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"I just see the frustration of my workers trying to figure out how to get their benefits," said Senate Majority Leader
Stephen Sweeney (D- Gloucester), an ironworkers union officer and sponsor of the proposal to create a Workers'Compensation
ombudsman.
Sweeney said his bill (S-1982) is modeled after an Oregon ombudsman law. It would establish an official to help the more
than 100,000 New Jersey residents who suffer workplace injuries each year learn the options for benefits under Workers'
Compensation.
The measure also would require annual reporting on Workers' Compensation activities.
"Basically, all this does is help the worker know what their rights are," Sweeney told the Senate Labor Committee
yesterday.
The prospect of an ombudsman drew fire from insurers, business owners and private attorneys who currently represent
injured workers in compensation claims.
Representatives of those groups said the proposal would upset a compensation system that generally runs smoothly, and
could add new delays to the comp system.
"What you're suggesting is a fundamental change in the way the Workers' Compensation system works in this state," said
Sen. Sean Kean (R-Monmouth), a Labor Committee member and a private attorney active in Workers' Compensation practice.
"I'm very suspicious of this proposal, and I'll have a lot of questions on this going for ward."
Under the Workers' Compensation insurance system, employers and their insurers promise prompt medical treatment and
partial wage replacement to injured workers in return for immunity from lawsuits over workplace injuries.
A Star-Ledger analysis of the system found that thousands of injured workers each year instead encounter delays that can
stretch for years as they battle red tape or recalcitrant insurers over their benefits.
Last month, Gov. Jon Corzine signed six reform measures that, among other steps, impose new penalties on employers who
fail to provide compensation insurance, give Workers' Compensation judges the power to fine insurers who stall on
providing needed treatment and give labor and business groups a say with insurance companies in the state panel that
helps set Workers' Comp policy premiums.
"I think you sent a very clear message from this committee," said Mike Van Wagner, lobbyist for New Jersey Manufacturers
Insurance Co., the state's largest Workers' Compensation provider. "If you're an insurer who isn't playing by the rules
and you didn't get the message, you're not listening."
Committee chairman Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Bergen), sponsor of the earlier reform measures, cautioned that it is unlikely
lawmakers will add new offices like the ombudsman unless the state's budget deficits clear up.
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Fresh off a series of reforms of New Jersey's Workers' Compensation insurance system, lawmakers yesterday considered
creating a special advocate to help injured workers avoid delays or other problems with the $1.8 billion program.