The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, (published by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine) has released finding from a new nationwide study on the relationship between health and workplace productivity. Dr. Judith Ricci analyzed data on nearly 29,000 American workers, finding that 38% experienced “low levels of energy, poor sleep, or a feeling of fatigue” during the past two weeks. With adjustments for other factors, fatigue was more common in women than men; more common in workers under than 50 years old; and more common among white workers compared with African Americans. Workers with relatively well-paid jobs involving decision-making responsibilities also reported higher rates of fatigue.

The study looked at the effects of fatigue on health-related lost productive time. This included not only absenteeism but also “presenteeism”: days when an employee came to work but performed at lower capacity due to fatigue. Fatigue impacted work performance primarily by interfering with concentration and increasing the time for accomplishing tasks.

The rate of lost productivity for all health-related reasons was also much higher for workers with fatigue (66%) as opposed to for workers without fatigue (26%). Loss in productive time averaged 5.6 hours per week for workers suffering from fatigue, compared to 3.3 hours for more rested counterparts. Among U.S. employers, fatigue was responsible for estimated costs of more than $136 billion per year in health-related lost productivity – almost twice the figure over that of workers without fatigue. Eighty-four percent of those costs came from lower performance at work rather than days missed.

Fatigue can be a health symptom of broader conditions like depression or anxiety. A large part of costs to employers are related to a wide range of other physical and mental health problems that may occur when fatigue is also present.

Up until now, most studies have linked fatigue to absences from work. This most recent study is the first to focus specifically on rates of fatigue among U.S. workers, and how they correspond to worker productivity.

In some cases, fatigue is actually a symptom of a work injury or illness. If you believe this could be the case, and need professional help collecting workers compensation benefits from the Department of Labor and Industries, contact an Emery Reddy attorney to represent your claim. Our team of L&I Lawyers and Seattle Workers Compensation Attorneys also help workers appeal denied L&I claim, provide consultation to those who’ve been required to undergo an independent medical examination, and those experiencing any trouble with their L&I claim. Contact an experienced employment attorney today for help with your workplace legal issues.

Yet some forms of stress are less “institutionalized,” and therefore easier to manage on an individual level. Small changes in daily habits and activities can bring about substantial improvements in these kinds of workplace stress levels.

Lowering stress in the workplace can enhance both physical and emotional health, while also improving job performance and personal career satisfaction.

In our recent article on managing workplace stress, we discussed Tip # 1 (Recognizing signs of excessive job-related stress) and Tip # 2 (Taking care of yourself). Hare are some additional steps workers can take to lower their personal stress in the workplace:

Tip 3: Reduce job stress by prioritizing and organizing

When workplace stress threatens to overwhelm your job, take some basic steps to regain control over the situation.

Time management

• Balance your schedule. Analyze your schedule, responsibilities, and daily tasks. All work with no leisure or recovery time is a recipe for certain burnout. Seek a balance between work and family life, social activities and individual pursuits, daily responsibilities and personal downtime.
• Don’t over-commit yourself. Avoid scheduling back-to-back activities or cramming too much into one day. We often underestimate how long certain tasks and commitments can take. If you find that you have too much on your plate, drop tasks that aren’t completely necessary to the bottom of the list – or eliminate them entirely!
• Try to leave earlier in the morning. Even 10-15 minutes can make the difference between frantically rushing to your desk and having time to ease into your day. Don’t increase your stress levels by running late.
• Plan regular breaks. Make sure to take brief breaks throughout the day to walk around, stretch, or clear your mind.  Try to move away from your desk or work station for lunch. Stepping away – even for a short window – can relax and recharge you, making you more, not less, productive.

Task management tips for reducing job stress

• Prioritize tasks. Make a list of essential tasks, and tackle them in order of importance. Complete the high-priority items first. If you must complete something particularly unpleasant, get it over with early. The remainder of your day will be more pleasant as a result.
• Break projects into smaller pieces. If a big project seems overwhelming, create a step-by-step plan. Rather than attempting to tackled everything at once, focus on one manageable step at a time.
• Delegate responsibility. You don’t have to do it all yourself. If other people can take care of the task, why not ask them? Let go of your desire to control or oversee every step. This will eliminate unnecessary stress in the process.
• Stay open to Compromising. When you ask a co-worker to contribute differently to a task, change a deadline, or alter their behavior at work, be willing to do so yourself. In many cases, if both parties bend a little, you’ll find a productive middle ground that reduces the stress levels for everyone involved.

