Letter to the editor: Newspapers, TV stations failed to cover WSI rally

Talk about it

Daily newspapers and most TV stations in North Dakota failed to cover a recent story after they were given a news release about an injured workers rally in Bismarck and delivery of a “Bill of Rights for Injured Workers in North Dakota” to Gov. John Hoeven and Workforce Safety and Insurance Executive Director Brian Klipfel on Oct. 15. (The TV exception was KX News, a radio exception was Jason Spiess, talk show host at KFGO, Fargo.)

After meeting personally with me, Hoeven and Klipfel pledged to review the issues and discuss them with us. I hope they make changes in the operation of WSI. However, no matter how willing they may be, they are limited by our state laws.

In spite of passage of Measure 4 by a 2/3 majority in 2008, workers can still get injured on the job and be told their injuries are not covered by WSI because of pre-existing conditions or degeneration even if the condition or degeneration was caused by their job. Injured workers can receive disability pay from WSI for years and suddenly be told they will no longer get checks because WSI decided their injuries were pre-existing. It is not against workers compensation law to lie in order to deny benefits to an injured worker. It is extremely difficult for injured workers to understand the red tape and to find legal representation. The list goes on.

Members of The North Dakota Injured Workers Support Group and others will be circulating the bill of rights to gather signatures of support. Strong public support for this action will send a message to those legislators who have resisted changing the laws. Thank you in advance for your support.

Sylvan Loegering

West Fargo, N.D.

(Loegering is volunteer coordinator of the North Dakota Injured Workers Support Group)

Tags: opinion, letters, wsi, rally, newspaper, tv