After a week of blizzard-like conditions that caused everything in the state Capitol to come to a grinding halt, things were back to normal as we played catch up on the work we missed. Committees and hearings took up most of our time but there was some action on the House floor and a couple of pieces of legislation were passed that took aim at protecting Missouri businesses and consumers.
One piece of legislation approved would fix problems that have resulted from workers’ compensation legislation passed in 2005. While that bill was meant to make Missouri a more attractive location for prospective employers, it had a few unintended consequences that have produced the opposite effect. One of those consequences stems from a lawsuit where the court ruled an employee who sustains a work-related injury could sue a co-employee for negligence. Work related injuries are meant to be covered by the workers’ compensation system, but this change opened up the potential for additional civil action. The end result has made it harder for employers to recruit and retain employees in key supervisory positions where they could be subjected to lawsuits. The new legislation would specifically bar employees from filing lawsuits against their co-workers for injuries that qualify under the workers’ compensation system. With this change, we can ensure work-related injuries are dealt with in the workers’ compensation system and protect employees from costly civil lawsuits.
Another court case produced the second unintended consequence of the 2005 workers’ compensation reform. In this case, the court ruled that occupational diseases are not the exclusive domain of workers’ compensation. The ruling means that cases can be pursued in civil court for damages against employers. Of course, this makes Missouri a less attractive location for businesses as they face the threat of costly litigation. The measure we passed fixes this problem by stating that occupational diseases are covered by the workers’ compensation system and therefore would not be handled as lawsuits filed against employers.
Another bill approved last week would protect consumer choice, create construction jobs and provide more affordable housing opportunities for all Missourians. This legislation (HB 46) would extend a law approved by the General Assembly in 2009 that preserves a home buyer’s right to decide whether to have fire sprinklers installed in a new home. That consumer protection, set to expire January 1, 2012, will be extended to 2019.
This issue stems from a controversial vote in 2008 in Minneapolis when special interest voters poured into a conference of building code officials working to create a national model building code and secured an outcome that mandates fire sprinklers be installed in all newly-built homes, effective January 1, 2011. While safety is of utmost importance, we believe that there are other methods, such as smoke alarms, that have proven to be very effective and will not drive the cost up so much that home construction is inhibited.
If you have questions, you may reach me at my Capitol number 573-751-9465, at the local district number, 660-582-4014, by email at mike.thomson@house.mo.gov or by mail at Room 401B State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101
No comments:
Post a Comment