Workers' Compensation

April 15, 2008

Sleepy Boston “Big Dig” Construction Workers Not Eligible For Workers’ Compensation

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court says that Michael Haslam, a construction worker on Boston’s “Big Dig” freeway project, is not eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits for injuries he sustained when he fell asleep at the wheel while driving home after working for 27 hours straight. The court’s ruling reverses an earlier decision by the Industrial Accident Board.

The state’s highest court says that Haslam failed to prove that he needed to work as many hours as he did and that the circumstances surrounding his injury accident did not exempt him from the “going and coming rule,” which does not cover injuries sustained by workers when they are going to or coming from a job.

On August 3, 2001, Haslam started work at 5am. His shift was supposed to end at 3:30pm. Due to numerous work delays, however, the pouring of concrete did not take place until 1am the following day, and Haslam chose to stay because he needed to make sure that the job was done. He testified that if he hadn’t stayed, “I probably wouldn’t have had a job.”

March 20, 2008

New York Crane Construction Accident Leaves Seven People Dead

by Altman & Altman

Six construction workers and a Florida tourist died in a construction accident on Saturday after a crane collapsed at a construction site in New York. 10 other people were injured.

The construction site was at a 43-year-old building that had already received multiple safety violations. On Tuesday, investigators were trying to determine whether the nylon webbing, worth $50, broke while lifting a large piece of steel.

The 200-foot crane fell while construction workers tried to attach a large, 12,000-pound square steel collar around the tower of the crane at the 18th floor of the building, located on East 51st Street. They were applying manual winches that seemed to be hanging from nylon slings that were hanging from a higher part of the tower.

The collar, winches, and slings fell, crashed into another collar at the ninth floor, and landed on a third collar located close to the bottom of the construction site. The tower then collapsed, leveling a nearby building and damaging other nearby properties.

According to Paul S. Zorich, chairman of the committee on crane and sling safety standards of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, photographs of the sling show that it could have been “grossly overloaded.”

Construction safety experts say that these slings usually can carry loads as heavy as several tons unless they are worn or damaged.

Steven R. Dewey, president of All-Lifts, a company that makes construction slings, says sling failures only occurs if they are damaged or cut. He also said that slings are manufactured to carry five times the indicated weight.

Joy Contractors is the company overseeing the crane work at the site.

Construction accidents can often lead to catastrophic if not deadly injuries. Construction workers injured on the job cannot sue their employers for recovery. They are, however, eligible for workers’ compensation benefits and they may be able to claim damages from third parties, such as the manufacturer of a defective product or another party that is found liable for the injury accident.

Even if your employer guarantees you workers’ compensation benefits, one of our Boston, Massachusetts workers’ compensation attorneys can make sure that you receive all of the benefits you are eligible for in a timely manner.

Failure of Strap Is Suspected in Crane Collapse, New York Times, March 18, 2008
Seven dead in New York crane accident, BBC News, March 16, 2008

Related Web Resource:

A Review of Crane Safety in the Construction Industry
Continue reading

September 19, 2007

Massachusetts Widow to Receive Workers’ Compensation Benefits For Mechanic Husband’s Suicide

by Altman & Altman

Anne Dube, the widow of a mechanic who committed suicide after he was fired from his job with National Fiber Technology LLC, has the right to receive death benefits under workers’ compensation. The decision was issued by the Massachusetts Appeals Court in Suffolk County. The court’s ruling affirms the Industrial Accident Reviewing Board’s decision that had been appealed by the Professional Liability Insurance Company.

An administrative judge had awarded Dube death benefits for Gilbert Dube’s work-related back injury, which resulted in pain, deteriorating mental condition, mental unsoundness, and suicide. The board said that Anne Dube was causally connected to the mental unsoundness that was caused by work.

Gilbert Dube was a 50-year-old machine mechanic. He had a history of back problems. He reinjured his back on November 7, 2001 at work when he “jerked” lose a card that had gotten stuck in a knitting machine. On November 26, 2001, he tried to go back to work and assume “light-duty” but was told that there was no light-duty work. He was terminated from his job on December 4, 2001. He killed himself 14 days later.