Tip 4: Reduce job stress by breaking bad habits

As we become better at managing job stress and improving work relationships, we gain more control over our ability to think clearly and act appropriately. This allows us to break habits that add stress to our work lives – and can even change negative thought patterns concerning things that increase stress levels.

Identify self-defeating behaviors

Many of us make job stress worse through negative thoughts and habits. If you can reverse these self-defeating habits, you’ll find other sources of stress (such as manager-imposed stress) easier to handle.

• Resist perfectionism. No project, decision or scenario is ever ideal, so striving for perfection on every front will just add needless stress to your day. When you set unattainable goals for yourself or take on too much, you set yourself up for disappointment. Aim to do a good, solid job; no one can ask for more than that.
• Clean up your act. If you tend to run late, set your clocks a few minutes fast or simply give yourself extra time. If your desk is cluttered, file and throw away the mess; simply knowing where everything saves time and reduces stress. Make to-do lists and cross off items as you accomplish them. Plan your day and stick to the schedule — you’ll feel less overwhelmed.
• Reverse your negative thinking. If you see the downside of every situation, you’ll becomes drained in no time. Try to see positive aspects in your work, avoid co-workers with negative attitudes, and reward yourself for small accomplishments (even when no one else does!)
• Don’t try to control the uncontrollable. Some things in our jobs and simply beyond our control— especially the behavior of others. Rather than fretting over them, focus on the things you can control, such as the manner in which you respond to problems.

Five Ways to Dispel Stress

• Take a few minutes away. When stress at work is building, give yourself a quick break and remove yourself from the stressful situation. Take a quick walk outside if possible, or spend a few minutes breathing deeply or stretching in another room. Physical activity or just finding a quiet place to “regroup” can quickly reduce stress.
• Talk with someone. In some situations, simply sharing your thoughts with someone who is both supportive and empathetic can be a great way to let off steam and diffuse your negative emotions.
• Connect with others at work. Developing friendships and relationships with co-workers can help protect you from the negative effects of stress. Remember to reciprocate by listening to them in turn, and offer support when they need it.
• Find humor in the situation. When used appropriately, humor is an effective – and enjoyable – way to diffuse stress in your job. Try to avoid taking things too seriously if a problem does not warrant it, and lighten the mood by sharing a joke or funny story.

The willful violations arise from the company permitting grain dust — which is ten times more explosive than coal dust — to build up, using compressed air to remove dust without first disengaging ignition sources, jogging (repeatedly starting and stopping) inside bucket elevators to free gears choked by grain, using inappropriate electrical equipment within an explosive working environment, and neglecting to ensure that employees had used fall protection when working from heights.

“The deaths of these six workers could have been prevented had the grain elevator’s operators addressed hazards that are well known in this industry,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “Bartlett Grain’s disregard for the law led to a catastrophic accident and heartbreaking tragedy for the workers who were injured or killed, their families and the agricultural community.”

The serious violations involve a lack of proper preventive maintenance of grain handling equipment; inadequate emergency and job hazard training for employees and contractors; and unsound cleaning practices that failed to prevent grain dust accumulation.

The citations to Bartlett Grain, which is based in Kansas City, Mo., carry $406,000 in proposed fines.

“OSHA standards save lives, but only if companies comply with them,” said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. “Bartlett Grain has shown what happens when basic safety standards are ignored, and this agency simply will not tolerate needless loss of life.”

A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

During the last 30 years, there have been over 500 explosions in grain facilities across the United States, killing more than 180 people and injuring over 675. Grain dust is the main source of fuel for explosions in grain handling. This dust is highly combustible and can burn or ignite if enough becomes airborne or accumulates on surfaces that are contacted by an ignition source (such as an overheated motor or sparks from welding or brazing operations). OSHA standards require that both grain dust and ignition sources be controlled in grain elevators to prevent potentially deadly explosions. For more information on grain handling, visit http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/grainhandling/index.html.

