We Need Your Help -- Focus Groups
Public Entities - Cyberattacks
Fruits of Their Own Labor Claims
Sidewalks – How perfect do they need to be?
Fall has arrived in N.C.
The Check is in the Mail
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The N.C. League of Municipalities and our Health Benefits Trust (HBT) is holding an Online Focus Group, and we need your help!
Wednesday, December 11, 2019 | 11:00 am
By participating and sharing your candid feedback about group health insurance, the League's Health Benefits Trust, and/or what your municipality needs from a health insurance company, you will help make future HBT coverage options better for all cities and towns across the state. Log on December 11th at 11:00 am to participate in the online focus group - it's easy, just type your honest responses to the discussion questions. Responses are anonymous.
Plus - Earn $25 for Your Help! The first 100 participants to complete the focus group, will receive a $25 Amazon gift card as a token of our appreciation!
This past April was a bad month for cybersecurity in local governments. There were multiple reported attacks that led to shutdowns of services, including critical public safety functions. Although municipalities have been targets of cyberattacks previously, both the frequency of the attacks and their consequences have increased. Municipalities increasingly rely on their computer networks to deliver services to their residents, and as they build out “smart city" infrastructure, the impacts of outages are truly felt in the real world.
It's important to implement good informative security practices. It's also important to recognize that you can't achieve 100 percent security; there will always be a new vulnerability or gap.
Therefore, it's critical for municipalities to develop an incident response plan to guide their actions if a malware attack causes an outage. This is an extension of your disaster recovery plan; in addition to a strategy for bringing systems back on line, you'll need a process to identify data that's been exposed or tampered with, plus a way to minimize the impact on the public. A mindset of “who'd be interested in us?" is no longer viable.
It will be imperative for all our cities and towns, small to large, to remain vigilant in preventing a cyberattack by deploying firewalls, antivirus software and redundancy plans as well as training municipal employees in safe computing practices. Recent data show that employee negligence or malfeasance has become the top source of breaches.
Our property and liability trust continues to partner with Beazley, to provide our members with cyber insurance coverage. The cyber policy automatically provides a per-member cyber limit of $100,000, with the option for members to purchase higher limits if needed.
In conclusion, as an IRFFNC/Beazley policy holder, members have access to a proprietary risk management website containing valuable resources, such as sample privacy policies and procedures, breach response and preparedness materials and state and federal regulatory updates. www.beazleybreachsolutions.com,
If you have already registered at www.beazleybreachsolutions.com, you do not need to re-register. If you have not, you will need to register the first time you visit the site. Please use your business email address and your activation code, XXXXXX. You will only need this code the first time you logon. In subsequent visits, simply use the password you created on your first visit to the site. If you need assistance with registration please email bbrservices@beazley.com or contact your NCLM IRFFNC underwriters: UW Email: RMSUnderwriting@zyjqlt.com.
A city employee, referred to as “John Smith" for the purposes of this article, was hired by a North Carolina municipal police department. Soon after, he was promoted to the rank of corporal. Four years after that, John Smith sought a promotion to sergeant. Smith tested for the position and did not receive a passing score. The employee reviewed a copy of the test and found that answers were based on outdated law. Smith filed a grievance regarding the discrepancy in the test answers and was denied a grievance hearing.
Smith sought legal action and asserted that the city violated Article I, Section 19 of the North Carolina Constitution, which states that we “hold it to be self-evident that all persons are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor, and the pursuit of happiness." The N.C. Court of Appeals majority concluded that “it is inherently arbitrary for a government entity to establish and promulgate policies and procedures and then fail to follow them, but further to claim that an employee subject to those policies and procedures is not entitled to challenge that failure." The majority also stated that “irrational and arbitrary" government actions violate the “fruits of their own labor" clause."
What does this mean for local government employers? The opinion of the courts is not limited to just promotional processes; rather, it is much broader in scope, including all policies, standard operating procedures and written directives. Local government employers need to be aware that it is a violation of the North Carolina Constitution if the following occurs: (1) a public employer has a clear employment rule or policy; (2) the employer violates that rule or policy; and (3) the employee suffers an adverse consequence.
What can local governments do to prevent “fruits of their own labor" claims? Follow all policies, standard operating procedures and written directives. There are times when local governments may forget there is policy in place or simply do not follow the policy. To avoid “fruits of their own labor" claims, local governments may want to consider updating the policy or removing the policy if it is no longer applicable.
