Author: Megan Vaniman
Oregon Attorney Fees in Certain Workers’ Compensation Matters Increased as of July 1, 2024
In Oregon Workers’ Compensation, attorney fees for representation of a claimant are controlled by statute. Certain attorney fees associated with penalties for unreasonable claim processing and attorney representation in a responsibility denial have statutory caps. Those statutory caps are adjusted each year based on the increase of the state’s average…
Oregon Annual Adjustment to Maximum Attorney Fees Effective July 1, 2023
It’s that time of year again, the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board published the annual adjustment to attorney fees awarded under ORS 656.262(11)(a); ORS 656.262(14)(a); and ORS 656.308(2)(d). This year–there’s a twist: there was no increase to the maximum attorney fees. Per ORS 656.262(11)(a) and ORS 656.308(2), maximum attorney fees under…
Proposed Oregon bill to disallow no-rehire provisions in workers’ compensation settlements
AFL-CIO (a conglomerate of union groups) has proposed legislation to prohibit no re-hire/reemployment/reinstatement clauses in workers’ compensation settlements. Specifically, the proposed legislation would only allow a carrier/employer to enter into a no-rehire agreement if the injured worker (or worker who has filed a workers’ compensation claim) specifically requests the provision….
Washington Silenced No More Act
Washington state passed sweeping new legislation relating to non-disclosure and non-disparagement clauses in employment related agreements. In 2018, Washington implemented legislation in response to the #Metoo movement. The 2018 legislation prohibited employers from requiring employees to sign, as a condition of employment, a nondisclosure agreement that prevented employees from “disclosing…
Oregon Court of Appeals determines injury during paid break is not compensable
Are we seeing a shift in the Court of Appeals in relation to injuries during paid breaks? Recently, in Watt v. SAIF, the Court of Appeals determined an injury that arose while a worker was engaged in an employer sponsored wellness program was not compensable. In Mandes v. Liberty Mutual,…
Oregon CROWN Act Goes into Effect January 1, 2022
In 2021, the Oregon Legislature passed the Oregon CROWN Act. The CROWN act prohibits employers from discriminating against employees and potential employees based on hairstyles associated with race. Oregon employers, historically, are prohibited from discriminating against employees on the basis of race. The CROWN act aims to further define what…
Oregon Vaccine Mandate for Health Care Workers and Educators in Effect on October 18
Governor Brown’s vaccine mandate for Oregon health care workers and educators went into effect earlier this week. On August 19, 2021 Governor Brown implemented a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers and educators in the state of Oregon. As many may recall, Governor Brown initially mandated a requirement for…
Oregon Passes CROWN Act
Oregon joins a number of states in prohibiting discrimination based on hairstyles associated with a person’s race. Governor Brown signed HB2935 on June 11, 2021. The CROWN act prohibits discrimination based on protective hairstyles. Protective hairstyles are defined as “hair color or manner of wearing hair that includes, but is…
BOLI Passes Permanent Rules Relating to OFLA Sick Child Leave During Public Health Emergency
In March 2020, Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) temporarily expanded Oregon Family Leave Act leave to extend protected leave to include employee leave related to their child’s school or childcare closure. In March 2021, BOLI made the temporary rules permanent. OFLA, in general provides, protected leave to employees…
New Oregon 801 Form Effective January 1, 2021
The Workers’ Compensation Division implemented a new 801 and 827 form–effective January 1, 2021. The new 801/827 forms remove the Social Security Number. The removal comes after the Management-Labor Advisory Committee (MLAC) advised the Department of Consumer and Business Services that the requirement of the Social Security Number caused some…
Shift in Oregon Claim Closure Analysis?