The citations to Bartlett Grain Co. L.P. can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/Bartlett_issued_04122012.pdf

If you have suffered from a work injury, need help recovering workers compensation benefits from your L&I claim, or need representation to appeal a denied L&I claim, an L&I Lawyer at Emery Reddy can represent your case. Every day our experienced Employment Attorneys and Seattle Workers Compensation Lawyers help Washington workers collect the full compensation and benefits they deserve, and provide legal counsel to those who have been required to undergo an independent medical exam by the Department of Labor and Industries.

The advisory committee says studies show a large number of cancers, including blood, digestive, skin, oral and respiratory diseases, are directly linked to dust at the World Trade Center after the September 11th attacks. Yet cancer was left out of the Zadroga health care bill despite dedicated advocacy from people who fell ill after breathing toxins at Ground Zero. The administrator of the program wanted more conclusive evidence.

If the government approves the recommendations, cancer victims would be eligible to apply for a share of the $2.8 billion compensation fund. The panel is scheduled to present its findings on April 2.

Yet Feal noted that even when the panel’s recommendation is made, a bitter political fight could remain. “Once it gets down to deciding what cancers to add, that becomes political — when people debate what can be afforded or not,” he said. “That’s what we have to fight against.”

Read more details here about 9/11 compensation.

If you are suffering from any occupational illness or work injury and need professional assistance to recover your workers compensation benefits from the Department of Labor and Industries, contact an L&I Lawyer at Emery Reddy today. We represent clients who want to appeal a denied L&I claim, or who have been required to complete an independent medical examination. Our knowledgeable and experienced Workers Compensation Attorneys and Seattle employment attorneys provide guidance to workers experiencing any difficulty with an L&I claim.

The University College London team based findings on more than 7,000 civil service employees whose health has been monitored since 1985. They suggest that doctors should now be asking patients about working hours.

Lead researcher of the story, Professor Mika Kivimäki said: “Considering that including a measurement of working hours in a GP interview is so simple and useful, our research presents a strong case that it should become standard practice. This study might make us think twice about the old adage ‘hard work won’t kill you.’”

Professor Stephen Holgate of the Medical Research Council added that the study “could also be a wake-up call for people who overwork themselves, especially if they already have other risk factors.”

Over the course of the 11-year study, 192 of participants had a heart attack.  Those who out in 11 hours of work or more per day were more than 50% as likely to have a heart attack than those who worked shorter hours.

And factoring working hours into well-established heart risk factors (like high blood pressure), made the predictions far more accurate. Studies are now needed to see if encouraging employers to cut back on working hours (or getting employers to soften their demands) will improve heart health.

“Tackling lifestyles that are detrimental to health is a key area for the MRC, and this research reminds us that it’s not just diet and exercise we need to think about,” said Professor Holgate.

Experts suspect a number of underlying factors may be at play, such as undetected high blood pressure, stress, anxiety or depression, and being a driven, aggressive or irritable personality.

The study also raises related issues traditionally managed by employment attorneys, such as unpaid overtime hours, wage and hour violations, wrongful termination and workplace discrimination. An experienced Employment Attorney at Emery Reddy can help with any of these issues. In addition, workers who have submitted an L&I Claim with the Department of Labor and Industries, and need help with their workers compensation case, should consult an L&I Lawyer at Emery Reddy.

According to the Labor Department the number of people applying for weekly unemployment benefits fell by 5,000, to a seasonally adjusted 359,000. This marks the lowest number of applicants since April 2008.

The four-week average of jobless claims, which is a less precarious metric, declined to 365,000 — the fewest for that measure since May 2008.

When applications for unemployment benefits decrease in a consistent trend below 375,000, it is generally a sign that hiring is sufficiently robust to bring down the unemployment rate. The current decline has coincided with the best three-months of hiring in over two years.

Many economists predict yet another strong month of hiring in March.

In assessing jobless claims, Ian Shepherdson, an economist at High Frequency Economics said “The trend remains unambiguously downwards.” While he admitted that the rate of decline was slowing, he pointed out that it was “still consistent with robust, sustained payroll gains.”

