No help for amputee in the richest province in Canada

JLM

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 27, 2008
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So, this is an issue because it is located in 'Canada's Richest Province' - or is this an issue with the WCB.

It's an issue because a man with a problem could not get help when he needed it. Nowhere in the news was the man deemed responsible for his situation............................SAD!
 

taxslave

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 25, 2008
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But all the responsible (I use the term loosely) bureaucraps got a nice merry christmas. Kind of wonder why he isn't receiving money from WCB or LTD.
 

JLM

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 27, 2008
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That doesn't mean he wasn't.

That is absolutely true, Bear, BUT it could be dangerous to assume he is, also there is an old adage out there......."innocent until proven guilty", but even more important in this country people aren't generally punished by being denied access to the essentials of life.
 

CDNBear

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Sep 24, 2006
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That is absolutely true, Bear, BUT it could be dangerous to assume he is, also there is an old adage out there......."innocent until proven guilty", but even more important in this country people aren't generally punished by being denied access to the essentials of life.
I agree.

But we don't have much to go on here and I'm having difficulty finding much more on it.

He lost his foot in the oil patch, really doesn't tell us much. The fact that he's fighting with WCB is telling. And what does he survive on the rest of the year?
 

lone wolf

Grossly Underrated
Nov 25, 2006
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That is absolutely true, Bear, BUT it could be dangerous to assume he is, also there is an old adage out there......."innocent until proven guilty", but even more important in this country people aren't generally punished by being denied access to the essentials of life.
Innocent until proven guilty doesn't work when dealing with bureaucrats who are the measure they gauge others by.
 

captain morgan

Hall of Fame Member
Mar 28, 2009
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That is absolutely true, Bear, BUT it could be dangerous to assume he is, also there is an old adage out there......."innocent until proven guilty", but even more important in this country people aren't generally punished by being denied access to the essentials of life.


You're making ' a dangerous assumption' also.

This is a WCB issue and assuming that he was covered by his employer, it has nothing to do with what province it happened in.

Further, there is the potential that he was acting as an independent contractor, in which case, one needs to ask the question of he had an up to date WCB account (required by law)... This is a very important consideration in this issue.
 

IdRatherBeSkiing

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May 28, 2007
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I agree.

But we don't have much to go on here and I'm having difficulty finding much more on it.

He lost his foot in the oil patch, really doesn't tell us much. The fact that he's fighting with WCB is telling. And what does he survive on the rest of the year?

Assuming something that was his fault is the only reason that the WCB could be a bunch of pricks. They are an insurance company like ever other.
 

JLM

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 27, 2008
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You're making ' a dangerous assumption' also.

This is a WCB issue and assuming that he was covered by his employer, it has nothing to do with what province it happened in.

Further, there is the potential that he was acting as an independent contractor, in which case, one needs to ask the question of he had an up to date WCB account (required by law)... This is a very important consideration in this issue.

Agreed but when debating on a news item you can only debate what's reported. The man was put in a position of going hungry and that is wrong, S.S. is the last line of help they should have acted immediately and got things sorted out after the holidays.
 

CDNBear

Custom Troll
Sep 24, 2006
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Agreed but when debating on a news item you can only debate what's reported. The man was put in a position of going hungry and that is wrong, S.S. is the last line of help they should have acted immediately and got things sorted out after the holidays.
I can understand your concerns.

But what do they do after the holidays if they find out he's merely squandered his income?
 

JLM

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 27, 2008
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Assuming something that was his fault is the only reason that the WCB could be a bunch of pricks. They are an insurance company like ever other.

Yep, but there's two sides to it W.C.B. has been guilty of horrendous treatment, but workers have been guilty of malingering.

I can understand your concerns.

But what do they do after the holidays if they find out he's merely squandered his income?

I suspect S.S. encounters that problem often and to rectify it they hit the taxpayer for more funds-:)
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
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Chances are good he was responisible for paying his own taxes, pensions, and insurance as a contractor and never did or is collecting an income from a private insurance company.
 

captain morgan

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Mar 28, 2009
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Agreed but when debating on a news item you can only debate what's reported.


Very true, but all you're doing is making a broad assumption as well and lets face facts here, it's the CBC, it's not like they have a track record of being objective on anything

The man was put in a position of going hungry and that is wrong, S.S. is the last line of help they should have acted immediately and got things sorted out after the holidays.

The province didn't 'put him in this position', he got there as the result of an accident that still has significant questions attached to it. As per the article, this event occurred over a year ago and if WCB is actively fighting this, then it's fair to say that they feel they have a reason.

Regarding social services, that is a crappy situation, but it is what it is.. I have to wonder where the friends and family are in this mess, did that ever occur to you or is it simply easier to blame the provincial gvt for all your woes in life?
 

damngrumpy

Executive Branch Member
Mar 16, 2005
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First of all blaming the Alberta Government bureaucracy is not exactly the answer here.
A disagreement with Workers Comp is a different matter entirely, There is an over all
administration of regulation but not the running of the program by Government.
Workers Comp in Alberta as in other jurisdictions is agency financed and for the most
part administered by Employers who pay for the fund. His problem is with Workers Comp.
People involved with workers comp are not dealing with government.
In most cases one can apply to human resources for interim assistance but that does not
always work out it is based on individual cases.

Here is a situation that comes back to haunt some people.. Those who claim the governments
waste tax dollars. Government employees put workers comp cases to additional scrutiny as
they don't want double dipping either. People can't have it both ways, save money and down
grade programs and when there is not enough money howl that someone is being abused by
the system.

We don't know the whole story and what has transpired, or whether the applicant was entitled
to Workers Comp. We insist there are too many employees in these positions making too much
money and when they cut back people howl there is not enough service to activate and to
investigate claims. If there were enough experienced well paid people still on staff at Workers
Comp or in the Human Resources Ministry perhaps this case could have been dealt with in a
timely manner. Oh I suppose this is another left response, true but people wanted less government
and less bureaucracy and now they don't like the fact there is not enough people to do the job.

1 Is there something we don't know?
2 Did he qualify for coverage?
3 What were all the circumstances of the accident?
4 Who is ultimately responsible for handling the claim?
5 Are there too many or not enough people there to do the job?
6 When did he start looking for emergency funding?

That is the big one, anything centered around a Comp claim is going to hold up the claim for
quite a while.
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
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Is it understandable if poor provinces reneg on WBC and don't supply promised social services? The comment about this taking place in Alberta confuses me.