Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog

The Worcester Business Journal reports that according to a state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development Division of Occupational Safety survey, Massachusetts’ rate of work-related injuries and illnesses for 2007 was lower than the national average and the lowest in New England.

Massachusetts reported four injuries or illnesses per 100 full time workers, compared to the national incidence of 4.2 cases per 100 full time workers. That rate includes the nearly 90,000 non-fatal injuries and illnesses reported among Massachusetts’ 2.8 million private-sector workers.

The highest rate of injury (6.1 per 100 workers) occurred in construction workers, while workers in the financial services experienced the lowest rate (1.3 per 100 workers).

Work Relatively Safe In Massachusetts, Worcester Business Journal, December 18, 2008

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A construction accident occurred recently in Maitland, Florida when three men who were doing concrete work lost their footing after the scaffolding came loose from the building. The workers were left dangling in the air six stories above the ground while emergency rescue crews worked to help them down.

Fortunately, none of the construction workers were injured, though they were a bit shaken up by the incident. Two of the men refused medical treatment, while the crane operator was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

The cause of the construction accident is under investigation.

Three workers safe after Maitland construction site accident, Orlando Sun-Sentinel, December 8, 2008

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Design News reports that Massachusetts has dropped criminal charges against a company that had been found criminally negligent in the Big Dig ceiling collapse that killed a 39-year-old woman. The now infamous accident occurred in Boston on July 10, 2006.

After a federal investigation found that its “Fast Set” epoxy was used incorrectly to attach bolts in the ceiling of one of the tunnels in the Big Dig construction project, Powers Fasteners agreed to pay $16 million and remove the product from the market.

This agreement negates the involuntary manslaughter charges (carrying a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine) resulting from the construction accident. According to a news conference with Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, “what we have been able to achieve today is a far greater result [than the original charges].”

Massachusetts Drops Criminal Charges against Powers Fasteners, Design News, December 18, 2008

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Earlier this month, a construction worker in an underground excavation pit was seriously injured when he became partially buried by falling concrete. The construction accident occurred around 4:20am on Thursday, December 11.

The unidentified worker was buried from the waist down inside a 25-foot deep pit. Emergency medical personnel responded to the call to treat the construction accident victim. He was pulled from the hole approximately 15 minutes later and taken to the hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.

Three other workers suffered minor injuries as a result of the underground accident.

N.Y. Times Square construction worker escapes death from falling debris, JusticeNewsFlash.com, December 15, 2008

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Last Friday afternoon, a scaffolding collapse injured two workers in what could have been a much more serious accident, according to a veteran firefighter responding to the construction accident.

Construction workers were repairing the façade of the Kravis Center for the Performing Art, which was damaged during Hurricane Francis in 2004. The fire rescue captain said the anchors attaching the scaffolding to the wall way around 1pm last Friday afternoon. Close to two dozen construction workers were in the vicinity when the seven levels scaffolding came tumbling down, which could have resulted in major injuries.

Fortunately, there were no serious injuries, though two workers sustained minor injuries. OSHA will investigate the construction accident.

OSHA Investigates Kravis Construction Accident, CBS12.com, December 12, 2008

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Earlier this year, Robert Augeri, 31, was killed by a Mack truck while working on a highway paving project on Interstate 495 in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Two companies involved with the fatal highway accident were cited for safety violations by OSHA.

Augeri’s employer, Brox Industries, of Dracut, was cited on October 30 for failure to make sure that its safety program covered directing traffic in areas where workers were on foot and failure to properly train employees. In November, Brox agreed to correct its violations, and OSHA reduced the fine from $15,000 to $10,000.

On November 7, OSHA cited Lewis Maynard Trucking, of Methuen, for a failure to start and maintain an effective safety program. The companies agreed to correct its violation on December 3 and will pay a reduced fine of $900.

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The Journal of the American Medical Association recently reported on statistics involving work-related injury deaths among Hispanics in the United States. The period studied was 1992-2006 and during that period, a total of 11,303 of Hispanic workers died from work-related injuries.

One positive finding was that death rate for Hispanic workers declined during the period; despite this, the rate was still consistently higher than the rate for all U.S. workers. The study found that Hispanic workers in the construction industry are at a particularly high risk of fatal injury. In fact, between 2003 and 2006, 34% of Hispanic worker deaths occurred in that industry.

Potential factors cited included potential miscommunications caused by language barriers among non-native English speakers and employment in work that puts them at high risk for injury. The most common fatal events included highway accidents, homicide, and falls to a lower level.

Work-Related Injury Deaths Among Hispanics—United States, 1992-2006, Journal of the American Medical Assocation, December 3, 2008

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Yesterday, the Massachusetts Division of Occupational Safety announced that We Care Environmental, a recycling and composting facility based in Marlborough, Massachusetts has been approved as a Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) participant. This is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s highest honor given to small businesses.

The purpose of the SHARP designation is to identify and acknowledge companies that model best practices in health and safety management. To be chosen for this honor, businesses must complete an extensive OSHA consultation and meet program requirements, after which the state may recommend a workplace for SHAPR certification.

OSHA sets the nationwide standard for safety in the workplace, promoting the health and safety of workers by providing training, building partnerships, and enforcing standards designed to minimize on the job injuries. The only other SHARP-certified company in Central Massachusetts in the Worcester-based printer LaVigne Inc.

Marlborough Recycler Gets Top OSHA Designation, Worcester Business Journal, December 3, 2008

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On last Friday afternoon, a man was tragically killed in a construction accident. L.B. Ellis, 62, was working on private land near the Kentucky Splash Water Park when he got out of his dump truck and his friend and business partner accidently struck him with the turret of the excavator he was operating. Ellis became caught between the two machines and died as a result.

The coroner says that no charges will be filed in this construction accident death.

“It was just a sheer accident,” according to Andy Croley, Whitley County Coroner. “Unfortunately, when you work around machinery like that, you really can't hear if there is a warning. When you have both machines on, (there's) the noise of the dump truck and the noise of the excavator working."

Williamsburg man dies in construction accident, Kentucky.com, November 29, 2008

Williamsburg man killed in excavator accident, The Times-Tribune, November 28, 2008

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