In Thursday’s assessment of the October-December quarter, the Commerce Department reported no change. The 3 percent annual rate remained the highest since spring 2010. Still, economists expect growth has probably slowed to 2 percent or less in the current quarter.

Businesses have been restocking their inventories at a slower rate, and shipping a lower amount of durable manufactured goods. In addition, Europe’s debt crisis and slowed growth in Asia have dampened demand for American exports.

Yet despite promising trends overall, Washington State residents still face troubling rates of unemployment, as well as difficulties in the workplace such as wrongful termination, workplace discrimination, trouble collecting workers compensation benefits, and the complexity of handling a Labor & Industries Claim (including, for many, the need to appeal a rejected L&I claim). Since a large number of injured workers do not fully understand their rights, they are taken advantage of when they attend an L&I Independent Medical Exam. If you need help with any of these issues, contact an L&I Lawyer or a Seattle Employment Attorney at Emery Reddy today.

The Arkansas-based retailer faces up to $365,500 in proposed fines after OSHA’s Buffalo Area Office conducted inspections in response to a complaint.

“The sizable fines proposed here reflect not only the seriousness of these conditions but the fact that several of them are substantially similar to hazards identified at nine other Wal-Mart locations in New York and eight other states,” said Arthur Dube, OSHA’s director in Buffalo. “This situation is unacceptable. A corporate employer must take effective and proactive steps to assess, correct and prevent the recurrence of hazards at all of its locations.”

OSHA inspectors who visited the Rochester Wal-Mart found fall hazards; obstructed exits; an absence of lockout procedures for energy sources that would enable workers to safely perform maintenance on a compactor; an unguarded grinder; a failure to train employees on proper uses of protective equipment; a lack of eye and face protection; and insufficient information and training on hazardous chemicals in the workplace. These conditions exposed employees to serious risk of workplace injury, amounting to citations for 10 repeat violations with $288,000 in fines.

A repeat violation is issued when a place of employment has previously been cited for the same violation of a standard, regulation, or rule. In Wal-Mart’s case, OSHA had cited the retail giant for similar hazards between 2008 and 2010 at workplaces in South Mobile, Alabama; Jonesboro, Arkansas; Plant City, Florida; Rincon, Georgia; Jerseyville, Illinois; Queensbury, N.Y; Fargo, North Dakota; and Tulsa, Oklahoma.  L&I Attorneys were disappointed but hardly surprised by the news, as Wal-Mart has long been a source of a numerous injuries and workers compensation claims in Washington State.

The citations against Wal-Mart can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/Walmart315502476-315502880-01-27-12.pdf.*

If you of someone you know has suffered a workplace injury and is filing an L&I claim, we encourage you to consult one of Emery Reddy’s Washington Workers’ Compensation Lawyers.

In the course of many L&I claims process, the Labor & Industries administrators may request that you complete an Independent Medical Examination; if you find yourself in this situation, we urge you to consult with an Seattle L&I lawyer immediately.

Construction accidents cause Washington workers to suffer more than just serious injury; employees also face financial hardships, the inability to support families, long-term medical complications and expenses, surgery, and sometimes life-long difficulties maintaining employment.

When the responsible party is the workers’ employer, a coworker, or even the injured worker him- or herself, claims and benefits are managed by the Department of Labor and Industries.  However, if a construction site injury is caused by the negligence of someone other than a direct employer – or if accidents occur at a location other than the place of employment – workers may have the right to additional compensation and benefits through a third-party liability claim.  In distinction from workers’ compensation benefits, there is virtually no limit to the settlement amount in a third-party liability claim. This can give injured workers access to additional medical benefits and wage-loss benefits, and further compensate them for personal pain and suffering as well as loss of services for dependents or a spouse.

