Five Things You Need to Know: 5/3, Thursday Edition

Sarasota, FL (WorkersCompensation.com) -

1) Work Comp Rate Decrease Approved in FL for the Second Time in 2018

“Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier announced Tuesday he approved an average 1.8 percent decrease in 2018 rates as a result of the federal tax overhaul approved in December. The reduction will take effect for new and renewal workers’ compensation policies effective June 1,” according to a News Service of Florida article in the Sun Sentinel. Per State Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis in the article, the decrease can potentially save Florida employers up to almost $80 million for 2018. It is also important to note: “…While there have been two rate reductions approved for 2018, Altmaier approved a rate increase in the wake of a Florida Supreme Court ruling in 2016 that said long-standing caps on plaintiffs’ attorney fees were unconstitutional. Following that ruling, Altmaier approved a 14.5 percent hike, effective December 2016,” per the article.

2) CA: Petition for Disneyland to Raise Minimum Wage Receives Approx. 20,000 Signatures

“Unions representing Disneyland employees have announced they’ve collected enough signatures to move forward with a plan to make the Walt Disney Co. pay workers better wages,” writes Michelle Gant of Fox News. “The 11 unions, which formed a coalition to fight the matter, say they plan to present a petition with around 20,000 signatures to the city clerk’s office in Anaheim, CA Tuesday, in order to get a 'living wage' measure on the local ballot, the Los Angeles Times reports,” writes Gant. Once verification of the signatures occurs, November ballots in the state will include the measure. About 13,000 signatures were required. “…If passed, Disney and other large employers that accept city subsidies would have to adopt a minimum wage of $15 an hour by Jan. 1, 2019, and increase workers' salaries by $1 an hour every year through 2022,” according to the article.

3) CA Looks to Protect Hotel Workers with Panic Buttons

“The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors has approved an Ordinance requiring hotel and motel operators in Sacramento County to provide employees with a panic button or notification device that can be used to call for help when an employee reasonably believes sexual harassment activity is occurring in the employee’s presence,” according to the CA Workplace Blog Law Blog, featured in Lexology. The article was written by Kaitlyn Lavaroni and Cary Palmer of Jackson Lewis PC. “The panic button is designed to be used in emergency situations to summon hotel security or other appropriate staff to the employee’s location.” AB 1761, introduced this year, would also require the panic button in all CA hotels, and would “…require a hotel employer to compile and maintain a list of guests who have been alleged to have committed an act of violence or harassment against employees at that hotel, and to decline service to any person on that list for a period of three years.” The Bill was passed in the state’s Labor and Employment Committee this week, and was “…Re-referred to Com. on JUD (Committee on Judiciary),” according to CA’s Legislative Information website. 

4) FL: Retirement Community Employee Alleges Proper Wages Weren’t Paid in Lawsuit

Orlando resident Cynthia Gale has filed a lawsuit against Presbyterian Retirement Communities Inc., doing business as Westminster Towers, alleging employees at the company weren’t paid correct wages and benefits, writes Jenie Mallari-Torres of the Florida Record. “…According to the complaint, Gale began working at Westminster Towers in February 2014 as a staffing coordinator, often working more than 40 hours per week. The suit says Gale has suffered a loss of earnings, for routinely working additional hours in excess of 40 per week, but has not been compensated at the statutory rate of one and a half her regular rate of pay as required the FLSA,” per the article. Gale requests trial-by-jury, overtime wages, damages, court costs, and any other relief.  

5) A Reminder About the WorkersCompensation.com News Center: Two New Features

WorkersCompensation.com recently introduced two new options for readers, the first: National Workers' Comp Event Calendar. “…This would provide others tasked with scheduling events a single, one stop resource to make sure nothing conflicts with the dates they would like to use. And of course, it could persuade them to use alternate dates if important activities already occupy that spot,” President and CEO Bob Wilson wrote in a recent Cluttered Desk blog post. In a few weeks, private accounts can be enabled so organizers can add/edit events, while we can reach out to readers to spread the word. A contact form will also be created for organizations who'd like to post their events as well for free. ALSO: On the News Center home page, there is an option on the upper right hand side of the page to “Submit a News Tip,” for readers interested in contacting us with leads.

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