Archive
OSHA Releases New Trucking Safety Flier
Trucking
Image: osha.gov
Jon Schorsch worked as a sergeant with the Port of Seattle Police Department for more than a decade before earning his juris doctor from the Seattle University School of Law. Throughout his professional career, Jon Schorsch often dealt with issues pertaining to codes set forth by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
In April 2018, OSHA released a new flier aimed at tackling the three most dangerous situations that commercial tractor trailer drivers will face in their duties: parking, driving in reverse, and coupling and decoupling trailers. The information is salient given that, of the 96 fatalities related to trucking reported just in the Midwest between the years of 2015 and 2017, more than a dozen were related to coupling or decoupling issues.
The flier addresses best practices for those procedures, how to properly park and secure the vehicle when exiting, and step-by-step tips for what to look for when backing up. In some instances, it may be necessary to use a spotter when putting a truck in reverse if the terrain is narrow or not entirely visible in the mirror.
Reasonable Accommodations Under the ADA
ADA
Image: ADA.gov
Jon Schorsch is a deacon at Mill Creek Community Church and is involved with the United Way as well as the Port of Seattle Police Department Benevolent Association. A former police sergeant, Jon Schorsch also worked at the King County Department of Public Defense. Additionally, he possesses technical expertise in COBRA, OSHA, FMLA, and the ADA, among other areas. The ADA refers to the Americans with Disabilities Act, a civil rights law that was signed by President George H.W. Bush in 1990.
In addition to prohibiting discrimination against individuals with disabilities, the ADA helps to ensure equal opportunities for disabled Americans. Under the law, employers must provide reasonable accommodations for disabled employees unless it would cause an undue hardship. Reasonable accommodations include a wide range of workplace modifications that help disabled individuals do their jobs. For example, an employer may modify desks or facilities so that a person in a wheelchair can utilize them or modify scheduled work hours to allow an employee to receive medical care.
For additional information on the ADA and reasonable accommodations, visit www.ada.gov.
Mediation Versus Traditional Courtroom Litigation
Mediation
Image: voaww.org
Public service professional Jon Schorsch was formerly a sergeant at the Port of Seattle Police Department. Active in civil service, Jon Schorsch volunteers with Volunteers of America – Mediation, a service offered by the national nonprofit organization.
Mediation is a form of dispute resolution where a neutral third party helps individuals or groups in conflict come up with an agreeable solution. It can often serve as an alternative to the formal court process. Neutral mediators sit down with the parties in conflict and work together toward realizing a mutually agreeable solution.
Mediation has a number of benefits, including:
– Affordability
It is more cost-effective to settle a dispute through mediation than through the court system. This is because there are no legal fees, court filing fees, or related litigation costs.
– Quick resolution of disputes
Mediation usually takes days or weeks, unlike the court process which can drag on for months or even years. Because it is informal, the parties can engage more and even set up a convenient schedule that allows them to dispense with the matter quickly.
– Confidential
Unlike court proceedings which are public, mediation is usually conducted in a private setting.
– Win-win
Mediators focus on helping the parties come up with a mutually agreeable solution. It is different from the court process, where a third party makes a final determination which may favor one side while leaving the other disappointed with the outcome.
Mill Creek Community Church Hosts Sunday Contemporary Service
Mill Creek Community Church
Image: millcreekchurch.com
With an extensive career in law enforcement, Jon Schorsch is a former police sergeant with the Port of Seattle Police Department in Seattle, Washington. Active in his community, Jon Schorsch belongs to the Mill Creek Community Church (MCCC).
MCCC connects people through worship, prayer, and generosity. The biblically centered church cultivates spiritual growth and strives to build relationships through a walk with God. MCCC began in 1989 as a church plant for the Christian Reformed Church and moved into its current building in 2001.
Worshipers can attend the MCCC contemporary service on Sundays at 10 a.m. Children aged 3 and younger can stay in the nursery, while kids through fifth grade can attend Sunday school classes and stay with their parents for the rest of the service. When the service ends, congregants can visit the prayer room to pray alone or with others.
A Snapshot of COBRA Benefits
COBRA
Image: investopedia.com
Former police sergeant Jon Schorsch holds a Juris Doctor and a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Seattle University. Currently, Jon Schorsch serves as an intern at the King County Department of Public Defense, where he applies his technical proficiency in equal employment, OSHA regulations, FMLA, and COBRA among other areas.
COBRA, or the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, ensures employees have access to continuing healthcare in the event of a termination, cut in hours, or other qualifying event. Employers that provide health coverage and employee more than twenty individuals are subject to these COBRA requirements.
Under the law, employers must provide the same benefits that their existing employees receive to qualified beneficiaries under COBRA. These benefits include health care, medical spending accounts, dental plans, and vision coverage. Moreover, they must also provide coverage for prescription drugs and hearing as well as substance abuse and mental health services. However, employers do not have to provide life insurance, disability insurance, or retirement plans to qualified beneficiaries.
Mediation under Volunteers of America
Volunteers of America Mediation
Image: voaww.org
An attorney and former police officer, Jon Schorsch is experienced in the many facets of employment law, labor relations, and civil and criminal investigations. Passionate about community service, Jon Schorsch supports Volunteers of America Mediation, an organization that promotes mediation as an alternative form of dispute resolution.
Mediation is a form of conflict resolution where people with a dispute sit together in the presence of an impartial mediator to discuss the problem and find a mutually-agreeable solution. The process is voluntary and absolutely confidential. It can be used to settle family, neighborhood, workplace, landlord/tenant, and business disputes.
During mediation, the mediator, a neutral third party, will begin by explaining the mediation process and setting out the procedure for everyone to follow. Next, each party will make his or her statement without interruption, and then the mediator will facilitate discussion while working toward a mutually-agreeable solution. Negotiation is done without violating the requirements of good faith and open communication. Once an agreeable solution is arrived at, it is put in writing.
Volunteer Mediation: A Peaceful Way to Resolve Differences, By Jon Schorsch
Volunteers of America, Western Washington chapter, offers a variety of helpful services to Seattle and the surrounding communities. Among other services, the organization provides mediation and facilitation for those who need it. Mediation refers to aiding in disagreements between separate parties, whereas facilitation is the process of remedying internal conflicts between the members of a group. By taking advantage of Volunteers of America’s mediation and facilitation service, many disputes and interpersonal conflicts can be resolved without having to resort to more drastic methods such as going through the legal system.
The mediation/facilitation process is totally voluntary and confidential. Mediators are trained to remain neutral and work with both parties to help reach a compromise that is agreeable all around. Moreover, mediation services are available for many common types of disagreement. Mediators are on hand to help figure out problems between tenants and landlords, neighbors, and family members, as well as to resolve consumer complaints and more. Facilitation services likewise provide a way to find a compromise on which every member of a group with the same interest, such as a neighborhood association or parent-teacher association, can agree.
Taking advantage of Volunteers of America’s mediation services has several benefits. By bringing a dispute to mediation, a win-win outcome with input from both sides can often be achieved. Additionally, the mediation system is much faster and cheaper than the formal court system. Best of all, mediation has a very high rate of resolution.
About the author: Jon Schorsch is a former police officer and police sergeant for the Port of Seattle. Jon Schorsch volunteers as a mediator with the Volunteers of America of Western Washington.
