In the case, Lenhart v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, the claimant worked for USF Holland as a truck driver and dockworker. He injured his back in a workplace accident, and filed for workers’ compensation benefits.

At an arbitration hearing, the claimant argued that he was permanently and totally disabled. The employer stipulated that the claimant was not able to perform his previous duties, but argued that he was not totally and permanently disabled. The claimant engaged in vocational rehabilitation, and there was evidence that he was still employable, but at a diminished earning capacity.

The arbitrator found the claimant permanently and totally disabled, but after the employer appealed, the Commission found that he was not totally disabled, but entitled to permanent partial disability benefits representing a 75 percent loss of abilities.

The Appellate Court overturned the Commission’s decision and ruled that the Commission should have decided whether the claimant’s benefits should be calculated based on a wage differential rather than a percentage of the person as a whole.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago workers’ compensation lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

In 2011, a series of changes were made to Illinois’ workers’ compensation program. In mid-June, the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission released a report that showed that since the changes were made, there has been a 19 percent decrease in benefit payments to injured workers, the largest such decrease in the country. The report also revealed that from 2010 to 2012, the average medical payment per workers’ compensation case decreased 16 percent, moving Illinois from the state with the highest such cost to near the median.

Illinois state Rep. Jay Hoffman said that the report shows that the 2011 changes had the desired effect, and further changes are unnecessary. Gov. Rauner is seeking stricter standards that injured workers must follow to prove their injury happened in the workplace. He also seeks changes to the rules for workers traveling to their place of employment, and lower reimbursement rates for medical providers. Democrats, who control both houses of the state legislature, have resisted the changes, saying that they would hurt middle-class workers.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago workers’ compensation lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

In fact, even as Governor Pat Quinn says that such costs have dropped by 19.3 percent, some construction firms have actually seen their premiums go up.

Michael Latz, the chairman of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, said that the result is that insurance companies are seeing increased profits.

In July, the governor’s office claimed that employers in Illinois could see an overall drop of up to $143 million in the cost of premiums in 2015, resulting in a total reduction of more than $450 million since the reforms took effect in 2011.

The 2011 reforms implemented a 30 percent reduction in the medical fee schedule for workers’ compensation claims in an attempt to reduce costs.

However, many firms in the construction industry, where worker injury is a constant danger, say their rates have stayed the same.

According to the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, which tracks data on workers’ compensation insurance premiums nationwide, Illinois is still the fourth most expensive state for premiums, even after reforms.

Bob Briskman is a workers compensation lawyer in Chicago and work injury attorney with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

The worker was operating a train exiting a tunnel when he observed two young men running across the tracks. The operator was not able to stop the train, and he heard a thumping noise that caused him to believe that the train had run over and killed one of the men. However, upon exiting the train, the operator observed the two men running away.

The train operator sought psychological counseling for sleep disturbance, anxiety, flashbacks, fatigue and headaches. He also sought workers’ compensation benefits for a psychiatric disability.

The arbitrator in the case denied the worker benefits, finding that he was not exposed to a severe and sudden emotional shock. The arbitrator’s decision was confirmed by the commission.

The commission held that the operator had testified credibly as to the events. However, because the injured man was able to stand up under his own power, jump a fence and run away, the operator did not face the emotional shock of witnessing the aftermath of what he believed had happened.

In addition, the commission agreed with the arbitrator’s finding that the alleged mental disorder did not arise from a situation beyond the usual emotional tension and strain that workers must experience, particularly those who operate motorized vehicles.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago workers compensation attorney and work injury lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

The case involved an altercation with a coworker, and it hinged on whether or not the worker was the aggressor in that struggle. The plaintiff sought benefits after she was injured in a workplace scuffle. Allegedly, the woman placed a dish in the wrong sink, and a coworker responded by spraying her with a hose. She also claimed that on another occasion, the coworker tried to put her into the sink.

