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UPDATE: September, 2016 Investigation into the management of complex workers compensation claims and WorkSafe oversight. View the pdf Workers compensation frustration again The horrid treatment toward injured workers has to stop. Two neurostimulation devices in my body are not there [...]
Dear Daniel Andrews MP, It's wonderful to see that your recovery is going well. As a 52-year-old person, I like to think that I live and learn from life experiences. I imagine someone in your position would take that sort of approach also and that with your own living and learning and the experience of Victorians you gather realistic references for your ongoing decision making. Taking this terrible recent accident you have had into account (whether a work injury or not), a horrific pandemic and two reports by the Victorian Ombudsman, I have hope and the expectation that you might be in a position to relate far more to Victorian injured workers (of which I am one) than ever before. Being more specific, can you please consider how you would feel: – being questioned about your injury – being told by an insurance company that the reports about your health from your own medical team do not suffice – having investigators photograph you around your home and day-to-day – being sent to an 'independent medical panel to be reassessed and to prove your injury
Would have been great if all injured workers labelled as 'complex cases' were notified of this survey participation call. Thank you to my twitter sister, Everyday AUSSIE @GalGeelong for letting me know. Overview The Minister for Workplace Safety, the Hon. [...]
With two damning reports by the Victorian Ombudsman, WorkSafe Victoria and their greedy Insurer mates still find a way to avoid liability for their crimes – yes, crimes! I'm owed at least a few years of my wages while fighting the system – and the rest! Having to sell my home and use it as equity to start a new life due to the lack of support and unethical actions by WorkSafe and thei Insurers. The Victorian Government also escapes liability by allowing WorkSafe and their insurers to act unethically and by assigning an organisation to pretty much legislate itself. I was truly ecstatic to read this article and can imagine the relief of NSW injured workers to finally be able to move past the devastating treatment, trauma and hardship behind them... hopefully! This type of unjust treatment leaves a lot more damage than the injuries we endure at work. Unacknowledged as if we were a third world country. Shameful of Australia... except for NSW! (NSW insurer icare apologises for underpaying injured workers $38 million by Danuta Kozaki Posted
After speaking with Kris Vanston I now know that injured workers do have the Victorian Ombudsman to turn too for unfairness issues within the WorkCover system. I had my doubts about contesting my impairment score of 0% (that was deemed permanent I might add), as I am very well aware and have ranted aplenty about Chronic Pain NOT being acknowledged in the guidelines that are used to assess injured workers. That means there is Australian legislation (I'll rephrase; it is legal) for WorkSafe practitioners to ignore Chronic pain, thus Pudendal Neuralgia. No where within the system will any WorkCover practitioner be able to assess an injured worker's Chronic pain. I'm experiencing the result of this, I've been living this ignorance since March 2007. I wrote a letter that was ignored for a few months by our WorkCover Minister, WorkSafe and SafeWork Australia. The Victorian Ombudsman employee informed me not to use the 'info' email address but rather the 'enquiries' one when I'm writing to WorkSafe. Ridiculous but he was right and I eventually received a response. (Enter sarcasm) I now feel completely healed and completely relieved with the empty response I received. It managed to 'acknowledge', 'agree', 'assure' and confirm all the points relating to this outdated system that I initially made in my letter. I'm also more at ease knowing everyone who assessed me ignored all my symptoms and inabilities and that was legal. I'm also proud of the staff at WorkSafe who are happy to abide by ignorant and narrow-minded measures that would also apply to them in the event they injured themselves at work. Above all, I'm in awe of the WorkSafe staff and all related employees and practitioners who's reports are so loyal and discerning of these out-of-date AMA4 guidelines (with pain chapter removed), and The Accident Compensation Act 1987. This template response clearly indicated to me that anyone with chronic pain and with any of the following symptoms/limitations, as a result of a workplace accident will not get compensation: affected toilet function, spasms where you really don't want them, sensory pain (in my case throughout the pelvis), toothachey nerve pain, weakening legs, burning, zinging, if you have limited sitting ability, if you are limited in walking, standing, working, lifting, bending, exercising, if you have an implant as a result of pain (or even if you need one for that matter), if you rely on daily help, if you can't drive, shop, sit and type this damn email in one hit etc etc...! Well thank you WorkSafe for the 'quality' protection you promise. And Heidi just one question, would this letter have been acceptable for you if you were in my shoes?
I’m so disappointed in Adele Ferguson and Chris Gillett. I can’t believe this is an ABC story. Firstly, I do want to express my sadness for the people in the story whose lives were taken, [...]
WorkSafe Victoria Instructed to Treat Injured Workers With Dignity and Respect My letter has arrived informing me that I am one of the 1,500 long-term injured workers WorkSafe is contacting. So, I had to learn what this was about. It would be best if you were prepared in these distressing situations even though you anticipate the return to the fire pit. A letter from WorkSafe is never a simple letter. It will never be pleasant, never hopeful and nor will it ever be about justice, support or care. Letters from WorkSafe are about WorkSafe and steered at ticking their boxes. Injured workers now have to help WorkSafe clean up their mess.
Everything that chronic pain had undone in the first nine years of this 14-year nightmare, Theo and I have managed to finally mend. Stitch by stitch, we made a new house, founded a new livelihood, purchased a more comfy car, made new friends, welcomed a different breed of fur child and all of this in a new (unfamiliar) town. It's a rebirth! All of this, driven by the hunt for pain management after a ball pop, drop and a bang. Or was it...?
For a second time, the Victorian Ombudsman (VO) investigated WorkSafe and their insurer’s activities. Deborah Glass described her findings as ‘Immoral and unethical’. Certainly, that fits the description of my experience with this system over the last 13 years. What [...]
No one within the system has fear of prosecution - not even a fear of a single penalty! No one within the system has been or will be called to explain their actions and held to account. This makes my blood boil! I haven't even heard the support will be returned to workers who were delivered unfair decisions and had to walk away from their support. But I want my money back! Where are my years of wages after having a decision overturned unfairly at the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service (ACCS) by the Agent? And the rest...?