September 12, 2007

Hub Steam Blast that Injures Four in Massachusetts Raises Concerns of Asbestos Exposure

by Altman & Altman

Four people were injured today in Massachusetts today when a manhole exploded and let out a spray of steaming water that may have contained asbestos. The water hit all four injury victims.

The injury accident occurred in Boston near a building at the corners of Summer and Redding. Boston Emergency Medical Services appeared at the scene after it became known that a hazardous material was possibly involved in the explosion. EMS workers medically monitored and decontaminated the firefighters at the accident scene.

The four injured persons, three of them energy company workers, were also decontaminated before being sent to nearby hospitals for treatment of their injuries.

The Boston Fire Department say they think that it was a steam pipe and not a manhole that exploded.

Asbestos Exposure
Exposure to asbestos can lead to catastrophic injuries, such as lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis. Although the dangers of asbestos exposure increases the longer the exposure time, there have been cases where someone has briefly been exposed to it and ended up with malignant mesothelioma.

If you become sick because of exposure to asbestos on the job, you may not be able to file a personal injury claim against your employer because you are likely eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. An experienced personal injury attorney can make sure that you receive all the benefits that you are eligible for. Your personal injury lawyer can also help you determine if there are third parties that can be held liable for your illness.

According to Allasbestos.org, Massachusetts is ranked 11th in the United States among the 50 states and the District of Columbia for having the highest number of asbestos-related deaths- from 1,355 fatalities to 1,715.

Hub Steam Explosion Injures Four, Boston Herald, September 12, 2007
State Ranking of Asbestos Related Mortality Rate, Allasbestos.org

Related Web Resources:

Massachusetts Workers Compensation Law, Workers Compensation Insurance.com
Asbestos, EPA.gov Continue reading

August 17, 2007

Massachusetts Worker is Injured After Fall At Construction Site in Salem

by Altman & Altman

A construction worker was injured a construction site at Pelham Road in Salem, Massachusetts, last week after the scissor lift that he was riding in tipped backward and fell to the ground. Semir Mehmedoxic, 20, fell out of the bucket. As of last Saturday, he was being treated at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center where he was reportedly in stable condition.

Mensur Ramic, a 21-year-old Manchester resident, says that he and Mehmedoxic had been sanding an exterior wall when the construction accident occurred. Ramic was able to grab onto the roof and pull himself to safety when the scissor lift tipped back.

Both men were at the site to help build a 60,000 square-foot gym that belongs to The Workout Club and Wellness Center chain.

Paul LeVasseur, the project superintendent, said that he did not know the man who fell and that different subcontractors often worked at the site. He criticized the lift machine’s condition. The lift machine had been provided by subcontractor Classic Exteriors LLC of Manchester. He thinks that the accident was caused by mechanical failure.

Firefighters had to siphon gas from the lift because a tank was punctured in the fall.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has been investigating the cause of the construction accident.

Injuries sustained at a construction site are frequently catastrophic, if not fatal.

Common kinds of construction accidents include

• Scaffolding accidents • Electrical accidents • Injuries caused by defective equipment • Cutting accidents • Falls
• Welding injuries • Exposure to hazardous or toxic substances • Faulty use of equipment • Improper maintenance or repair of construction machinery and vehicles
If you have been seriously injured at a construction site or while working at any other job in Massachusetts, you are eligible for benefits under workers’ compensation. A good workers’ compensation attorney can make sure that your benefits start immediately, and-if not-that you receive any back benefits that are owed to you.

Your workers’ compensation lawyer can also make sure that your employer and its insurance company are not preventing you from receiving the benefits that you are legally entitled to. If a family member was killed because of negligence or carelessness at a construction site, you may be eligible to receive benefits from the employer under your loved one’s workers’ compensation package.

If there is a third party that is considered a liable party, you may be able to file a personal injury or a wrongful death claim against them also.

OSHA investigates work site accident, Eagle Tribune, August 11, 2007
Worker hurt in fall at Salem construction site; Co-worker, dangling from roof, escapes injury, Eagle Tribune, August 10, 2007
Related Web Resources:

OSHA Assistance for the Construction Industry, U.S. Department of Labor
Department of Industrial Accidents, Massachusetts.gov Continue reading