca, IL – The National Safety Council recently released its first Work to Zero research report, Safety Technology 2020: Mapping Technology Solutions for Reducing Serious Injuries and Fatalities in the Workplace. With workplace deaths in the U.S. on the rise, this new report indicates employers may not be doing enough to protect their workforce. “The… [Read more]
CA Cook Arrested for Workers’ Compensation Fraud
San Diego, CA – California Department of Insurance detectives recently arrested Jonathan Quezada on multiple felony counts of insurance fraud and workers’ compensation insurance fraud after he allegedly falsified an insurance claim to receive unearned workers’ compensation benefits costing Californians over $22,000. “The workers’ compensation system is intended to help honest workers who get hurt… [Read more]
AL Woman Convicted for Cashing Dead Mother’s Workers’ Comp Benefits
Columbus, OH – The Ohio BWC recently announced that an Alabama woman was convicted of workers’ compensation fraud last month after investigators discovered she was cashing her deceased mother’s workers’ comp checks more than a year after her mother died. Patricia Barney pleaded guilty Jan. 23 in a Franklin County courtroom to a fifth-degree felony… [Read more]
Ohio Controlling Board Approves BWC Safety Grant Increase
Columbus, OH – The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) recently secured approval to spend $70 million in fiscal years 2020 and 2021 on grants for Ohio employers to improve workplace safety. The approval by the Ohio Controlling Board increases BWC’s safety grants funding to $35 million a year, a 75% increase over the agency’s… [Read more]