A battle is brewing over the new ergonomic standards that took effect in January 2001. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) claims that their new ergonomic regulations will reduce Workers Comp costs by billions of dollars a year, and cut repetitive-motion injuries in half during the next decade. Organized labor has supported new regulations, and is counted among the strong supporters of the new stand-ards. Business interests are fighting the standards, estimated to cost $4.5 billion to implement. Congress has yet to take a position on the new standards set by a presidential executive order.

Employers have until October 2001 to comply with the standards that require an accounting of the physical limitations of workers. Employers and employees must face changing work tools, altering workstations, new rules on breaks and certain chores, and improved job education and training.

A typical business response to the new rules is this statement by Walter B. McCormick, Jr., chief executive officer of the American Trucking Association (ATA), "ATA strongly supports workplace safety and injury reduction, but we cannot endorse this flawed and irrational rule. It is not based on sound scientific principles. There is no medical consensus that it can deliver results."

Reducing musculoskeletal disorder problems, including carpal tunnel syndrome, is a worthy aim. But a cost effective approach is also important. Expect to see movement toward a safer workplace and new ergonomic standards after Congress and the courts have had their say. Stay tuned.
 

Embracing the entrepreneurial spirit by opening your own Internet store sounds enticing. No opening and closing everyday. No dressing up for work. No missing customers because of time away from the store.

However, don’t overlook the drawbacks Internet sellers are finding. What will draw potential customers to your store? This is a question even traditional stores must answer. You can advertise on other popular Web sites, in print, or on radio and television. But, as many Web entrepreneurs have discovered, advertising is expensive. You can promote your site on Internet directories and search engines, but these usually require specific knowledge, programming, and money.

How will your Web site, and especially your storefront, look? Will it encourage visitors to enter? You can hire a professional Webmaster to create the site. You can build your own site with a kit for a couple hundred dollars, or a friend with the proper knowledge can do it. No matter who creates your site, it must be appealing.

What about the logistics? Will you ship orders from your own warehouse, or hire an outside fulfillment company? How will your shopping cart work? Do you have a merchant account for processing credit cards?

An important consideration is insurance against the special legal risks of operating a business over the Internet, and for the business property and inventory necessary to operate a Web store. Insurance companies are developing new forms of protection, or adapting old ones, for Web use. If you’re thinking about opening a Web store, contact our agency to tailor a proper insurance program for you.  
 

Just four days after opening for ski season last November, a fire destroyed 120 rooms at the Vail Marriott Mountain Resort. The fire burned for six hours before it was brought under control. Fortunately no guests were injured, but the fire caused several million dollars in damage. The resulting loss of 120 rooms at the start of the season might have inflicted an even larger financial loss than the physical damage to the building. Thankfully, the Marriott resort has Business Interruption insurance, a product designed to cover a business’s loss of income due to perils such as fire.
 

While almost all businesses insure against property loss, many companies fail to protect themselves against business income loss. An interesting fact about Business Interruption insurance is that it’s written not on the value of the business, but on a business’s expected earnings. By considering patterns, projections, and the performance of comparable companies, businesses and agencies work together to arrive at adequate coverage.

You can also get Business Interruption insurance to protect your firm against another company suffering a disabling loss. For example, perhaps there was a ski shop right next to the Marriott, which generated 90% of the shop’s business. The shop could be insured against the Marriott’s fire. Or if a single manufacturer supplied all of the ski shop’s skis and that firm had a loss, the shop could take out coverage against the manufacturer’s inability to supply them.

Think of your business’s potential income losses, and the need to insure yourself. Let’s discuss your specific concerns.
 

Junk mail. Telemarketing. As if these weren’t bad enough, now e-mail is being used as a sales tool. Before you start sending them, be aware that many people resent unsolicited messages.

There’s been legislative interest in restricting the use of unsolicited e-mail, or "spam." Congress has already passed a law that restricts sending unsolicited commercial faxes.

One way to avoid alienating potential customers is by getting their permission to add them to your e-mail list.

OSHA on the Internet

Go to the Internet at www.osha.gov for details of OSHA’s new ergonomic standards. How does your organization stack up against standards set for implementation by October 2001?

You can also go to The Standards Watch at www.ergoweb.com. Their resource page presents updated news, statistical data, and information on how the regulations could affect your company.

Or try a key word search from your Web browser. As the debate continues over the next several months, you can expect an abundance of feedback from all sides throughout the Internet.

The Insurance Cycle

Our economy goes through ups and downs that economists call business cycles. Currently we’re seeing a fall from the peak that the economy reached last fall. In insurance there are also peaks and valleys known as hard and soft markets. A hard market refers to rising prices for insurance and less availability, and a soft market refers to lower prices and greater availability of coverage.

The insurance cycle is most pronounced in Workers Compensation where legislative reform, medical costs, and other factors can have a strong influence on premiums. All forms of Property and Casualty insurance are affected to some extent by these cycles. When businesses budget for premiums, they can form a more accurate picture of insurance costs by calculating the average of premiums paid during the past several years. Insurance agencies can generally tell whether premiums are headed up or down, and are able to help companies with budgeting.

Inflation in medical costs, increasing liability judgments, catastrophes, and other factors will affect the ability of insurance companies to maintain or lower premiums. In every state insurance regulators are responsible for insurance company solvency — and this means some control over rates. Artificially low premiums can strike at the financial solvency of an insurance company. Varying premiums to reflect market conditions is essential.

Look, No Wires!

Purchasing goods and services on the Internet is known as e-commerce. Now it’s being superseded by "m-commerce." M (mobile)-commerce means conducting business, sending and receiving messages, and making purchases using handheld wireless devices. The prospect of 24/7 m-commerce with worldwide connectivity has the power to change life patterns. While some people balk at the idea of such availability, others view it as a freedom from ties to home and business.

Ken Dulaney, an analyst with the Gartner Group (Stamford, CT) says, "What mobile computing does is give computing legs. It is the bridge between the e-world and the physical world."

Welcome to the 21st century! The possibilities are endless. You’ll never forget an important document. Just call it up from your base computer. You can forward emergency patient information to a medical facility. You can reach anyone at any time.

However, the ability to immediately determine a person’s location in the m-commerce world raises questions of privacy protection. And of course, m-commerce will challenge the insurance industry to develop new coverages or modify old ones to meet as yet unforeseen risks.

COPYRIGHT ©2001. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is under-stood that the publishers are not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert advice is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

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