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What is a VSSR?

Workers’ compensation is considered an exclusive remedy. The employee cannot sue the employer and the employer cannot deny the claim because of the negligence of the employee. However, in Ohio there is a unique law that allows an employee to make a claim directly against the employer based on a violation of a specific safety requirement (VSSR).

Ohio uses a carrot and stick approach to encourage employers to maintain safe workplaces.
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Safety Sense

Ohio BWC Premiums on the Move this Summer

Have you been keeping track of your Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) premiums during these last couple of months? I have helped many employers get a handle on the moving parts that make up their BWC premiums. Remember, for this article, we are always talking about the State’s fiscal year that begins July 1. Here’s a brief summary of what is happening (much of it good)!
2015 Billion Back
Because the Ohio State Fund Surplus has exceeded $9.
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Heat Exposure and OSHA

Employers under the law, and specifically the General Duty Clause, are required to provide employees with workplaces free of recognized safety hazards. This includes protecting workers from situations involving extreme heat. Employers therefore should establish a heat illness prevention program. Operations involving high air temperatures, radiant heat sources, high humidity, and strenuous physical activities in high heat situations have a high potential for causing heat-related illness.
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Workplace Violence

Nearly two million American workers are victims of workplace violence every year. Workplace violence is one of the leading causes of homicide in the country. For women, a relative or domestic partner is the most frequent type of assailant in work related homicides. Robbers are the most common type of work related homicide assailant for men and the second most common for women.
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Trump Final Nominations for National Labor Relations Board Announced

Trump has nominated William Emanuel and Marvin Kaplan for the remaining vacancies on the five-member National Labor Relations Board. William Emanuel is a management-side labor attorney with decades of labor and employment experience. Kaplan is currently counsel to the commissioner of the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission and previously served as the Republican workforce policy counsel for the House Education and the Workforce Committee.
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Examining Fall Hazards and Fatalities

On April 28, 2017, the safety community will acknowledge the death of those workers who have died on the job. We are reminded that the core reason for making safety a priority in our workplace is the possibility of death and serious injury. A leading cause of serious work related injuries and deaths in the workplace are falls. They are also one of the most preventable causes of work deaths and injuries.
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