Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog

On Monday evening, a three-alarm fire at an Everett triple-decker home injured two firefighters and left a dozen people homeless. An estimated 70 firefighters were called the scene of the fire, and fire authorities originally closed off a section of Route 99 in Everett. They later reopened that stretch of road.

Firefighters saved four residents, among them a 10-year-old fire victim, from a third floor apartment. The left side of the building later collapsed. All 12 people who were living there had been accounted for, but they are now homeless.

Two injured firefighters were taken to Massachusetts General Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Source: 2 firefighters hurt while battling blaze at Everett home, WHDH.com, May 25, 2010

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According to The Boston Globe, a cleaning man was hospitalized after he was sucked into a seasoning machine at a sausage-making company in Danvers, Massachusetts. He was reportedly cleaning the vacuum-type machine on Thursday evening when it activated, sucking his head and shoulders into the machine.

A policeman told reporters that the man was freed from the machine and showed no obvious signs of trauma. He was transported to a local hospital as a precaution.

The machinery accident is being investigated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Source: Police: Man sucked into sausage seasoning machine, The Boston Globe, May 23, 2010

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Our Boston personal injury attorneys recently read an article about so-called “blame the worker” safety programs. Examples include “safety incentives” where management awards prizes to workers for not reporting injuries. In some cases, management may also revoke perks during months when the company had reported injuries or force a worker who reported an injury to wear a fluorescent orange vest for a week.

Pressuring workers to hide injuries can have catastrophic results, because when workers fail to report injuries or illnesses, the hazards go unadressed. In fact, one Massachusetts employer received an award for having zero recordable injuries and the following year, a worker was crushed to death in a machinery accident. It later came to light that the company had had minor injuries on the machine, but they went unreported.

Reporting injuries not only ensures that the worker gets the workers' compensation or other care they need, but also helps ensure that the company makes vital safety adjustments to prevent future incidents.

Source: Confronting Blame-the-Worker Safety Programs, LaborNotes.org, May 19, 2010

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According to MassCOSH (the Massachusetts Coalition of Occupational Safety and Health), eight Massachsuetts teens have been killed at work since 2000. Many of them were performing jobs that were in violation of Child Labor Laws. On top of that, an estimated one thousand minors are treated for work-related injuries in Massachusetts emergency rooms each year.

Just in time for young people beginning summer jobs, Governor Deval Patrick has dubbed May “Safe Jobs for Youth Month” to raise awareness about the increased risk of workplace accidents among young workers who may not be aware of their rights or may be asked perform tasks which they lack the strength or experience to perform safely.

Governor Patrick’s proclamation was announced recently at a three-day youth leadership conference. Students from across Massachusetts gathered to discuss ways of decreasing Child Labor Law violations, workplace deaths, and injuries.

Source: "Safe Jobs for Youth" month, Boston.com, May 13, 2010

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Over the weekend, a highway construction accident seriously injured a worker when he was hit by a car. Police said the 22-year-old man was working in a construction zone early Sunday morning when an eastbound vehicle entered the two-lane construction zone and hit him around 2:15am Sunday morning.

The injured worker was taken to Saint Mary’s Health Care, and driver allegedly responsible for the construction accident was arrested at the scene of the accident. Police say they believe alcohol may have been a factor, but they have not released any additional details.

The workplace accident remains under investigation.

Source: Lansing man injured in construction accident, Lansing State Journal, May 17, 2010

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A Brighton-based contractor has been cited by OSHA for alleged excavation hazards. A combination of willful, serious, and other-than-serious violations of safety standards led to a total of $S61,650 in proposed fines.

During an inspection conducted by OSHA’s area office in Braintree, Massachusetts, investigators found employees working in a trench more than eight feet deep without cave-in protection and a safe means of exit. The company had also piled excavated spoils at the edge of the edge, exposing workers to potential crushing or struck-by hazards.

The inspection resulted in one willful citation with a proposed fine of $49,500 for storing materials of the edge of the trench. In addition, the company received two serious citations for failing to provide collapse protection and an exit ladder. Those citations carry $8,500 in fines. Lastly, OSHA gave the company four other-than-serious citations for incomplete injury and illness records, a violation which adds $3,600 in fines.

Source: Contractor Cited for Cave-in Hazards, Other Trenching Violations, OHSonline.com, May 12, 2010

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Following complaints filed to OSHA by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, Tufts Medical Center has agreed to pay $5,000 to settle issues in record-keeping. OSHA cited the hospital for failing to properly record employee injuries that occurred on the job, including back strains, broken thumbs, needle-stick injuries, and cuts from sharp objects.

The Nurses Association distributed a press release several weeks ago saying the hospital showed a lack of concern for the health and safety of its workers. The union also picketed the hospital earlier this year to protest changes in nurses' staffing patterns.

In response, the hospital issued a statement saying the incomplete employee injury logs were caused by recent changes in recording requirements. They also say the employee injury logs were corrected soon after OSHA notified them of the omissions.

Source: Tufts Medical Center to pay $5,000 to settle record-keeping issue with OSHA, Patriot Ledger, April 30, 2010

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Following the April 20 explosion off the coast of Louisiana that killed several oil rig workers, families of the deceased and some of the workers who survived the accident have filed wrongful death or personal injury lawsuits against companies involved in the offshore drilling operation. An electronics technician who was seriously injured is seeking $6 million in damages. He filed a lawsuit in Louisiana federal court.

On Tuesday, three workers who escaped the explosion on lifeboats have filed a suit claiming they were kept floating at sea for hours as they watched the rig burn, knowing their friends were inside. That lawsuit was filed in county court in Galveston, Texas, and seeks unspecified damages on behalf of the three workers and the family of a worker who is missing and presumed dead.

Working on an oil rig is among the most dangerous jobs in the world, so this incident may lead to new legislation regarding safety standards for offshore drilling operations.

Source: Suit: Workers kept at sea hours after explosion, Associated Press, May 4, 2010

Lawsuit filed in Gulf oil rig blast, The Galveston County Daily News, May 5, 2010

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Our Massachusetts workplace injury lawyers recently read an editorial written by The Enterprise about the need for greater workplace safety precautions. The article calls for stiffer penalties against employers who violate safety guidelines, because in some cases it's cheaper for employers to simply pay the fines than actually fix the problem.

While the average OSHA fine in Massachusetts is $13,300, more than half the employers who were fined last year settled their cases for less than $10,000. A third paid only $5,000.

Many of the companies with workplace deaths last year had already received citations for safety violations. For instance, a 51-year-old Stoughton man died in a forklift accident at a Taunton warehouse last August, and OSHA records show that the company was cited for three forklift violations the previous year. These incidents underscore the sad economics involved with many fatal workplace accidents.

Source: OPINION: Accidents shine light on workplace safety, The Enterprise, May 5, 2010

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