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robintek

Aug 09
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FUNGI CAN BE DANGEROUS TO YOUR WORKERS’ HEALTH

By Risk Management Bulletin

Studies have shown that most Americans spend more than 90% of their time indoors – an environment that’s significantly more contaminated than the outdoors. Maintaining a pollutant-free indoor environment can help raise productivity, reduce potential legal liability for building owners and managers, and improve the health of workers.

Fungi, a biological contaminant that flourishes in moist environments, can trigger a wide variety of health problems and complaints. The best way to curb fungal growth is to monitor and avoid water leaks, moisture migration through masonry walls, and condensation. (For example, high humidity levels might be due to running a chilled water air conditioning system at too high a temperature).

To help manage the moisture and water infiltration that breeds fungi, experts recommend following these rules of thumb:

  1. If the fungal growth is on a hard surface, scrape it off as soon as possible.
  2. If the fungus is growing on a porous surface – such as plasterboard, carpet, or ceilings –have it removed carefully to prevent the uncontrolled release of fungal spores. (Removing or disturbing materials contaminated by fungi can increase airborne fungal levels by a factor of 10).
  3. Dispose of fungal-contaminated materials under controlled conditions to prevent contamination of clean areas and protect building occupants and the area from elevated exposures.
  4. Dry any porous materials where water infiltration has occurred within 24 hours.

Increasing concern by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and state health departments about exposure to fungal spores reinforces the need for keeping the spread of fungi under control.

We’d be happy to offer our advice on helping keep your building fungus-free – and its occupants healthy.

Aug 09
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NIOSH OFFERS TIPS ON PREVENTING WORK-RELATED HIGHWAY CRASHES

By Risk Management Bulletin

Employment-related accidents behind the wheel are the leading cause of death from traumatic injuries in the workplace, killing some 2,200 people a year and accounting for 22% of job-related fatalities. Deaths and injuries from these accidents increase costs and reduce productivity for employers – while bringing pain and suffering to family, friends, and coworkers.

Preventing work-related roadway crashes poses a significant risk management challenge. The roadway is a unique work environment. Compared with other work settings, employers have little ability to control conditions and exert direct supervision over their drivers. The volume of traffic and road construction continue to increase, while workers feel pressured to drive faster for longer periods, and often use mobile electronic devices that distract them behind the wheel.

To help reduce this risk, for both long-distance truck drivers and employees who occasionally use personal vehicles for company business, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommends that employers follow these precautions:

  • Require drivers and passengers to use seat belts.
  • Ensure that employees who drive on the job have valid licenses.
  • Incorporate road fatigue management in safety programs.
  • Provide fleet vehicles with top quality crash protection.
  • Make sure employees receive training to operate specialized vehicles.
  • Offer periodic vision screening and physicals for employees whose primary job is driving.
  • Avoid requiring workers to drive irregular or extended hours.
  • Prohibit cell phone use and other distracting activities such as eating, drinking, or adjusting non-critical vehicle controls while driving.
  • Set schedules that allow drivers to obey speed limits.
  • Follow state laws on graduated driver’s licensing and child labor.

For more information about how to prevent work-related driving deaths and injuries, just give one of our Risk Management experts a call at any time.

Aug 09
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OSHA OFFERS TEEN WORKERS ONLINE SAFETY TOOLS

By Risk Management Bulletin

If you have teenagers, you’re well aware that they’re all too prone to take risks. Four in five U.S. teen (80%) have part-time jobs. Of these, more than half (52%) are in the retail sector, which includes restaurants and fast food establishments.

To help keep themselves safe on the job – and thus reduce their employers’ risk-management exposure – teenagers who work in restaurants and agriculture can use interactive web-based training tools provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

According to OSHA, educating and training young people about safety in the workplace can help prevent injuries today and lead to a healthy workforce in the future. These resources provide practical information to protect young workers from hazards in industries where many of them are likely to work during high school and college.

The Teen Worker Safety in Restaurants eTool highlights the most common hazards in these workplaces and offers safety and health suggestions, safety posters, and electronic links to educate young workers about job safety. Areas of focus include serving, clean-up, drive-thru, cooking, food preparation, delivery, and worker rights and child labor laws.

The Youth in Agriculture eTool presents case studies that describe common hazards and offers safety solutions for teenage workers in such areas as farm equipment operations, confined spaces, and prevention of c injuries g from falls, electrocutions, and chemical exposures.

The OSHA Teen Workers page offers educational resources such as fact sheets on workplace rights and responsibilities, hazards on the job, ways to prevent injuries, work hours, job restrictions, etc.

Letting teenage workers know about these resources can benefit them – and their employers. What’s not to like?