In the altercation that followed, the woman struck her coworker in the groin area, and she claimed that her coworker forcefully pulled on her arm, causing the injury. A witness corroborated that the woman hit her coworker in the groin, but there was uncertainty as to whether the action was purposeful or accidental. The employer sought to have the claim denied based on rules that preclude a worker from being awarded workers’ compensation benefits if he or she is the aggressor in a fight that causes injuries to the worker.

The commission determined that the woman’s conduct in striking her coworker did not trigger the aggressor defense for the employer, regardless of whether or not the action was accidental. The commission therefore granted the woman’s request for benefits.

Bob Briskman is a Chicago work injury lawyer and workers compensation attorney with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To read more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

The case arose from an injury the bicycle messenger received when he was struck from behind by a vehicle while making a delivery. Evidence submitted in the case indicated that the messenger and the courier service had signed an independent contractor agreement, and that the messenger had also signed an agreement with the National Independent Contractor Association. The agreements provided that the messenger would be paid by the association after deductions were made for general liability insurance and bicycle insurance, as well as for leasing fees for a radio and other equipment.

Despite the language of the agreements, the commission affirmed the decision of the arbitrator, finding that the messenger was an employee of the courier service. The commission relied on a previous decision involving the same courier service and a nearly identical independent contractor agreement. In finding that the messenger was not an independent contractor in the previous decision, the current commission noted that the courier service still exercised control over the messenger’s work schedule and other work details. The commission also considered the fact that the messenger’s work was the lifeblood of the courier service business and that the work did not involve particular skills.

In both decisions, the commission found that an employer-employee relationship existed between the messenger and the courier service.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago workers compensation attorney and work injury lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

Ahmed Ghosien, doing business as Ghosien European Auto Werks, entered a guilty plea to a Class 4 felony. According to the state, Ghosien refused to comply with the legal requirement to obtain workers’ compensation insurance after many opportunities and aggressive enforcement action against him.

The penalty for failure to obtain insurance was increased from a misdemeanor to a Class 4 felony in 2005, and the current case is the first felony conviction secured for the offense in Illinois.

Michael P. Latz, chairman of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, said that employers who fail to obtain the insurance put workers at risk and compete unfairly against companies that follow the law. He said that such employers ultimately shift their business costs to Illinois taxpayers.

According to the IWCC, Ghosien operates an auto repair shop in Hometown, Illinois, and failed to obtain workers’ compensation insurance for the mechanics who work there. In 2010, he was fined and briefly obtained insurance. However, Ghosien did not pay all of the fine or the insurance premium, and a criminal indictment was issued.

Paul Greenberg is a work injury lawyer and workers compensation attorney in Chicago with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To read more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

A security therapy aide employed by the Department of Human Services testified that she was writing notes while sitting on a plastic chair when the chair slipped out from under her and she fell, injuring her back, head and right hand. The worker testified that the floors had been waxed the previous night, and though the chair was not on wheels, it slipped on the floor.

The workers’ compensation arbitrator found that the accident arose out of and in the course of the worker’s employment and awarded permanent partial disability benefits and medical expenses. However, the commission reversed the arbitrator’s decision, finding that the aide was not eligible for benefits.

The commission found that the worker was not exposed to increased risk of falling merely by being seated in the chair and that she did not show how her injuries arose out of her employment. The commission found that the aide did not show a causal relationship between the floors being waxed the previous night and her falling out of her chair.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago workers compensation attorney and work injury lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

In the case, Wade v. General Dynamics, an operator was required to examine parts in one area of her workplace and then take them to another area that contained a “reverse torque” machine. The worker stepped on her shoelace when she turned to leave one area, losing her balance and holding on to a table to keep from falling. She experienced pain in her buttocks and lower back and received a diagnosis of a sprain in her spine, hip spasms and pain in her knee. The worker underwent surgery.

The workers’ compensation arbitrator found that the worker lacked credibility. The IWCC, while finding that the worker was credible, denied her workers’ compensation benefits. The commission found that the employee was not required to work at a pace that would have made it more likely that she would step on her shoelace. Because she was not at greater risk of stepping on her shoelace than the general public, the injury was found not to have arisen out of and in the course of her employment.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago workers compensation attorney and work injury lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

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