Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog

According to a recent editorial on Impre.com, deaths of Hispanic workers have increased 76% since 1992 despite the fact that the overall workplace death rate has decreased.

Latinos are becoming a larger segment of the United States workforce, but they also represent a disproportionate number of deaths. Five out of every 100,000 Hispanics die at work. For Caucasians, that number is 4.0 and for African-Americans, 3.7.

Latino immigrants also have 70% more fatal workplace accidents than non-immigrant Latinos, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Researchers attribute this statistic to possible language and cultural barriers, as well as a lack of training and supervision.

Another factor is that undocumented immigrants tend to work in construction, which has a higher accident rate than other industries, and tend not to report unsafe conditions because they fear the repercussions.

Death in the workplace, Impre.com, July 21, 2009

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Last week, two brothers, ages 8 and 12, accompanied their father to work at a pool construction site. They climbed into the bed of a sand truck, and the older brother was tragically buried alive underneath a sand pile. The 8-year-old was half buried and holding on trying to keep himself from being sucked down.

Workers discovered the construction accident when they noticed the hose which pumps the sand mixture was clogged. Once they found the brothers, they grabbed shovels and began digging them out. The construction accident victims were transported to Cook Children's Medical Center in Forth Worth, Texas, where the 12-year-old accident victim died.

The 8-year-old suffered a broke leg and is recovering. According to the sheriff, the father will not face any charges for his sons to a dangerous worksite.

12-Year-Old Killed In Azle Construction Accident, CBS11tv.com, July 24, 2009

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Last Thursday, eight workers were injured when Madonna's stage collapsed in Marseille. Five of the injuries were serious. Two more workers were killed while constructing the stage for an upcoming Madonna concert. The concert was scheduled for Sunday, but it was cancelled after the construction accident.

A French worker, 52-year-old Charles Criscenzo, was killed when the roof of the stage collapsed. A 23-year-old British worker, Charles Prow, died on Friday after sustaining injuries in the accident. Madonna visited the family of one of the workers who was killed and visited the other injured workers in the hospital.

Madonna also issued a statement saying, "My prayers go out to those who were injured and their families along with my deepest sympathy to all those affected by this heartbreaking news."

The cause of the roof collapse is unknown, but authorities have launched a criminal investigation into the two deaths.

Madonna visits injured in stage collapse, CBSNews.ca, July 20, 2009

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Last week in Boston, cement trim fell five stories from the roof on a Northeastern University dorm building that was being replaced as part of summer maintenance. The collapse occurred around 8:30am and the site's foreman and a police officer immediately began searching the rubble for any injured persons. Miraculously, there were no injuries or casualties in this apparent construction accident.

Officials at Northeastern University said they planned to relocate approximately 60 students who were living in the building for the summer, even though Boston structural engineers deemed the building sound. City officials closed a portion of Huntington Avenue for part of the day as a precaution. The E Line was also shut down for approximately three hours so that passing trains would not shake the building.

A spokesman for the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said they are already investigating the scene of the accident to see if any safety regulations were violated.

Cement trim falls from NU dorm roof, Boston Globe, July 14, 2009

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Following an investigation into a Boston construction accident that killed a worker and seriously injured another last February, federal investigators from OHSA have cited a Framingham roofing company for six alleged safety violations. Reliable Roofing and Sheet Metal, LLC has 15 days to contest the penalties or it must pay $31,000 in proposed fines, according to the Associated Press.

The accident occurred on February 7, when a bucket lift carrying James Williamson of Hingham toppled from its full extension of 110 feet. Williamson was thrown into a condo building later died at Massachusetts General Hospital. He was inspecting the roof of a dorm building at Suffolk University in Boston's Downtown Crossing.

Greg Johnson was seriously injured but survived the construction accident after leaping from the bucket to a terrace a few stories down. The company did not immediately respond to an Associated Press reporter's request for comment.

Roofing company cited in fatal February accident, Boston Herald, July 14, 2009

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In Framingham last week, a construction accident injured a 47-year-old man. The injured construction worker, who was not identified by name, was transported to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester via ambulance after his right arm was crushed.

Framingham's Assistant Fire Chief said a piece of construction material fell from a flatbed truck, causing an "open crushing wound" to the worker's right forearm. That truck was owned by Baron Industries, according to the assistant fire chief. He did not have information on the worker's employer.

Representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were reportedly called to the scene of the construction accident to investigate.

Worker's arm crushed in Framingham construction accident, MetroWest Daily News, July 10, 2009

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Earlier today, a construction accident in Kansas City's West Bottoms killed a worker. The crew was trying to adjust scaffolding when one of the metal attachment used to hold the scaffolding together reportedly came apart and fell five stories, striking the worker in the head. The fatal accident occurred around 10am.

According to a police report, the workers yelled to the men on the ground to get out of the way and one man was not able to move in time. Police said the scaffolding accident victim was not wearing a hard hat when he hit in the head.

The accident is being investigated by police and officials from OSHA.

Worker Killed In Construction Accident, KCTV5.com, July 8, 2009

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Last week, a construction accident on Maryland's I-70 entrance ramp left a construction worker with severe leg injuries. John D. Evans' leg was crushed by a milling machine after he reportedly tripped and fell in front of the machine.

According to police, the operator of the milling machine apparently did not see Evans fall and ran over his leg, which was crushed below the knee. The construction worker was flown Shock Trauma where he was in serious but stable condition as of last week. The ramp from 30 Eastbound to Interstate 70 Eastbound was closed following the machinery accident, but it has since reopened.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is now investigating the construction accident.

Man's Leg Crushed in Highway Construction Accident, Your4State.com, June 30, 2009

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A Summerhill couple is seeking more than $150,000 from Siemans AG, because they say the German conglomerate is liable for the husband's catastrophic brain injuries, which were sustained in an industrial accident.

According to the suit, Morgan Construction Co. of Massachusetts (part of Siemans) sold Bethlehem Steel a wire drawing machine it made. Joseph Jarvie was working for Johnstown Wire Technologies (which took over the Bethlehem operation) when a wire recoiled and allegedly penetrated Jarvie's brain. The suit also says that Jarvie suffered gait dysfunction, balance disorder, depression, and nervous system damage as a result of the brain injuries sustained during the accident.

The couple is suing Siemans for failure to provide a mechanical clamping device and to provide breaking device for the die to spool to keep restraint wire under tension after it had been cut, as well as designing a machine was in an unsafe and dangerous condition.

Worker’s injury prompts lawsuit, The Tribune-Democrat, June 19, 2009

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