Sighinolfi to testify in workers' comp inquiry
Paul Sighinolfi, director of the Maine Workers Compensation Board, has agreed to testify next week before a legislative committee, answering questions about his response to complaints about decisions involving NewPage’s Rumford mill.
The Portland Press Herald reported that Sighinolfi will appear before the Legislature’s labor committee Wednesday to answer criticism from Democrats and labor advocates who say Sighinolfi inappropriately influenced workers’ compensation cases involving NewPage.
Sighinolfi said during a March 11 board meeting that he made a "unilateral" decision to establish a rotation of hearings officers for cases involving the mill in 2011, a response to complaints from NewPage that hearing officer Glenn Goodnough was biased against the company.
After establishing a rotation of cases involving the mill, the newspaper reported Goodnough did not adjudicate any of the approximately 40 hearings involving NewPage employees.
Sighinolfi told the Maine Public Broadcasting Network that the rotation was supposed to include Goodnough, who had previously handled all NewPage cases, but did not because of miscommunications with staff.
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