As of recently, the Oregon Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, and Workers’ Compensation Board have issued significant decisions relating to closure of Oregon workers’ compensation claims. Overall, these cases indicate a potential larger shift of court and board interpretation of closure rules. Ultimately, what does this mean for claim closure…
Oregon Workers’ Compensation Mental Health Presumption of Compensability
Presumption—it’s a scary word in the world of Oregon workers’ compensation. Last year Oregon passed Senate Bill 507—now codified at ORS 656.802(7)—creating a presumption of compensability of certain mental health claims filed by first responders working for public entities. A careful look at the presumption created by ORS 656.802(7) reveals…
Reductions in Hours, Furloughs, and Layoffs During COVID-19
A lot of employers are having hard conversations right now. A part of those conversations inevitably includes employment decisions. Many companies are trying to decide what is best both for their employees and their companies during this uncertain time. The three big options we’ve seen from our clients is a…
Oregon Legislature Makes Sweeping changes with Workplace Fairness Act
In response to the national #metoo movement, the Oregon legislature passed the 2019 Oregon Workplace Fairness Act. The Workplace Fairness Act (the “Act”) takes aim at employer’s employment agreements, settlement agreements, anti-harassment and discrimination policies as well as increasing the statute of limitations for a number of unlawful employment actions….
Oregon WCD implements new rejection policy for incomplete or incorrect 801 forms
In a June 27, 2017 Industry Notice, the Oregon WCD announced it will reject incomplete or incorrect insurer/employer created 801 and 1502 forms. Insurers and self-insured employers are required to process and file claims and reports with the WCD in compliance with ORS 656 and OAR chapter 436. OAR 436-060-0011…
Washington passes strict distracted driving law
Hopefully you are reading this blog post from the safety of your computer and not while driving. If you are using your cell phone to read this while on your morning commute, you could be violating a newly passed Washington Law. Governor Jay Inslee signed a measure that will prohibit…
WCD Adresses Supreme Court’s Brown v. SAIF decision
The Oregon Supreme Court’s recent decision in Brown v. SAIF, 361 Or 241 (2017) calls into doubt the applicability of the Workers’ Compensation Division rules involving claim closure. Specifically, the WCD amended closure rules in 2015 to require an impairment rating based on the compensable injury rather than the accepted…
Changes to OAR 436-060 effective as of January 1, 2017
In 2016, the Workers’ Compensation Division drafted changes to OAR 436-060. These changes went into effect on January 1, 2017. Below, I have outlined several changes that claim’s administrators should be aware of. Please note that the below list and recommendations is not a complete list of changes to Division…
New Oregon WCD Rules go into effect January 1, 2017
Earlier this year, the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division proposed extensive changes to division rules. The rule changes go into effect on January 1, 2017. The following OAR 436 divisions include changes: – 050, Employer/Insurer Coverage Responsibility – 060, Claims Administration – 105, Employer‐at‐Injury Program – 110, Preferred Worker Program –…
Join SBH at the DMEC ADAAA/Family Leave Roundtable
Please join me at the DMEC Roundtable on December 14, 2016. Mike Moses from Kaiser Permanente and I will be speaking on ADAAA and Family Leave. Please register by December 9. More information and registration is available here.
Claimant only required to show idiopathic factors were less likely to have caused unexplained injury
The Oregon Court of Appeals established new case-law on claimant’s burden of proof in “unexplained fall” claims. If an injury is unexplained, as a matter of law, it is presumed to arise out of employment. Whether an injury is unexplained, is a question of fact. An injury is only deemed truly…
Board’s new attorney fee rules go into effect on November 1.
The Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board passed revised attorney fee rules on October 13, 2016. The most significant changes involve increased attorney fees for disputed claims settlements and claims disposition agreements. The Board increased attorney fees on Disputed Claim Settlements and Claims Disposition Agreements. Previously attorneys were awarded 25% of the…
Claimant’s request for hearing on 10 year old denial is untimely.
On October 26, 2006, SAIF issued a denial of claimant’s injury claim. The denial was mailed via certified mail and a person who identified himself as claimant signed for the denial. In June 2015, claimant requested hearing on the denial. Claimant testified that the address the denial was sent to was…
Department of Labor increases penalties under LHWCA
The Department of Labor issued an interim final rule increasing penalties assessed by the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs under the LHWCA. The new rules increase penalties for: Failure to file first report of injury or filing a false statement or misrepresentation in first report increased from maximum of $11,000…
Pohrman Lives On
U.S. Bank v. Pohrman, 272 Or App 31 (2015), the Court of Appeals case that determined an injury suffered while an employee is on break can be compensable, lives on in recent Board cases. In Angelina Cox, 68 Van Natta 792, the employer required all employees to take two paid…
