By
SHERRY HALBROOKIn less than two months, a PEF member went from the professional ranks at his state agency to heading it.
In May, Robert E. Beloten, a hearing officer for the state Workers Compensation Board, was confirmed by the state Senate as a WCB commissioner.
Just weeks later, Gov. David Paterson announced July 2 he had named Beloten to chair the board.
After a total of 25 years as a PEF member at the WCB and previously at the state Racing and Wagering Board, Beloten now heads the $5.5 billion system. The WCB has approximately 1,500 employees and handles approximately 140,000 cases annually.
Workers Comp is a specialized judicial system that pits injured workers and their advocates against employers and their insurance carriers. At stake are funding for medical care and weekly compensation during the recovery period.
Beloten succeeds Zachary Weiss, who served nearly two years as board chair following his appointment by Gov. Eliot Spitzer as part of an effort to streamline and reform the beleaguered system.
“Our workers compensation system actually started a long time ago in Germany and came to the U.S. after the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire that took 146 lives in 1911 in New York City,” Beloten said. The idea, he added, is to keep cases involving workers who are killed or injured on the job out of the civil court system, and give them their own venue and law.
After decades of personally hearing and deciding more than 50,000 of these cases, the former member of PEF Division 285 has developed his own goals and priorities for leadership in reforming the system.
“I’d like to see injured workers get their benefits faster than they do now, and receive better medical care and rehabilitation so they can get back on the job sooner. Most people want to work and be self-sufficient,” Beloten said, “and that’s the best possible outcome.
