Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog

Earlier this month, a wall collapse at a sand plant in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin claimed the life of a 36-year-old worker. He was reportedly killed when a wall he was standing on collapsed, pinning him underneath and resulting in fatal compression injuries to his head and chest.

According to reports, three other workers were taken to the hospital but the extent of their injuries was unknown. The company involved in the fatal workplace accident says it is cooperating with investigators.

Here in Massachusetts, a construction accident in Lynn earlier this year killed a 39-year-old worker when a sandbag fell from the roof of a construction site, hitting him on the head.

Source: Man dies in Wis. construction site accident, Chron.com, December 21, 2010

Continue reading " Worker Dies of Compression Injuries After Wall Collapse " »

Officials say a 51-year-old worker died in a construction accident earlier this month. The accident victim was working as part of a crew that was widening a stretch of Illinois 146 between the intersection of Illinois 3 and East Cape. A section of the work zone reportedly collapsed, and the man was trapped under at least a foot of drying concrete.

Traffic was stopped immediately following the accident and resumed about two hours later. A coroner declared the worker dead at the scene of the accident. The coroner’s office and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating the fatal workplace accident.

Here in New England, a 27-year-old construction worker died after a concrete slab collapsed on him earlier this year.

Source: Stonefort man victim in fatal construction accident, TheSoutherner.com, December 22, 2010

Continue reading " Construction Worker Pronounced Dead After Being Trapped Under Concrete " »

Contractors in Reading, Tewksbury, and Wakefield have been cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for alleged safety violations. The proposed fines attached to these citations total $154,700. The bulk of the proposed fines were from issues such as cave-in and ladder hazards.

OSHA began investigating in June when an agency official noted employees working in an unprotected 8-foot deep excavation that did not have a ladder or other means of escape. OSHA standards mandate that excavations 5 feet or deeper must be protected against collapse. The contractors were working on installing a grease trap and piping for a supermarket in Salem, New Hampshire.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 makes employers responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for employees. In cases where a worker is injured on the job as the result of employer negligence, there may be ground for filing a work injury claim.

Source: US Labor Department's OSHA cites 3 Massachusetts contractors for cave-in hazards at Salem, NH, jobsite, MMDNewswire.com, December 9, 2010

Continue reading " Massachusetts Contractors Cited by OSHA for Cave-in Hazards " »

Following an explosion that injured a worker at a Salisbury maintenance facility in July, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited a Massachusetts construction contractor with 11 alleged serious violations of safety standards. The citations carry a total of $44,000 in proposed fines.

According to accident reports, the worker was welding on a pontoon boat when vapors ignited from within the boat. OSHA investigators found that the boat lacked proper ventilation to ensure the escape of flammable gasses before welding. Additionally, investigators found that guards had not been set up to confine heat, sparks, and slag and combustibles were not properly shielded.

Although there were no fatalities in connection with the welding accident, OSHA’s area director for Essex and Middlesex counties said the accident underscores the importance of safety procedures because the worker’s injuries were preventable. OSHA investigates workplace safety issues and issues citations for safety violations, but in some cases there may be grounds for a work injury claim.

Source: Explosion at Mass. Maintenance Facility Leads to $44,000 Penalty, OHSonline.com, December 18, 2010

Continue reading " Salisbury Construction Contractor Cited by OSHA Following Explosion " »

A New England construction accident resulted in the death of a worker earlier this month. Authorities say the 29-year-old man fell off the Deer Isle Bridge in Maine while working on the bridge. He reportedly fell about 40 feet and sustained massive head trauma. While en route to the hospital, the worker died of those injuries sustained on the job.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will be investigating the cause of this workplace fatality.

Here in the Commonwealth, Massachusetts workers have recently been injured by collapsing roofs, falling objects, and other hazards. Those accidents are typically investigated by OSHA, which cites employers who fail to meet safety standards. However, in some cases, injured workers and their families may also be entitled to workers’ compensation, lost wages, and other forms of compensation when employers or other parties are responsible for the injuries.

Source: Man dies in construction accident, WCSH6.com, December 6, 2010

Continue reading " Construction Worker Dies from Head Injuries Sustained During Fall " »

The president of American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), Daryl Hill, took part in an international assembly of occupational health and safety professionals in Saudi Arabia Monday and Tuesday, according to WorkersCompensation.com. Hill met with many ASSE members and conducted a presentation on contactor safety management.

The meeting was sponsored by Saudi Aramco and was entitled, “A safer you, a safer me.” It featured presentations from contractor-safety experts from all over the globe, including IOSH president Steve Granger, ARAMCO senior vice president Abdulrahman Al-Wuhaib, and NEBOSH chief executive Teresa Budworth.

ASSE is the oldest professional safety organization. It was founded in 1911 and has more than 30,000 members. In November, several ASSE members met with Chinese authorities from the State Administration of Work Safety and China Occupational Safety and Health Association.

International dialogue like this is an opportunity to gain new approaches to and strategies for occupational health and safety. Unfortunately, in Massachusetts and elsewhere, workers continue to be hurt on the job on a regular basis. If you have been injured at work, call a Massachusetts workers’ compensation attorney today.

