New Workers Comp Laws are class warfare

• Wichita Peace and Freedom Party Examiner

The Kansas Legislature has enacted new worker compensation laws that appear to be nothing more than class warfare against Kansas workers. All the new laws are designed to make it harder for a worker to get compensated for injuries caused by their job.
According to the Wichita Business Journal the new laws will;

• Require additional proof that an injury was suffered at work,
• Limit the payout to workers who don’t make a good-faith effort to return to work, and
• Raise the caps on settlements.

The Kansas House and Senate unanimously voted on the bill. Gov. Sam Brownback is expected to sign the bill and it will go into law and take effect May 15.
One focus on the bill is to try and eliminate people getting compensated for long term affects of such problems as corporate tunnel syndrome. Many companies have a company doctor who will do anything to keep a worker on the job no matter how bad they are injured. This bill may make it harder for those who get a second opinion from a different doctor.
There is no doubt these new laws will make it easier on businesses. It will save them buckets of money. But it will leave working people with a very limited safety net if they are injured and unable to work. They may even make it harder of an injured worker to get unemployment if they are injured and can’t work before a layoff. They won’t be eligible for unemployment. If they can’t get workers comp. they will have no income at all.
This is the new age brought to us by the new Kansas Republicans.