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Soledad man gets jail time, probation in workers’ comp fraud case

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A 42-year-old Soledad man was sentenced Friday to 60 days in Monterey County jail and five years of probation for wrongfully using a contractor’s license and not providing workers’ compensation insurance for his employees, authorities said.

The county District Attorney’s Office said Lavaki Fale, who’d done business as ‘Vei Construction,’ was also ordered to pay $15,000 in fines, not contract without a valid contractor’s state license and stay away from the victims.

For information on license numbers of contractors, visit the Contractor State Licensing Board at www.cslb.ca.gov/consumers.

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Workers’ Comp Premium Plunges for Fifth Year in a Row

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California’s workers’ comp total direct written premium declined by almost 10% in 2009 down to $6.9 billion from $7.6 billion in 2008, according to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The latest figure is in sharp contrast to where the market was just five years earlier at a whopping $16.1 billion. Since then premium volume has shrunk by $9.2 billion.

Even as premium volume declines, the market continues to reshuffle the deck among the top 10 writers in the state with only one notable exception dropping off the list. But while the names are largely the same their premium totals show where much of the statewide premium loss originated. Read more

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OSHA Issues Guidance For Acceptable Silica Levels On The Jobsite

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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Sept. 15 issued guidelines outlining the permissible exposure limit to dust containing crystalline silica on construction jobsites in a document titled, “Controlling Silica Exposures in Construction.”  Crystalline silica has been known to cause the lung disease silicosis. Read more

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Workers’ Comp Rates May Climb on Back of Budget Plan

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os Angeles Business Journal, Howard Fine – 8/10/2009

Construction companies and similar businesses be warned: Workers’ compensation rates could soar if the state’s plan to sell part of the State Compensation Insurance Fund comes to fruition.

The budget compromise reached by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Legislature calls for the state to appropriate $1 billion from the State Fund, and the only realistic way of hitting that goal is selling off its most profitable lines – which have been subsidizing the rates. Read more

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Safety Overview From Armstrong

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Armstrong & Associates is committed to providing you with the highest quality safety information and loss control services. Our team of agents, safety consultants, and claims analysts pride ourselves in giving you the tools to maintain a safe and productive workplace. Even more importantly, our team’s action-focused approach provides the support you need to put these tools to use. Read more