Court Sides with Employer in Worker's Claim of Exposure to Pollutants

HARRISBURG, Pa. - A factory worker who claimed to have contracted bronchial disease from workplace exposure to PCBs and other pollutants lost his bid for disability benefits when a Pennsylvania court affirmed a workers' compensation decision in favor of the employer. Meyers v. Workers Compensation Appeal Board, No. 1143 C.D. 2010 (Pa. Commwlth. Ct.).

The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court affirmed a ruling of the Workers' Compensation Appeal Board in favor of Alcoa Inc. on Jan. 3, declining to link the claimant's bronchietectasis to an occupational cause.

Ronald Meyers filed a claim for a work-related injury in October 2006,conteinding that he was …