Texas Lawmakers Must Stop Eroding Workers’ Compensation Laws
More than a century ago, Upton Sinclair’s groundbreaking book, “The Jungle,” shined a spotlight on the many deadly hazards employees routinely encountered in the industrial workplace.
In the years that followed, states enacted workers’ compensation laws that enabled workers to get some measure of compensation when they were injured as a result of dangerous workplace conditions – without going to court.
But during the past couple of decades, states have “reformed” their workers’ compensation laws in ways that have reduced the compensation available to workers and their families. With no national standard, workers are worse off today than they were 30 years ago. It’s time for state legislatures, particularly in Texas, to fix broken workers’ compensation programs.
Texas, it seems, has led the charge in disadvantaging workers. Texas allows employers to opt out of workers’ compensation and impose plans that are less generous than the generally inadequate compensation provided by employers who remain in the system.
Read more: http://riograndeguardian.com/mcgarity-shapiro-texas-lawmakers-must-stop-eroding-workers-compensation-laws/
