Andrea Collins
President, Sienna Staffing
andrea@siennastaffing.com

Just in case you forgot why we celebrate the New Year, here is some information about the holiday……

"Happy New Year!" That greeting will be said and heard for at least the first couple of weeks as a New Year gets under way. But the day celebrated as New Year's Day in modern America was not always January 1.

NEW YEAR TRADITIONS

Traditions of the season include the making of New Year's resolutions. That tradition dates back to the early Babylonians. Popular modern resolutions might include the promise to lose weight or quit smoking. The early Babylonian's most popular resolution was to return borrowed farm equipment.

The Tournament of Roses Parade dates back to 1886. In that year, members of the Valley Hunt Club decorated their carriages with flowers. It celebrated the ripening of the orange crop in California.

Although the Rose Bowl football game was first played as a part of the Tournament of Roses in 1902, it was replaced by Roman chariot races the following year. In 1916, the football game returned as the sports centerpiece of the festival.

The tradition of using a baby to signify the New Year was begun in Greece around 600 BC. It was their tradition at that time to celebrate their god of wine, Dionysus, by parading a baby in a basket, representing the annual rebirth of that god as the spirit of fertility. Early Egyptians also used a baby as a symbol of rebirth.

Although the early Christians denounced the practice as pagan, the popularity of the baby as a symbol of rebirth forced the Church to reevaluate its position. The Church finally allowed its members to celebrate the New Year with a baby, which was to symbolize the birth of the baby Jesus.

The use of an image of a baby with a New Years banner as a symbolic representation of the New Year was brought to early America by the Germans. They had used the effigy since the fourteenth century.

FOR LUCK IN THE NEW YEAR

Traditionally, it was thought that one could affect the luck they would have throughout the coming year by what they did or ate on the first day of the year. For that reason, it has become common for folks to celebrate the first few minutes of a brand New Year in the company of family and friends. Parties often last into the middle of the night after the ringing in of a New Year. It was once believed that the first visitor on New Year's Day would bring either good luck or bad luck the rest of the year. It was particularly lucky if that visitor happened to be a tall dark-haired man.

Traditional New Year foods are also thought to bring luck. Many cultures believe that anything in the shape of a ring is good luck, because it symbolizes "coming full circle," completing a year's cycle. For that reason, the Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year's Day will bring good fortune.

Many parts of the U.S. celebrate the New Year by consuming black-eyed peas. These legumes are typically accompanied by either hog jowls or ham. Black-eyed peas and other legumes have been considered good luck in many cultures. The hog, and thus its meat, is considered lucky because it symbolizes prosperity. Cabbage is another "good luck" vegetable that is consumed on New Year's Day by many. Cabbage leaves are also considered a sign of prosperity, being representative of paper currency. In some regions, rice is a lucky food that is eaten on New Year's Day.

Copyright © 2003 by Jerry Wilson. Used with Permission.

William Nathans
Senior Claims Examiner
Athens Administrators
bill@adjustingworld.com

Rehabilitation in the new millennium.

Under the new law, vocational rehabilitation is a thing of the past. For injuries on or after 1/1/04, an injured worker will no longer be entitled to vocational rehabilitation benefits. Instead, the injured worker will be entitled to a nontransferable voucher for education purposes. The amount of the voucher depends upon the level of permanent disability. If the permanent disability level is between 0-14.75%, the voucher amount will be up to $4,000. From 15-24.75%, the voucher will be up to $6,000. From 25-49.75%, the voucher will be for no more than $8,000. From 50-99.75% the voucher will for no more than $10,000. In order to be eligible for the voucher, the permanent disability must be the result of an industrial injury which prevents a return to work within 60 days of the last payment of temporary disability.

The employer will not be liable if appropriate modified or alternate work is offered within 30 days of temporary disability. Is the search the same as it is now?

