HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 05121992 - 1.51 �r
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TO- BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
FROM: Phil Batchelor, County Administrator Conti
Costa
DATE: _ May 12, 1992 CN
SUBJECT: Workers' Compensation Stress Related Disability Reform.
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SPECIFIC REQUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATIONS) & BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
RECOMMENDATION•
Support reasonable reform to the workers' . compensation system . in the area
of stress-related disability.
BACKGROUND: ,
To be entitled to workers' compensation benefits because of stress on the
job, a claimant only had to show that some aspect of the job was perceived
as stressful. The job did not necessarily have to be stressful so long as
the worker thought it was. An "honest misperception" 'of events as
stressful was enough to obtain workers' compensation benefits.
In 1990, the law was changed to require that an applicant demonstrate that
actual events of employment were responsible for at least 10% of the total
causation from all sources contributing to a psychiatric injury. In July
1991, an additional. change was made to preclude a stress claim from being
compensable unless an . employee, had. been working for an employer for six
months, but an exception was made.. for stress -claims resulting from a sudden
and .extraordinary employment condition, as distinguished from a regular and
routine event..
These reforms are only a start. Contra Costa County along with the
-California ' State Association of Counties, support AB 3167 (Brulte.) and
SB1625 (Maddy) and other similar reform legislation.. Those bills would,
among other reforms, modify the standards by which: an injured worker may
qualify for a stress disability to a higher standard of job causation,
.eliminate much-.of the difficulty to disprove "cumulative trauma cases and
eliminate good faith employment decisions from qualifying the injured.
worker for stress disability. These decisions .wouid include such things as
failing to .receive a promotion, from being properly' discipli:ned, from being
discharged, from being demoted, from receiving a poor performance.
evaluation, from receiving budgetary cutbacks, and from other actions .
regularly and customarily taken by. employers. We urge interested persons to
contact their state legislators to urge reform of the workers' compensation
system, including the very liberal. causation standard for stress
disability.
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CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: YES SIGNATURE; / I
r
RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMME ION OF OA OMMITTEE
APPROVE OTHER
SIGNATURE(S): _
ACTION OF BOARD ON __ ((/(/Ii/_.__� • / ^'� 'APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED ^ OTHER
VOTE OF SUPERVISORS
F HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE
.� UNANIMOUS (ABSENT �\ ) iaNID CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN
AYES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD
ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ' OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN.
cc: CAO Risk Management ATTESTED/ 02 l9 9
County Counsel PHIL BATCHIFLoR. CLERK OF THE BOARD OF
SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR
M382/7-83
BY � G�dl���'�
,DEPUTY
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