Aug 09
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SEVEN STEPS TO A SAFER WORKPLACE

By Risk Management Bulletin

If you think of your business as a safe place, think again. Security experts recommend taking these precautions:

  1. Parking Lot Security/Lighting. Because crime flourishes in the dark, implement a “buddy system” to ferry workers to and from cars. Limit parking lot access and keep the lots – and your entire facility, inside and out – well lit during non-business hours. Entrance Area Safety. Keep a receptionist on duty at all times. Provide a registration system for visitors (even if they’re dressed as service personnel). Have locks on doors and windows. Use badge or other photo ID systems, with frequent checks of entry codes. Never let employees prop open an outside door with a chair so it doesn’t lock behind them during a break.
  2. Suspicious Activity. Urge employees to report anything suspicious around the building. Instead of allowing employees to open suspicious packages, give them to the authorities for search and disposal.
  3. Information Safety. Because it’s increasingly easy for hackers or disgruntled employees to steal your organization’s vital data, use updated security software with regular backups. Shred paper documents containing critical information when they’re no longer needed.
  4. Equipment Security. Inventory critical equipment, hardware, and software. This is especially important as electronic devices keep shrinking in size. An inventory will also make it easier for your insurance company to process any claims if anything “goes missing.”
  5. Employee Valuables. Provide secure places, such as lockable drawers and closets, for employee property. Valuables, especially those that reveal personal information, should be locked away during meetings or breaks.
  6. Safety Team. Have a group of managers and employees meet regularly with a set agenda.

To learn more, feel free to get in touch with our Risk Management specialists at any time.

Aug 09
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NEW WELLNESS PROGRAM RULES CREATE HURDLES FOR EMPLOYERS

By Employment Resources

A recent expansion of nondiscrimination rules for workplace wellness programs could curb the ability of businesses to use incentives for improving employee health care outcomes.

Last May, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) set final regulations under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act that broaden protections for employees who are medically or otherwise incapable of completing activity-based or outcome-based objectives to earn rewards or avoid penalties under worker wellness programs.

Under the new rules, beginning in 2014, employers must provide a “reasonable alternative standard” through which workers can still earn an activity-based wellness incentive if a medical condition prevents them from completing the activity. Employers will also be required to provide reasonable alternative standards for employees who can’t meet a health outcome plan target— such as a percentage reduction or benchmark in their body mass index, cholesterol, or weight.

There’s no way to tell how many employees will use these broader alternative standards, and/or if the reasonable alternative programs can work as well as the initial programs in terms of health outcomes. The additional discrimination protections tied to outcome-based incentives could make it harder for employers to use rewards as a way to drive engagement in health management, or gauge how well the programs are working if significant percentages of employees use alternative methods to obtain these rewards.

Says one employment law expert, “It’s very difficult to design a reward for the outcome that you want your employees to achieve if anyone who doesn’t meet that standard, regardless of whether they’re capable of doing so, is given an alternative means of getting that reward.”

To learn more about implementing the new HHS regulations in your workplace, just give us a call.

Aug 09
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HEALTH CARE EDUCATION CAN HELP KEEP YOU KEEP EMPLOYEES

By Employment Resources

Businesses need to inform their workers about health plan changes under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. That’s the word from Paul S. Amos, II, president of Aflac, Inc., a major health insurance provider.

Says Amos, “If you believe in your employees and want to retain them so can grow your company and corporate culture, it makes sense to educate them about how the act will affect their health benefits and premiums.” He noted that the Aflac 2013 WorkForces Report, a nationwide survey of 1,900 employers and 5,300 employees, found that nearly four in five employees (79%) believe that effective communication about health plans would make them less likely to leave their current positions.

Unfortunately, most businesses have not yet educated their workers about PPACA. According to the survey, nearly three quarters of employees (72%) were unaware of consumer-driven health care plans, while 76% were not knowledgeable about health care exchanges. What’s more, only one in four employers (26%) said they fully understand the health care reform law.

Amos offers businesses this advice: “The reality is your workers need you and, if you don’t educate them [about changes in health benefits plans], they’re going to begin to think about going elsewhere. Rather than picking themselves up by their bootstraps and saying, ‘I’m going to learn it myself,’ they’ll just go to another employer who will keep them informed.”

As Employee Benefits specialists, we’d be happy to explain the PPACA health care plan reforms to your workers and help them make decisions about their benefits.

Aug 09
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IS THERE AN ASO IN YOUR COMPANY’S BENEFIT FUTURE?

By Employment Resources

More and more employers are using Administrative Services Only (ASO) plans for such health benefit as Dental Insurance.

Under an ASO, the employer self-insures the benefits it pays, but uses an outside firm (such as an insurance company or third-party administrator) to process claims and pay providers, based on a fee per person. This approach reduces costs significantly by eliminating the risk charge and premium taxes associated with fully insured benefits.

What’s more, an ASO offers more flexibility than conventional dental plans; you can customize your plan, because it’s a self-insured contract outside the jurisdiction of state insurance regulators.

The downside: unlike Health insurance, which has lifetime maximums, dental plans are limited to an annual maximum payment, usually $1,000. In the first few years that a small business or group offers Dental insurance, claim payments are usually high before they settle down to the point that few group members will hit the maximum. This is the time to look into an ASO.

