Legislature(2003 - 2004)
03/09/2004 01:30 PM Senate L&C
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 323-WORKERS COMPENSATION AND CONTRACTORS CHAIR CON BUNDE announced SB 323 to be up for consideration. SENATOR RALPH SEEKINS, sponsor, said he felt the same way about a contractor's responsibility now as he did when he first had the bill drafted. When a homeowner hires a professional to perform work, they shouldn't have to rise to the same level of professional responsibility as a project owner. A contractor in the business of building homes, who hires subcontractors to do framing, plumbing and electrical work, should bear that level of responsibility because of their professional capabilities. That is why homeowners are deliberately left out of the bill. MR. PHIL EIDE, Counsel to the State Chamber of Commerce, offered to answer questions on the bill along with his colleague, Jack Miller, both from the firm of Eide, Miller & Pate. CHAIR BUNDE pointed out that E-mail from Mr. Jack Miller discussed how the chain of responsibility from project owner through subcontractor would occur. As I read this, it expands the obligation for workers' compensation up to the project owner and the people below them that may or may not have workers' compensation, but the buck stops at the top. That's if I understand it correctly. MR. JACK MILLER, Counsel to the State Chamber of Commerce, said that is a correct interpretation and this bill does not affect the state statute that requires companies to get workers' compensation insurance. TAPE 04-21, SIDE B MR. MILLER said that is a moot point in relation to this legislation. MS. MARY SHIELDS, General Manager, Northwest Technical Services, said that she supports SB 323. She stated: Workers' compensation, as we all know, was established to cover workplace injuries without the need of an employee to file in court for just medical and wage compensation occurred at the job site. This has enabled employees and employers to be assured that if the employee was injured on the job, the employee would not be abandoned and we would not end up with court cases. However, the increased use of contract employees in the workplace has left an opening for additional recoveries, which I believe is inappropriate except in the most egregious circumstances. Northwest Technical Services is a provider of personnel to a large variety of companies in the State of Alaska. It is our responsibility to assure appropriate workers' compensation coverage is in place. It should not also be our responsibility to cover tort liability lawsuits in the event an employee should seek action against a client based on a workplace injury, as workers' compensation coverage should extend up the line to the client company, as well. While there may rest a need in this law to establish an exception for deliberate negligence action or inaction in maintaining a safe workplace environment by a company, this is a necessary bill and needs to move forward. I thank you, Mr. Chairman, and the members of the committee for your time. CHAIR BUNDE asked if anyone else in Juneau wanted to testify on SB 323. There was no response and he asked the will of the committee. SENATOR SEEKINS moved to pass SB 323 from committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal note. SENATOR FRENCH objected and said that he thought the last comment from Mr. Miller pointed out that this bill would do nothing to increase the amount of workers' compensation coverage or expand the obligation to procure it and it takes away a workers' right to sue a project owner for unsafe conditions. "I think that's a bad exchange and for that reason I'm opposed to that idea." SENATOR SEEKINS countered: It doesn't change anything that is there now, but if you look at the last part, if they fail to do so... and a contractor or subcontractor does not have the required insurance, a claim would be covered under the project owner's policy - extending the obligation for paying workers' compensation benefits for an extended worker to the project owner, contractors and his subcontractors. That's the intent of the bill and I think it gives significant benefit to those people who are on the job. CHAIR BUNDE asked for a roll call vote. Senators Gary Stevens, Ralph Seekins and Chair Con Bunde voted yea; Senator Bettye Davis and Hollis French voted nay; and SB 323 passed from committee.
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