Story Archive

Lawsuit Pending

When Julia Nelson, 67, collapsed at her desk at Time Warner Cable in Garfield Heights, Ohio, another employee rushed to her aid — and started CPR. But the unnamed rescuer was told by a supervisor, “get back on the phone and take care of customers,” she says, as she might be “held liable if something goes wrong.” Other employees confirm her story. Time Warner offers employees CPR classes and the office has a defibrillator, but it wasn’t used because it was locked in the First Aid room, and the only employee with a key wasn’t there. By the time paramedics arrived, Nelson was dead. A spokesman for the local Red Cross chapter says Ohio has a Good Samaritan law to protect bystanders who help. “Time Warner responded appropriately to a medical emergency,” the company said in a statement. “Our company has procedures in place to respond to emergencies.” (RC/WOIO Cleveland) ...So their “procedure” is to let employees die because new employees usually get paid less?