Assembly Democrats fight against proposed worker rules

At a hearing on Tuesday, Democrats on the Assembly Labor Committee repeatedly questioned officials from the state Workers Compensation Board over proposed guidelines that critics say would negatively impact benefits and protections for injured workers.

According to the New York Committee For Occupational Safety and Health, a workers’ rights group, the proposed rules would give company-assigned doctors the power to suspend care and slash protections by eliminating payments for injuries to worker such as fractures or ligament and tendon tears.

The proposal grants the board sweeping authority to adjust claims, regardless of what the law says, according to critics.

The process that triggered the board’s new guidelines resulted from legislation passed earlier this year.

Read more: http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/277525/assembly-democrats-fight-against-proposed-worker-rules/