Notice of these rights must be sent within 10 days of the last payment of temporary disability by certified mail. What do we as adjusters pay while the employer is looking for modified or alternate work? The new law says that new law applies to injuries on or after 1/1/04, but Labor Code section 139.5 and the rest of the rehab section under the labor code have been repealed. What impact does that have on injuries prior to 1/1/04?

The impact of this new law will be felt in other ways. I am sure that a lot of the less educated workers will really want an educational voucher. The employers will wind up having to look harder for modified or alternate work. The major potential liability will not be for these benefits, but will be for failing to include the employee in the interactive process under the Fair Employment and Housing Act. When the employers do the search, they are going to have to involve the employee in the process or there will be a lot more financial damage than the current cost of rehabilitation. I am talking six to seven figure damages, outside of workers compensation. I know of an employer who lost at trial. The worker was awarded over $360,000 just for failing to involve the employee in the interactive process. The final settlement of that claim was 1.1 million dollars.

Please e-mail at bill@siennastaffing.com with your comments.

Frank Diaz
Vocational Counselor, Diaz & Company
diazco_email@yahoo.com

OBRA: A New Organization For Rehabilitation Professionals

The Organization of Bilingual Rehabilitation Associates (OBRA) was established informally in 1982 by a group of vocational rehabilitation counselors in the Los Angeles area to provide a forum for discussion for issues affecting industrially injured workers.

OBRA was created as an effort to find and foment Latino leadership in this industry, and to find and to improve resources needed for a significantly large pool of Hispanic injured workers within the California Workers' Compensation System.

Although the organization is open to professional members of all backgrounds, it distinctively seeks to advance the interests and welfare of injured workers with limited or non-existent English Skills.

Given the passage of AB227 and SB228, it is OBRA's concern what the injured worker with physical limitations and no new job skills is going to do when he runs out of cash. OBRA believes that the injured worker with physical restrictions will either find a job which exposes him to re-injuries, or the injured worker will file for Unemployment Benefits or State Disability Insurance. OBRA believes that given the results of its research, the most affected injured workers are the low income, less educated workers. For many Latinos, Vocational Rehabilitation is the only opportunity to get formal training and education.

In 2003 the tireless work of the OBRA board was extremely successful in bringing awareness to legislators, Labor Leaders, Employers, Insurance Carriers and other stake holders regarding this issue. The organization’s Board of Directors and members visited key legislators at their offices in Sacramento to organize and coordinated grassroots efforts at the local district offices for key legislators as well as the march on Sacramento in September of 2003.

OBRA also brought the issue of the injured workers to the Tomas Riviera institute and RAND. OBRA brought awareness to the Workers Comp trade magazines that now actively cover the issue. OBRA sponsored SB1829 introduced by Senator Polanco. OBRA for the first time hired lobby services to further its efforts.

OBRA continues its hard work in 2004 with a busy agenda to support the best interest of the injured workers and its members.

OBRA will continue to provide all members with the following:

• Up-to-date information on all industry activity via e-mail and regular mail.
• Up-to-date legislative alerts on issues affecting the industry coming from Sacramento.
• Access to seminars featuring distinguished speakers in the industry.
• Educational seminars carrying C.E.U. for those working on their certifications.
• Updated School Directories with training program information.
• Updated Counselor directories.
• Peer Review and Support.
• Social Events.

To find out more contact OBRA at OBRAonline.org.

Joan Lloyd is a management consultant, executive coach, workshop trainer and professional speaker. www.JoanLloyd.com, (800) 348-1944.

“It’s about them, not about you,” I told an executive recently. He had all the technical skills and experience the company desperately needed to turn a poorly performing plant around. As his executive coach, I was going to help him with the people side of the business. Like many bright, talented leaders, he lacked some of the subtle savvy required to get cynical employees to follow him.

Here are some of the basic rules of engagement, for any leader who struggles with some of the same battles. While the following may seem like common sense ideas, they are mistakes I’ve seen leaders make. Common sense isn’t always so common. More...

Results of the December Poll

Should Rehab be abolished?

Yes 54.5%

No 45.5%

Poll results are as of December 23, 2003