Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog

On Tuesday, a construction accident in Massachusetts injured several people. When Lowell police responded to the emergency call, they found that bricks had fallen from the fourth floor and hit a worker who was on a scaffolding on the second floor of a redevelopment project.

The injured worker was conscious when medical crews arrived at the scene. He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital, but the extent of his injuries have been disclosed. A police officer, two firefighters, and an emergency medical responder suffered minor injuries at the scene of the accident. It is now known if they taken to the hospital.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says it plans to investigate the construction accident.

Source: Four injured at Lowell construction accident site, NewYorkInjuryNews.com, January 27, 2010

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The widow of a Massachusetts police officer says the stress of the job led her husband to take his own life in 2006. The police officer had been injured during an overtime shift in 1993 and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder the following year. Despite signs that the officer was crumbling under the stress, he was cleared for duty after a psychiatric evaluation.

His widow took her case to the state retirement board, which ruled that her husband's death was "accidental," meaning she would get 72% of his pension. Had he been killed in the line of duty, she would have gotten 100% of his pension, plus a one-time payment of almost $100,000. While the ruling does create a connection between the officer's on-the-job injuries and his eventual suicide, his widow wants her husband's death to be ruled "line of duty." She would also like his name to be added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

Suicide among police officers is a major issue that results in more deaths than homicides or accidents at work.

Source: The police suicide problem, Boston Sunday Globe Magazine, January 24, 2010

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A construction accident on Tuesday morning at Purdue University's Mackey Area left a construction worker with arm injuries, cuts, and bruises after the worker fell about ten feet.

He was treated at St. Elizabeth Central Hospital, according to a university spokesperson who would not release the worker's name. The spokesperson did say the injured worker was pulling metal decking from "penthouse level" when he stepped through a hole and fell roughly 10 feet from the fourth floor to the third floor. It took an aerial truck and about 15 minutes to remove the worker.

A safety manager was reportedly on-site to examine the scene of the accident.

Source: Worker injured at Mackey work site, JCOnline.com, January 20, 2010

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Last year, OSHA cited a Framingham, Massachusetts-based company after an aerial lift accident injured one employee and killed an employee for another roofing contractor. This incident and several other roofing accidents highlight the need for better safety training.

That's why the American Work Platform Training (AWPT) subsidiary of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) is launching free warning stickers that ask if the operator has been properly trained in the operation of that equipment. The stickers are to be placed on an aerial work platform (AWP) or mast climbing work platform (MCWP), both of which require safety training prior to use.

AWPT also offers free stickers that remind operators to wear a full body harness with a short lanyard in boom type platforms. In addition, the organization distributes Technical Guidance Note H1 that explains the ANSI requirements for personal fall protection in boom-supported work platforms. The hope is that these materials will improve safety awareness and reduce the number of construction accidents related to lack of training.

Source: AWPT stickers could help prevent more accidents, Access International, January 12, 2010

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After an inspector from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) observed an employee working unprotected in a 6-foot deep excavation at a worksite in Randolph, a Pembroke-based company now faces over $55,000 in proposed fines. The inspection in December, 2009 revealed that the trench lacks cave-in protection and a safe means for workers to leave the trench. OSHA mandates that any excavation deeper than five feet be protected against collapse.

OSHA has given the construction company two willful citations for the missing ladder and unprotected excavation. The fines total $50,000 for the willful citations. In addition, the company also received two serious citations for the excavator at the trench's edge and the lack of a high visibility vest for an excavator exposed to vehicular traffic. The fines for the serious citations total. Lastly, the company also received one other-than-serious citation for an incomplete injury and illness log. That citation comes with a $1,200 fine.

The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations to comply, participate in an informal conference with their area director for OSHA, or contest the findings.

Source: Contractor Digs Up $55K Penalty for Cave-In, Other Hazards, OHSOnline.com, January 9, 2010

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The Boston Globe reports that a 32-year-old former TJX employee and Massachusetts resident has pleaded guilty to charges he lied under oath and schemed to falsely collect workers' compensation benefits. The man has since moved to Florida.

According to a press release from the attorney general's office, he was arraigned last May and pleaded guilty in December to two counts of workers' compensation fraud.

The defendant received a one year prison sentence along with three years probation. He was also ordered to pay nearly four thousand dollars in workers' compensation benefits he allegedly collected but not entitled to.

Source: Man sentenced for falsely collecting workers' compensation, Boston Globe, December 17, 2009

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A Newburyport man who was reportedly injured in a December 22 construction accident is recovering at Massachusetts General Hospital. As of last Tuesday, he was listed in fair condition.

The 48-year-old man was airlifted in critical condition following a scaffolding accident that plunged him and a coworker from the second story to the sidewalk. The two men were apparently installing fascia board trim along the edge of the roof of a house at the time of the workplace accident.

The coworker was discharged from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and is recovering at home. Inspectors from the United States Occupational Health and Safety Administration are still investigating the accident.

Source: Both workers recovering after fall from scaffolding, The Daily News, January 6, 2010

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Last month, a forklift accident landed an employee at a medical manufacturing factory in a Boston hospital. The unidentified worker was injured while operating the forklift, which tipped over and spilled hazardous materials, including hydraulic fluid and sulfuric battery acid.

The worker reportedly came in contact with the hazardous chemicals, but most of the injuries were from the forklift tipping. The Mansfield Fire Chief said the worker sustained serious injuries to the ribs, hips, and legs.

Emergency responders apparently halted the company's operations while they cleaned up the spill. Fire crews from Foxboro assisted Mansfield fire crews.

Source: Mansfield worker injured in accident, The Sun Chronicle, December 17, 2009

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The state’s highest court ruled that a Peabody High School teacher is entitled to receive workers’ compensation benefits for injuries she sustained while voluntarily chaperoning a school ski trip. The teacher sought workers’ comp coverage for her medical expenses following a 2004 injury on a ski trip to Vermont. Her employer denied that request, saying her injury occurred while the teacher participated in a voluntary recreational activity.

While two administrative judges uphold the denial of benefits, the state Department of Industrial Accidents and Massachusetts’ highest court awarded the teacher her workers’ compensation benefits on appeal. The judge concluded that a teacher who acts as a volunteer chaperone to students participating in a school-sponsored activity “is acting in the course of her employment” and in her capacity as a teacher, because she was overseeing the well being of students.

The injured teacher’s attorney said his client used sick time for surgeries and physical therapy, so she filed the claim to recover sick time and any co-payments not covered by her medical insurance.

Source: Massachusetts Court Upholds Workers' Compensation for Teacher On School Trip, ClaimsJournal.com, December 15, 2009

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