If you have questions about the applicability of the above case scenario and opinion, please do not hesitate to contact Human Resources Consultants, Heather James (hjames@zyjqlt.com) or Hartwell Wright (hwright@zyjqlt.com) for more information.
Sidewalks are costly: on the budget, in manpower and, potentially, as a liability.
Municipalities invest large sums into maintaining our roads and sidewalks, but given the steep service demands, their day-to-day statuses can go unchecked. Problems can arise quickly. Well-trafficked areas can develop uneven surfaces. And as a result, these local assets can become one of the largest exposures for potential claims.
Now, it's important to note that municipalities are not required to keep sidewalks and road surfaces perfectly flat. Level and defect-free sidewalks are often unattainable, and certain differences in surface elevations are not only acceptable, but to be expected in popular areas, such as downtown.
That being said, these issues should not be ignored. It is important to develop an inspection protocol, so hazards can be addressed and prioritized. A system should be in place allowing observers—whether that be police, utility departments, or citizens—to easily report an area of concern. Those reports would be inventoried, and each individual concern would lead to an initial inspection, record of the findings, and any future plans of action.
After those steps are taken, the municipality's determination should be recorded. For significant concerns, where the municipality concludes that further action is needed, then the public needs to be made aware of the concern. Cones, barricades, or tape should be used to mark a potentially hazardous area after it has been identified, and repairs should be made as timely as possible.
If there has been an accident in the area, it is important to report this to the NCLM Claims Department immediately, so an investigation can be done by our staff to determine if there is an exposure to the municipality for damages. If any remedial repairs are done, be sure to photograph and measure the area before it is marked with warning devices. This information can make a huge difference in determining if there is fault exposure to the municipality.
It is in these cases that the above-mentioned record-keeping system is critical. When followed, the municipality will have documentation on all reported issues, subsequent inspections and determinations, and an explanation of what actions are or are not being taken concerning the problem.
Most importantly, if a fall or injury has occurred, notify NCLM Claims immediately. Our staff is always available to discuss any questions and we encourage you to contact us with these questions.
Fall has finally arrived in North Carolina! What a great time to get outside in the cooler air for a little exercise! This time of the year is perfect for checking out a new hiking trail, or raking up those leaves in the backyard, but most importantly just it's a great time to get outside!
This is also a good time of year to check in with your health. Have you gotten your annual physical? How about those age-appropriate cancer screenings? Don't forget about your eyes and teeth. Regular eye and dental exams are a critical part of preventative health care. Many times, these exams can detect early onset of a variety of diseases (i.e., high blood pressure, stroke, thyroid disorders, cancer, arthritis, diabetes).
For members of NCLM's Health Benefits Trust (HBT), please pay attention to mailers from Medcost, our third-party administrator for the Health Benefits Trust. Reminders of wellness requirements are being mailed out monthly starting in September. To avoid the non-compliance 10 percent rate surcharge (to be paid by the employee for 12 months), get those screenings in before the end of the calendar year and accept any calls from your personal care management nurse.
For further information pertaining to the HBT's wellness requirements, please contact HBT staff or Medcost customer service.
On accepted workers compensation injuries, after the seven-day waiting period is met and the injured worker remains disabled, indemnity benefits are paid based on two-thirds of the average weekly wage. The average weekly wage is calculated by averaging the injured workers' pre-injury wage earnings 52 weeks prior to the date of injury. This would include overtime, bonuses, cost-of-living adjustment, et cetera. Once the average weekly wage is set, it will not change for the life of the claim.
The current maximum weekly compensation rate is $1,028; for 2020 it will increase to $1,066. The minimum compensation remains $30. Workers compensation benefits are not taxable.
When the injured worker is written out of work completely or unable to return to the job due to temporary restrictions, that worker is paid Temporary Total Disability benefits on a weekly basis. This would be the two-thirds of the average weekly wage. When the injured worker is able to return to work but earns less than the average weekly wage due to restrictions, medical appointments or limits on job availability, we will pay Temporary Partial Disability, which is basically making up the wage difference. Sick time and vacation time should not be used in lieu of workers' compensation benefits.
The League does offer electronic payment of these weekly benefits. Forms are mailed to the injured worker to complete. If there are any questions regarding this process, please feel free to contact the Workers' Compensation department.
