We round out the year with a delightful discussion of a man who found a collection of high-powered fireworks while picking up items for his employer. He stored those fireworks in his lunch pail, and then started playing with one on the drive back to the workplace. In hindsight, I’ll bet he wishes he wasn’t…
Happy 100th Birthday, Dad
I flew into Albuquerque, NM last night, and today (probably while you read this) am making the 3+ hour drive to Farmington in the Four Corners area. It is a very special day, as it is my father’s 100th birthday. Most of the family is making the trek to help him mark the occasion. Tomorrow…
That's a Wrap on Workplace Violence, When It Should Have Been a Sandwich
Everything you need to know about this story is in the first sentence of the source article that brought it to us: A Florida man was arrested Sunday over reports that he allegedly shot at his coworker’s mom last month because of a sandwich order. Well, as long as he had a good reason…. It all started…
Stress Isn't Everything It Is Cracked Up To Be
FJ Thomas wrote an article on our site the other day recapping findings of a United Health Care study that told us Americans are getting fatter and becoming more stressed. I appreciate my own health insurance company deploying impeccable timing with that warm and cheery holiday message. I’m just kidding. Personally, I was just happy to…
State of Confusion: You Just Can't Make This Stuff Up
My company deals with a massive amount of workers’ compensation information. Between news, statutes, regulations, forms, court decisions, legislative and rule changes, there is plenty to keep us busy. Many people are not aware of it, but between our (shameless plug) online claims compliance and research library, our forms auto-population and management systems, our Virtual…
Bowling for Workers' Comp Dollars
Quite often here in the Cluttered Desk we relay stories of abject stupidity, either for an action that caused a needless injury, a legislative effort that makes no sense, or a court decision that boggles the mind. Today, however, our story includes none of that. It simply discusses an injury and subsequent court decision that…
Reflections of an Outgoing Kids' Chance President
Kids’ Chance of Florida, Inc., the scholarship organization dedicated to helping children of seriously injured workers, held its quarterly board meeting in Tampa last week. It was a meeting filled with what you might expect at such an event; discussions about finances, strategy and policy dominated the day. It was not, however, without its fair…
It Has Never Been This Bad – Or Has It?
I had the great honor of providing the Keynote speech last summer at the Kids’ Chance of New Jersey Annual Gala. In that presentation I attempted to draw a positive picture of the work done by the organization as well as for the future of the scholarship recipients present at the event. I believe that…
The Taxman Cometh for (and Killeth?) the Gig Economy
An interesting tax battle underway in New Jersey, highlighted by Toni Sutton-Deangelico on this site yesterday, has the potential to completely upend the still nascent Gig economy. And it appears to be happening without what many would consider due process for the targeted company. The Gig economy, powered with brash new technologies and most often represented…
Big Daddy's Money Can Buy You Happiness at the Walmart
It should have been one of the happiest days of their lives. It is a true American love story. A North Carolina woman and her boyfriend buy rings and become engaged. They even have professional photos to commemorate the event. Of course, the engagement occurred in a Walmart, and the photos they have are technically…