From a legal perspective, construction accident claims are highly complex. Construction sites are demanding and rapidly-changing environments where projects are managed under intense time constraints, and projects often involve multiple businesses, contractors, sub-contractors, rental companies, property owners, workers, and equipment manufacturers and owners.  Simply pinpointing the party responsible for an accident can be overwhelming.  This means that victims without skillful and experienced legal representation can face an endless series of questions and criteria in assessing the viability of their construction accident claim: what personnel were present on the site when an accident occurred? What machinery or equipment was involved? Who manufactured, owned, installed, or operated it? Are there available witnesses?  A construction site attorney with comprehensive knowledge of third-party liability and workers’ compensation laws can be crucial to the success of a case. The Construction Site Accident Attorneys at Emery Reddy are experienced in maximizing compensation that workers receive from serious injury and wrongful death cases.

Our attorneys have successfully negotiated and litigated construction site accident cases involving defective products that are commonly used in commercial building projects.  Each year, poorly manufactured or improperly maintained construction equipment causes thousands of serious injuries and fatalities.  Life-altering injuries and deaths, for instance, commonly result from scaffolding that is incorrectly installed or that fails to follow L&I and OSHA safety regulations.  Rental companies that do not properly care for or install equipment may be held accountable in a third-party liability claim.

While some workers are tempted to accept a quick settlement from an insurance company, this rarely reflects the full cost of personal, medical, financial and professional damages suffered by the injured worker.  What is in the insurer’s best interest is generally not in the best interest of the victim, since insurance companies will look for every available means to pay claimants as little as they can.

Emery Reddy’s Construction Accident Attorneys can help client recover the maximum compensation to which they are entitled by Washington law. As committed advocates of Washington workers, we take pride in our successful record of securing benefits for the injured and disabled, and will guide you through every step of your personal injury, third party liability or workers’ compensation claim.  Contact one of our attorneys today for a free consultation.

In the wake of their acts of bravery, labor advocates began to ask important questions about these nuclear workers’ access to health care and workers’ compensation benefits should they suffer any ill effects from their important work.  After all, a startling “88 percent” of Japanese nuclear workers are contract workers with uncertain access to benefits, according to the NYTimes.com.

The New York Times noted these workers are “emblematic of Japan’s two-tiered work force, with an elite class of highly paid employees at top companies and a subclass of laborers who work for less pay, have less security and receive fewer benefits.”  The Times reports that the medical care and benefits for these workers tends to dwindle as you work your way down the ladder from contracted worker, to subcontracted, to even sub-subcontracted.  Essentially “nuclear migrants,” these workers attempt to conceal injuries or exposure to radiation so they can retain their employment.

As the United States re-evaluates its own nuclear power industry, the spotlight has shifted to how the U.S. treats those workers who are asked to put themselves in jeopardy in what is essentially a work situation.  Just today, Scientific American reports that the U.S. nuclear safety regulator is investigating how three nuclear workers in Nebraska were exposed to radiation in a workplace setting in early April. Scientific American writes, “The three workers triggered radiation alarms by incorrectly moving a radioactive tube on April 3. They immediately set the tube down and fled the area.  Nebraska Public Power District, which operates the Cooper Nuclear Station, does not believe the workers were exposed to radiation above regulatory limits, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a release.”  There is no word if these workers were subcontractors or full-time employees.

Of course, if the United States suffered a disaster so severe that it forced not only nuclear workers, but emergency workers to enter extreme environments to save lives, the most obvious, and unfortunate parallel is 9/11.  Chris Bragg wrote as late as 2007 that “many cleanup workers who rushed to help the city in its time of need say they have developed serious physical conditions due to that work: 756 cleanup volunteers and many more paid workers have submitted claims. Many claimants say, however, the Workers’ Compensation Board has been slow in helping them get back on their feet.”  Workers employed by the city, such as firefighters and police officers, go through a tailored compensation process.  But contract workers are at the mercy of the city’s Workers’ Compensation Board, and literally hundreds of articles over the years have detailed their struggle.

Labor & Industries experts will continue to watch the drama unfolding in Japan with an eye to how workers in the U.S. would be treated in similar circumstances.  If anything, the situation reveals the need for greater protection of subcontracted workers of all stripes, especially in terms of workers’ compensation, before a disaster happens and workers must rush into the unknown.  If you have been injured and have questions about your employment status as it relates to workers’ compensation, contact an expert Washington Labor & Industries Attorney.