KARROW CONSULTING, INC. TOM KARROW, M.ED. CRC, CDMS, CCM

Transcription

1 3104 SOUTH ELMWOOD AVENUE SIOUX FALLS, SD MAILING ADDRESS: P. O. BOX SIOUX FALLS, SD KARROW CONSULTING, INC. TOM KARROW, M.ED. CRC, CDMS, CCM TOLL FREE (877) KCI-ABLE ( ) PH/VOIC (605) FAX (605) CELL (605) [Attorney] [Law Firm] address Re: [Plaintiff] DOB: DOL: Husband s Death Occurring December 2, 2012 VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION EVALUATION [PLAINTIFF] Dear [Attorney]: INTRODUCTION I received a request from your office on October 8, 2015, that I complete a Vocational Rehabilitation Evaluation concerning [Plaintiff s] future employability in relation to her husband s untimely death on December 2, My opinions will include a vocational assessment and labor market information identifying alternate jobs and employment opportunities for [Plaintiff] if she is unable to continue with her current full-time self-employment as a cosmetologist in the St. Cloud, Minnesota, area. For the purposes of this report, I have utilized St. Cloud and the surrounding communities to identify any type of alternate work activity that may be suitable for [Plaintiff]. BACKGROUND INFORMATION For the purposes of this report, I have reviewed and analyzed the following information: 1. Answers to Interrogatories dated September 19, Transcript of Deposition of [Plaintiff]. 3. Tax information from 2005 to Occupational Outlook Handbook for St. Cloud, Minnesota. 5. U.S. Department of Labor O*NET Occupational Information Network. INTERVIEW WITH [PLAINTIFF] I accomplished a personal interview with [Plaintiff] on September 24, At that time I confirmed her age of 35, education, work history, daily activities, career interests, and her ongoing problems with emotional distress

2 Page 2 related to her husband s untimely death when he was hit by a taxicab on December 2, 2012 and subsequently died as a result of his injuries. [Plaintiff] informed me she continues to work as a self-employed cosmetologist in St. Cloud. MEDICAL STATUS PRIOR TO [DECEDENT S] UNTIMELY DEATH According to my interview with [Plaintiff] and review of her deposition, her emotional health was good prior to her husband s death. Since her husband s untimely death, she has had continued emotional distress. She is taking medication for her stress and anxiety and continues to go to counseling sessions for her emotional distress. [Plaintiff] has two children a son age 11 and a daughter age 7. She informed me it has been extremely difficult for her to talk to her children about simple daily activities, school work, hobbies and interests, ever since her husband s death. This causes her anxiety and stress. [Plaintiff s] emotional distress causes concentration problems and lack of focus. She gets fatigued and tires quickly due to the emotional distress. In addition to her grief counseling since her husband s death, she is being treated for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) since January She indicates she sees a counselor once a week. She says she takes Lexapro for depression. It should be noted that side effects of Lexapro include drowsiness and dizziness. EDUCATION/WORK HISTORY Through my interview with [Plaintiff] and review of her deposition, she graduated from high school and is now a self-employed cosmetologist. She has been a self-employed cosmetologist for 7 to 8 years; however, since her husband s untimely death she has found it more difficult to work as a cosmetologist. In this type of position, she must have an outgoing, friendly personality and be able to interact and communicate with her customers. Basically, this type of position requires someone who has a positive mood and attitude at all times when dealing the customers. [Plaintiff] informed me she has found it extremely difficult at times to do her job. She has had to reschedule her clients frequently because her emotional distress interferes with her ability to do her work. [Plaintiff] informed me that she is not able to work past 6:00 in the evening because she has no child care options available to her. She has had to turn away business because she could not accommodate her clients late in the evening. Her husband used to watch the children so that she could work later at night. JOB ANALYSIS The following work history of [Plaintiff] details the professional occupation she has performed. Information pertaining to skill levels and typical physical demands has been taken from the O*NET Occupational Information Network, published by the U.S. Department of Labor. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the O*NET classifications can contain one or more Dictionary of Occupational Titles covering various levels of attained skill and physical demand classifications. The O*NET analysis is used to identify the possibility of occupations within certain labor markets. In order to do this, it is necessary to analyze each occupational title a worker has had to the correct O*NET classification for each job that person has done in their work history. The OASYS 3.8 software program was utilized in conducting my evaluation of [Plaintiff s] transferable skills. By analyzing and defining [Plaintiff s] current professional work history based upon standard U.S. Department of Labor classifications, work group according to physical demands, as well as skill levels, there is a possibility to identify jobs or occupations that an individual in this case, [Plaintiff] may have had transferable skills for. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, these occupations would include requiring the same or lesser degree

3 Page 3 of skill in the same or similar industries or work settings. [Plaintiff s] current professional work history includes the following occupation: 1. Cosmetologist; DOT No This job is classified as light duty and skilled employment. 2. Homemaker; DOT No This job is classified as light duty and semi-skilled employment. It should be noted that [Plaintiff] indicated prior to her husband s death, she fully intended to continue working as a professional cosmetologist on a full-time basis. Since her husband s death, however, she has been dealing with emotional distress, anxiety, and depression. It has been very difficult for her to work on a continuous and full-time basis. There are days when she needs to take time off from her self-employment because her emotional distress is so severe. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the following physical demand classifications would apply to [Plaintiff s] current professional employment: Light Work Exerting up to twenty pounds of force occasionally and/or up to ten pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. Physical demand requirements are in excess of those for sedentary work, even though the weight lifted may be only a small amount. A job should be rated light work: (1) when it requires walking or standing to a significant degree; or (2) when it requires sitting most of the time, but entails pushing and/or pulling of arm or leg controls; and/or (3) when the job requires working at a production rate pace entailing the constant pushing and/or pulling of materials even though the weight of the materials is very little. TRANSFERABLE SKILLS ANALYSIS Prior to the untimely death of her husband, [Plaintiff] had acquired transferable skills from her current professional position as a cosmetologist, including: 1. The ability to work with all types of people. 2. The ability to enter and retrieve data from a computer. 3. The ability to follow written instructions. 4. The ability to move hands and eyes in coordination to complete task. 5. The ability to drive a vehicle. 6. The ability to follow verbal instructions. 7. The ability to understand regulations. 8. The ability to take inventory. 9. The ability to concentrate on specific hair designs. 10. The ability to work in excess of 10 to 12 hours a day. WORK ANALYSIS [Plaintiff] has worked in the following work fields: 291 Accommodating 298 Advising, counseling Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE) The Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE) classifications are as follows:

