That’s right folks, Gambino’s Pizza magnate and state representative from the Wichita Independent Business Association Gene Suellentrop is carrying the water for the Kansas Chamber and Big Business on reforming how Work Comp Judges and Appeals Board members are selected.
Last year, Labor Secretary Karin Brownlee tried to slip an amendment into the 2011 work comp bill to make each Appeals Board appointment a political appointment of her choosing, but the transparent attempt to stack the Board with anti-worker members was too bold even for this Legislature.
But that’s not stopping the Chamber from trying again to take a system that is balanced today – the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and the Kansas AFL-CIO make up the nominating committee – and add several other groups to the mix to minimize the voice that Working Kansans have in the process.
The end result of Suellentrop’s bill will be a politicized Work Comp process that won’t be trusted by workers because Judges and Appeals Board members are nominated by a committee dominated by Big Business.
We do wonder, though, if Suellentrop would be as eager to see this change if a pro-worker Labor Secretary were in office as opposed to Karin Brownlee?