Many insurance companies will write ASOs only for businesses with 100 or more workers However, our agency’s Employee Benefits specialist shave developed relationships with carriers that will offer coverage for ASOs for groups as small as 25 members. If you have at least 25 employees in your Dental insurance plan and have been insured for three to five years, you should be a perfect candidate for an ASO.

For more information, please feel free to get in touch with us at any time.

Aug 09
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DOMA RULING COMPLICATES BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION

By Employment Resources

The recent Supreme Court decision (Windsor v. U.S.) legalizing more than 1,000 federal spousal benefits for same-sex couples will have a major impact on the administration of pensions and health plans for employers throughout the nation.

For example, the high court’s ruling overturning the benefits provisions of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) means that surviving same-sex spouses under a defined-benefits retirement plan will now be entitled to receive survivor annuity payments. The decision’s expanded definition of “marriage” will require companies that offer self-funded health benefits for married spouses to extend this coverage to same-sex couples.

The sheer number of benefits under DOMA, together with variations among laws and regulations on the state level – especially in the 38 states that don’t recognize same-sex marriage – will make implementing the Windsor decision a challenge for businesses that offer spousal benefits to their workers.

To deal with this changing situation, we’d recommend that you:

  1. Have your attorney(s) review the benefits that you’re providing to employees’ spouses for compliance with the new requirements; ask for guidance from federal and state regulators.
  2. Implement the administration of new same-sex benefits (for example, amending your payroll procedures to update the federal income tax treatment of qualified benefits programs for spouses) as soon as possible – certainly by the end of this calendar year or the plan year.
  3. Provide complete documentation of the revisions to your plans.
  4. Before you communicate these changes to your employees, do your homework and be prepared to answer their questions.

As Employee Benefits specialists, we can help guide you through this process – just give us a call.

Aug 09
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POLLUTION LIABILITY: THE CPL SOLUTION

By Construction Insurance Bulletin

Air, water, and soil pollution pose a serious financial threat for contractors. One small misstep can require thousands – or even millions – to clean up.

Consider these scenarios:

  • Remodeling a school kicks up dust.
  • Using construction materials generates fumes that pollute the air.
  • Hitting an underground storage tank leads to the release of liquid pollutants.
  • Spraying to remove a bees’ nest from a work area releases insecticides.
  • Tying into a sewer line improperly causes sewage to back up.

Your Comprehensive General Liability (CGL) policy provides severely limited protection against these types of pollution claims. Not to worry! Contractors Pollution Liability (CPL) insurance can protect you. (These policies are sometimes written together with Contractors Professional Liability coverage – see the previous article).

CPL covers Bodily Injury and Property Damage – whether by settlement or verdict – as well as the expenses of investigating, defending, or settling claims. Most policies also cover the costs of removing or neutralizing pollutants and restoring the damaged property.

CPL policies usually include a “hammer clause” that works like this: if the contractor chooses to fight a claim, rather than settle it, the insurance company’s liability for damages and claims expenses is limited to what it would have had to pay if the contractor had approved the settlement. As you can imagine, most contractors choose to settle when their insurer recommends this approach.

As with Contractors Professional Liability coverage, CPL policies are usually written on a case-by-case basis, with the size of the policy depending on your situation (for example coverage might be worldwide or limited to the U.S). Our agency would be happy to work with you, and the quality insurance companies we represent, to tailor a program suited for your needs. Feel free to get in touch with us at any time.

Aug 09
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DEMAND FOR CONTRACTORS PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY RISES

By Construction Insurance Bulletin

New approaches to building projects, as well as new techniques, are leading to increased demand for Professional Liability insurance for contractors.

A few years ago, people would shake their heads at the idea of this coverage, asking how contractors could be held liable for professional risk when they don’t provide professional services.

However, there has been a blurring of the once-sharp lines between contractors and architects and designers, as more and more contractors are being drawn into the design process. Under the traditional “design-bid-build” method, a project would be designed, bids put out, and the project built. However, the spread of the “design-build” concept – which decreases the amount of time, and the cost, of the project involved – has meant that medium sized and large contractors often take the design responsibilities in-house, and even subcontract them to design firms.

These contractors’ biggest exposure is for claims filed against them for project delays and cost overruns. However, traditional General Liability insurance offers coverage only for Bodily Injury and Property Damage, and does not cover financial or economic losses. Contractors Professional Liability insurance fills this gap.

Because these policies are relatively recent, only a limited number of insurance companies offer them. These companies haven’t paid enough claims for underwriters to establish the underwriting history and set standard rates – which means that policies are usually negotiated on a case-by-case basis. The amount of insurance can be up to $50 million; if a contractor needs more capacity, coverage can be added through excess layers.

If your firm is (or might be) taking on project design responsibilities, a comprehensive Contractors Professional Liability policy can help protect your pocketbook – and provide peace of mind. To learn more, just give us a call.

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