Our "Q&A"
section highlights the expertise of our attorneys on timely
issues impacting California employers.
The question-and-answer format allows for expert feedback in a
concise and logical manner.
Click here for the current expert
Q&AFor more information about one of our Q&As, please feel free
to contact an RPNA partner, or e-mail us at
rpnalaw@rpnalaw.com. |
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INDIAN SOVEREIGNTY Vincent Gannuscio has focused his practice on the
representation of businesses in commercial, tort, and
insurance matters—with an emphasis on litigation, trial, and
appellate matters. He has been directly involved with the
firm's cases involving the issue of Indian sovereignty and
discusses how it relates to California's workers' compensation
system as well as the employer community at large. |
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Q |
Why
has the issue of Indian sovereignty become such a hot topic in
the legal arena?
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A |
The Indian staffing issue with which my
firm has been intimately involved is really a blend of two hot
political issues … (1) the role that Indian tribes are
beginning to play in our state and in our economy, and (2) the
ongoing workers' compensation crisis.
The first issue stems from the economic emergence of some
Indian tribes. Indian tribes are no longer relying on
traditional forms of generating income—gambling and
on-reservation sales of products such as cigarettes and
liquor—but are instead looking to expand into businesses off
reservation and integrate into the economy. This has a lot of
people upset and worried because Indian tribes are exempt from
many types of state regulation and from taxation.
On top of that controversy is the workers' compensation
crisis. Premiums continue to be extremely high, higher than
many businesses in the state can afford. Some businesses look
to tribal staffing programs as a means to stay in business by
hiring tribal employees not subject to the workers'
compensation laws. This has a number of people closely
involved with the existing system (which Insurance
Commissioner John Garamendi admits is "broken") very worried,
not the least the state regulators who oversee the existing
system.
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Q |
RPNA has recently filed a lawsuit and
several motions on behalf of various Indian tribes. Why is
RPNA
becoming a strong advocate for the rights of Indian tribes in
California?
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A |
We
look at our work on behalf of the Indian tribes as really
being on behalf of the California employers who RPNA has been
serving for many years. As California's leading employers'
rights firm in the field of workers' compensation insurance
matters, we have been inundated with calls from clients and
potential clients who either cannot obtain affordable workers'
compensation insurance, cannot obtain any insurance, or fall
victim to unscrupulous insurers who do not provide the
coverage or legal compliance they promise.
By working on behalf of Indian tribes and with state
regulators to attempt to make Indian staffing a viable choice,
we are hoping to provide California employers a means to stay
afloat while ensuring the proper care of their employees
should they be injured on the job.
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Q |
Isn't using Indian tribal PEOs just
another way that California businesses are evading California
law's requirement of providing proper worker's compensation
coverage for their employees?
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A |
We believe that a viable tribal staffing
program, properly set up and administered, can provide in many
instances a better way for employers to provide care for their
employees than under the traditional workers' compensation
system. Even with recent changes to the law, workers'
compensation insurance premiums are by far the highest in the
nation, and the level of benefits provided to injured workers
among the lowest.
The delivery of benefits to these workers is extremely slow,
delaying what ought to be the purpose of workers' compensation
… to get injured employees treated, compensated for their
injuries, and back to work. Tribal staffing programs often
provide the same level of benefits to injured workers, only
faster and more efficiently. A viable, well-administered
tribal program can be a benefit to both employers and
employees.
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Q |
What outcome does RPNA expect from these
cases?
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A |
We
expect and hope that our tribal staffing clients—whether
through the ongoing litigation or cooperation with the
state—can put into place a viable system of staffing which
provides injured workers with the same (if not more) benefits
than under existing state law without the delays and
frustrations of dealing with the existing bureaucratic
nightmare that is found in California’s current workers'
compensation system.
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Q |
What other work has RPNA done in the area of workers'
compensation for non-Indian employers?
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A |
RPNA
is the state's leading employers' rights firm in the field of
workers' compensation insurance and rating matters. RPNA
attorneys established the law in the state holding insurers
accountable for the manner in which they treat their insureds
in terms of underwriting insurance policies and handling
claims under those policies. RPNA has helped numerous employers
whose workers' compensation rates have been artificially
increased due to the mishandling, negligence, and bad faith of
their insurers. RPNA has successfully represented employers
before the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau, the
Department of Insurance, and courts throughout the state. RPNA
has also successfully represented employers in other types of
matters, including defense of employee claims, disputes with
other types of insurers, and before the Labor Commissioner.
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