Employers be warned: unpleasant breath and scone-envy are no longer the biggest concerns with workers’ coffee breaks. In a recent decision, U.S. Bank v. Diane Pohrman, the Oregon Court of Appeals affirmed the Board’s finding that a claim was compensable where, during a break from work, the claimant slipped and fell in the public lobby of her…

The U.S. Department of Labor Benefits Review Board (Board) in Nathaniel E. Raiford v. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc.[1] declared an employer’s decision to change a shift that gave rise to claimant’s stroke and altered mental state was a legitimate personnel action, and denied disability and medical benefits under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act…

In its recent decision Birrueta v. Department of Labor and Industries,[1] the Washington Court of Appeals weighed in on one of the Washington State Industrial Insurance Act’s most puzzlingly worded statutes, RCW 51.32.240, which addresses erroneous benefits: (a) Whenever any payment of benefits under this title is made because of clerical error, mistake of identity,…

On April 16, 2015, the Washington Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals decision in The Boeing Co. and Patricia Doss v. Dep’t of Labor and Indus., and concluded employers must pay for post-pension treatment in cases where the Department granted Second Injury Fund Relief.[1] While pensioned workers are generally not entitled to medical benefits,…

Although it may seem like a misnomer, independent contractors may still fall under the coverage of the Washington Industrial Insurance Act (“Act”). As many employers well know, the line between an exempt independent contractor and a covered worker can be elusive. While two recent Washington Court of Appeals decisions did not solve this issue for…