4 Page Cosmetology Home economics, agriculture and related teaching Industries Related industries in which [Plaintiff] has work experience are as follows: 674 Personal service 836 Social services O*NET Classifications According to [Plaintiff s] current position as a cosmetologist, the O*NET classification is: Hairdressers, stylists and cosmetologist Personal care aides Census Classification The Census codes for [Plaintiff s] work history are as follows: 4510 Hairdressers, hair stylists and cosmetologists 4610 Personal care aides SUMMARY OF WORK ANALYSIS As a result of her husband s untimely death, [Plaintiff] has had continued problems with emotional distress, anxiety, depression, and PTSD. She takes medication for this condition that makes her drowsy and can impair her concentration and focus. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Minnesota as of May 2014, cosmetologists in the St. Cloud area earn an annual average of $27,940. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, wages for experienced cosmetologists as of May 2014 is $45,840 a year. Since her husband s death, [Plaintiff] has struggled with her self-employment as a cosmetologist. At times she has had to cancel appointments with clients because she has not been able to get child care for her two children. She also has had to cancel appointments because she was emotionally distressed and unable to do her job. LABOR MARKET RESEARCH I have conducted labor market research for the St. Cloud area and surrounding labor markets for any occupations that would take advantage of [Plaintiff s] transferable skills and capabilities if she is not able to continue with her current occupation as a professional cosmetologist. I have included in my analysis [Plaintiff s] transferable skills, overall capabilities, age, education, and successful work history up until her husband s death on December 2, I have concentrated my efforts on trying to identify alternate types of gainful employment opportunities available for [Plaintiff] at the highest possible pay. After investigating and researching approximately 50 to 75 specific employers in the St. Cloud area, job opportunities available for [Plaintiff] would be in entry-level types of unskilled and semi-skilled positions. These positions become open and available in the labor market on an occasional basis. These positions would include but not be limited to: counter clerk, cashier, desk clerk, and customer service representative. These positions in the St. Cloud area have an hourly pay of approximately $8.00 to $10.00 an hour, or an average of $9.00 an hour.

5 Page 5 FUTURE WAGE LOSS If [Plaintiff] is not able to continue working full time as a cosmetologist due to her emotional distress and PTSD, she will have significant future wage loss. [Plaintiff] is 35 years of age at this time. At the time of her husband s death, she was 32 years of age. It is my understanding [Plaintiff] had planned on working until age 70. This would allow for a work life expectancy remaining of 35 years. Scenario #1: If [Plaintiff] is not able to continue working full time as a self-employed cosmetologist, she will have significant wage loss. If she can only work part-time as a self-employed cosmetologist, this will cut her income in half. According to the Minnesota Bureau of Labor Statistics, she would lose an average of $13,970 in wages annually. With 35 years of work life expectancy remaining, this equals a future wage loss of $488,950. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of May 2014 cosmetologists at the upper level of expertise such as [Plaintiff] is earn an annual wage of $45,840. If she is not able to continue working full time, she could lose up to an average of $22,920 in wages annually. With 35 years of work life expectancy remaining, this equals a potential future wage loss of $802,200. Scenario #2: If [Plaintiff] is not able to continue working as a full-time cosmetologist due to her emotional distress and PTSD, she will likely have to settle for a position that is entry-level in nature. She will have significant future wage loss in this type of a position. Positions that are unskilled to semi-skilled have an average hourly pay of $9.00 an hour for the St. Cloud area. Due to [Plaintiff s] ongoing problems with emotional distress and PTSD, she would likely be restricted to working 20 hours a week for an average weekly wage of $180, or an annual wage of $9,360. Compared to her projected annual earnings of $27,940 as a full-time cosmetologist, this equals an annual wage loss of $18,580. With 35 years of work life expectancy remaining, this equals a potential future wage loss of $650,300. Scenario #3: According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of May 2014 cosmetologists at the upper level of expertise earn an annual wage of $45,840. [Plaintiff] has worked in this field approximately 7 to 8 years and is an accomplished cosmetologist. Indications are she would be able to earn this annual wage. Compared to what her earning capacity would be if she is not able to continue working as a full-time cosmetologist, $9,360 annually, this would result in an annual wage loss of $36,480. With 35 years of work life expectancy remaining, this is a potential future wage loss of $1,276,800. Given the fact that [Plaintiff] would be able to move to other metropolitan areas that would have higher wage potential for cosmetologists, she would have the ability and capacity to earn in the 90 th percentile what cosmetologists earn according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, $45,840 per year. This report can be updated pending any additional medical/vocational information that may be received. All of the above opinions have been made within a reasonable degree of vocational probability and certainty. Sincerely, Tom Karrow, M.Ed., CRC, CDMS, CCM Independent Vocational Evaluator tk/kd