California Manufacturers Applaud the Governor's Veto of Workers' Compensation Bill; CMA Says Davis Makes Right Decision for California's Economy.SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 29, 1999-- Jack M. Stewart, president of the California Manufacturers Association, applauds Governor Gray Davis' veto veto [Lat.,=I forbid], power of one functionary (e.g., the president) of a government, or of one member of a group or coalition, to block the operation of laws or agreements passed or entered into by the other functionaries or members. In the U.S. of SB 320, the proposal to increase workers' compensation workers' compensation, payment by employers for some part of the cost of injuries, or in some cases of occupational diseases, received by employees in the course of their work. benefits. This bill would have burdened employers by adding more than $2 billion in mandated costs, while offering virtually no cost saving reforms for an out of control system, Stewart said. CMA CMA - Concert Multithread Architecture from DEC. believes Governor Davis recognized this fact and acted appropriately. "California employers have shown they are willing to provide substantial benefit increases for injured in·jure tr.v. in·jured, in·jur·ing, in·jures 1. To cause physical harm to; hurt. 2. To cause damage to; impair. 3. workers," Stewart said. "However, the majority of the new costs must be funded by savings from system reform. "We look forward to engaging with both the Governor and the proponents of SB 320 to find an equitable solution," he added. "There is a middle ground." CMA is urging the Governor to immediately seek new negotiations on this pressing issue. Currently, Stewart said, California employers are saddled sad·dle n. 1. a. A leather seat for a rider, secured on an animal's back by a girth. Also called regionally rig. b. Similar tack used for attaching a pack to an animal. c. with the nation's most costly workers' compensation program, yet their employees receive only average to below average benefits. "It takes too long and costs too much to get benefits to injured workers," Stewart said. "Too much of the money is going not to the worker, but to the medical-legal industry that has exploded ex·plode v. ex·plod·ed, ex·plod·ing, ex·plodes v.intr. 1. To release mechanical, chemical, or nuclear energy by the sudden production of gases in a confined space: around California's $10 billion workers' compensation system." He noted that system costs have risen by almost $3 billion since the 1993 reform efforts, based on information from the California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation. But during that time the amount of benefits actually reaching injured workers has increased by less than $600 million annually. In calling for the reforms, Stewart singled out the system's lack of objective standards for medical evaluations. "Raters," he said, "are allowed too much latitude latitude, angular distance of any point on the surface of the earth north or south of the equator. The equator is latitude 0°, and the North Pole and South Pole are latitudes 90°N and 90°S, respectively. in assessing the severity of injuries, resulting in wildly varying ratings of virtually identical injuries." Jack M. Stewart is President of the California Manufacturers Association, which represents manufacturers statewide. California manufacturers employ more than 2 million California workers. |
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