Sources:
WorkersCompensation.com, ASSE President Participates in International Meeting on Work Safety

EHS Today, ASSE Members Meet Chinese Officials to Discuss Workplace Safety and Health

IOSH.co.uk, IOSH Saudi Arabia Conference

Continue reading " International Conference on Workplace Safety Held in Saudi Arabia " »

Last Wednesday, a construction worker was injured at a restaurant construction site after a wooden wall panel fell on him. He’d been standing on a semitrailer helping guide the wall panel as it was being raised by a crane when it fell to the ground and hit him.

Police reports initially stated that the 50-year-old man sustained non-life-threatening injuries; however, his son said on Friday that the worker was in an intensive care unit on a breathing tube. He’d reportedly suffered a punctured lung, broken ribs, a broken arm, and a broken back. There was no timetable given on when he would be released from the hospital, but his son said it could be months.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration plans to investigate the construction accident to determine if any safety regulations were violated. In additional to falling objects, construction workers are also at risk for explosions, electrical shocks, crane accidents, and other hazards.

Source: Construction accident victim is in intensive care unit, ArgusLeader.com, December 4, 2010

Continue reading " Worker In ICU After Being Injured by Falling Wood Panel " »

A Massachusetts state trooper sustained injuries earlier this week after being hit by a car. He was assisting a driver involved in a single-vehicle accident in Fall River and was taken to Charlton Memorial Hospital. The accident occurred on Wednesday at about 6:30am on Route 24 near the Route 79 on-ramp.

Although the driver the officer was helping was also hit by the moving vehicle, no other injuries were reported.

The motorist who hit the trooper has been charged with negligent operation of a motor vehicle. Here in Massachusetts, the penalty is a $250 fine. Negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in a car accident is a very common tort, and one that our Boston personal injury law firm can assist you with.

Source: Mass. trooper struck by car at accident scene, Boston Globe, December, 8, 2010

Continue reading " State Trooper Injured On the Job in Fall River " »

Last Thursday afternoon, a Massachusetts roof collapse seriously injured a worker who was standing on a shorter roof helping yank a gable from a home on Thorndike Street in Somerville. A wind reportedly took caught the gable and a large piece of the roof, which landed on him, resulting in a serious head injury. He was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital.

The Somerville Fire Captain said the workers had the proper permit but were not wearing hardhats. Seven other demolition workers were present at the scene of the accident but declined to comment. The 11-room, 2.5 story duplex they were working on was originally built in 1910.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) typically investigates the scene of construction accidents resulting in injuries to determine if any safety regulations were not followed.

Source: One man seriously injured in Somerville roof collapse, Wicked Local Somerville, December 7, 2010

Continue reading " Somerville Roof Collapse Injures Worker During Demolition " »

Two UK workers were injured when the stone staircase they were taking apart by sledgehammers collapsed under their feet. Both were hit by falling debris, and the two are lucky to be alive, according to one safety expert.

One worker was trapped by blocks of stone and suffered fractures to all of his ribs and three vertebrae, a punctured lung, a damaged finger, and serious foot injuries. It took several men to shift the stone treads and free him. The other worker sustained bruises, cuts, and serious trauma.

Following an investigation of the staircase collapse, the building firm that employed the two injured workers has been fined the equivalent of about $9,300.

Here in the United States, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) handles investigations of potential safety violations in the workplace. Several Massachusetts construction companies have been cited in recent years for failing to meet safety standards.

Source: Two Paisley workers are lucky to be alive after construction accident, Paisley Daily Express, November 26, 2010

Continue reading " Workers Survive Stair Collapse, Employer Fined " »

An OSHA news release from Friday says that Centimark Corp., a Chelmsford roofing contractor, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration for serious alleged safety violations. The contractor is looking at the possibility of $40,000 in fines after an employee was injured when he fell from a 10-foot roof at a New Hampshire work site.

OSHA inspected the site and found that workers were not adequately protected from falls and that no competent person had conducted an inspection to identify or fix the fall hazards. A warning line system was being used, but the pitch of the roof was so steep that it required something more effective like a personal fall arrest system, according to the news release. An OSHA area director said that a competent inspection would have uncovered the need for a better system and prevented the hazard.

OSHA issued a repeat citation for $35,000 for inadequate fall protection and a $5,000 serious citation for the failure to conduct an adequate inspection. The repeat citation arises from similar violations from 2009 and 2010 in Illinois, Texas, and Pennsylvania. Centimark has 15 business days from the receiving the citation to contest it.

Source: OSHA Regional News Release, Chelmsford, Mass., roofing contractor faces $40,000 in fines from US Labor Department's OSHA following worker fall at Milford, NH, jobsite

When employers fail to protect workers from fall hazards and a worker is injured on the job, workers’ compensation can cover medical and rehabilitation costs, a percentage of your average income, and other compensation. If you have been hurt on the job, our attorneys have the experience and skill to handle your case and get the best results for you.

Continue reading " Chelmsford Roofing Contractor Cited for Serious Safety Violations " »