Wilmington Personal Injury Lawyer - Workplace Injuries

North Carolina Workplace Deaths Increase As Economy Worsens

Jean Martin — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 09:50:47 GMT

If we thought that the news could not get worse in this failed and battered economy, now comes the news that workplace deaths in North Carolina have increased. Preliminary numbers released by the North Carolina Department of Labor report 59 work-related deaths in 2008, up from 45 in 2007. After three years of decline in the number of work-related deaths, officials are suggesting that the slowing and sagging economy may be to blame. Alarming also is that we are seeing the number of work-related deaths rise in the hispanic worker population as compare to other races.

Tom O'Connor, coordinator of the safety advocacy group National Council for Occupational Safety and Health says that while you might expect the number of occupational deaths to decrease during a bad economy because there are not as many people working, a down economy can put pressure on employers to cut corners. One might also expect that fewer workers are being asked to do the job of many, which can create many hazards in the workplace. Unfortunately, in a sagging economy, employers turn to less experienced and, thus, lower-paying workers.

Labor Department spokeswoman Dolores Quesenberry said that training and safety measures are among the first items cut from budgets in a down economym, making their workplaces more dangerous. Employers must be warned that their employees must be trained and that all safety precautions must be taken. A sagging economy is not an excuse to put a worker's life at risk.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jean Martin

Trench Collapses are Feared Construction Site Accidents

Tate Hodges — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:45:33 GMT

Trench collapses are perhaps some of the most common and feared injury causing hazards of construction work. While some people may believe that only deep trenches have the potential to cause severe injury, severe injury and death may occur in shallow trenches. In Phoenix, Arizona, a 42-year-old construction worker died in a trench collapse while working in a trench that was a mere 6 feet deep. In New York, a worker was killed when an 8 foot trench collapsed. Ultimately, it was found that the construction company had failed to provide protection on the sides of the excavation.

There are great risks with working in trenches. Among the hazards include a high risk of cave in accidents, falls, wall collapses, risks of oxygen depletion, toxic fumes, and water accumulation. Furthermore, a trench collapse does not have to be triggered by the work being done at the time of the collapse. Vibrations from nearby activity can cause the walls of the trench to shake loose. The amount of water in the soil and the consistency of the soil are important factors which contribute to the likelihood of a dangerous trench collapse. OSHA requires protection measures to be in place for workers in trenches. Trench wall protective systems or boxes protect workers while working in excavations or trenches. If these protective measures are not in place, there is an increased risk of side wall collapses or cave-ins. These collapses may cause the worker to be crushed, asphyxiated, suffocated, poisoned, or injured from falling debris.

These accidents are largely preventable. If you or a loved one is injured from a trench collapse, ask to see if these measures were followed. If not, the construction supervisors may be liable for the resulting injuries. First, read, understand, and apply all the applicable safety rules. A construction company failing to comply with these laws is a strong indicator of liability. Second, soil conditions should be evaluated and protective systems should be put in place. Retaining devices should be in place to prevent equipment from failing back into the excavation. It may also be helpful to have an individual trained in trench safety to inspect the site for any failures to comply with the regulations or to see whether any seemingly unnoticeable dangers are present. Furthermore, it is important to test for low oxygen, hazardous fumes, and toxic gases; especially when gasoline engine-driven equipment is running. With the applicable protective measures, the risks associated with working in trenches can be dramatically decreased. If the protective measures are not in place, serious injury or death of the trench worker and liability of the worksite supervisors may occur.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Tate Hodges

DOT Worker Dies After Being Crushed By Backhoe

Jean Martin — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:09:09 GMT

When my fellow IB partner Steve Lombardi asked me to join in a series of blogs about workers being accidentally backed over by fellow workers, I had no idea that the timing would be so ripe. Unfortunately, last week here in Wilmington, New Hanover county, North Carolina, we experienced such a tragic accident. Jimmy Lee Phillips, a long-time DOT worker, was killed after being struck by a backhoe operated by a fellow DOT worker. Mr. Phillips was standing behind the backhoe when it backed up and crushed him. The accident is still under investigation, but there is no doubt that Mr. Phillips' family is left with many questions.

One has to wonder if spotters were being used. Operators of heavy machinery often have their vision blocked, particularly in backing up. Were there workers who were supposed to be standing guard to prevent such accidents? Did the backhoe have an alarm that sounded when it was operating in reverse? Did the backhoe have such a mechanism, but it didn't work this time or had been dismantled? We often make jokes about such alarms, but they can save lives. Were workers given proper instructions and guidance as to the work that was going to take place and how the machinery would be moving about? Was there a proper work plan to ensure that workers would not be working in an area that was dangerously close to the backhoe? Workers on these types of job sites work in very confined spaces. Safety precautions are absolutely necessary to prevent such accidents.

Our hearts go out to the family of Jimmy Lee Phillips and to the operator of the backhoe as he undoutedly feels much anguish due to the tragic consequences of this accident. Hopefully this accident will serve as a wake-up call for workers and supervisors that proper safety precautions are necessary and equipment needs to be checked prior to each use to ensure that safety mechanisms are working properly.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jean Martin

Accidentally Backing over a Fellow Construction Worker

Tate Hodges — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 09:10:19 GMT

Your first impression about this type of accident probably will be one of curious interest and inquisitive horror. After all, how often could this actually happen? Surely, there must be precautionary measures in place to ensure that one of the most traumatic construction accidents will never occur on any jobsite. However, a sobering realization is that this type of accident happens far more than we would believe.

The amount of catastrophic injuries and deaths has reached epidemic proportions. Highway and roadway workers are the most frequent victims of this hazard. To help reduce the amount of vehicular construction accidents, Congress has passed numerous regulations through the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA). For example, adequate barricades, conspicuous clothing, and flag persons are required when a large vehicle is being operated on a construction site. Furthermore, OSHA requires an operable backup alarm if a vehicle is backing up. The lack of a flag person raises issues of supervision and adequate manpower. If a worker is injured as a direct result of failure to adhere to these standards, the injured person likely will have a strong legal claim.

In addition, if the injury is a direct result of a vehicle not operating properly, for example, a break malfunction, the injured may also have a product liability claim against the manufacturer or distributor of the vehicle. Product liability claims are especially helpful in obtaining recovery for the injured because unlike negligence claims, most product liability actions follow the legal concept of strict liability. In strict liability product liability actions, all the injured would need to prove is that the defective product was the proximate cause of the injury. Conversely, if the injury was a result of inadequate supervision, an OSHA violation, or the lack of reasonable care by a fellow construction worker, a negligence claim may arise against one or more responsible parties. Finally, workers compensation statutes can help the injured party obtain adequate compensation for costly medical bills, pain and suffering, past lost wages, and future diminished earning capacity. Products liability, negligence, and workers compensation claims are common issues that may arise in a lawsuit when a construction worker is backed over at a jobsite.

If you or a loved one has been injured from being struck by an operating vehicle on a jobsite, first, it is most important to report the accident immediately. Having a record of the accident immediately after it occurs is often required by law to have a legal claim. Second, it is strongly suggested to acquire an attorney who may help you in collecting important evidentiary documents, gathering witness information, serving the responsible parties with a lawsuit, and filing the lawsuit with the appropriate court. Although these types of injuries may seem rare, they do occur with some frequency, and it is important that you know your rights.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Tate Hodges

Shot With Nail Gun - An Increasingly Alarming Headline

Jean Martin — Fri, 30 May 2008 12:41:26 GMT

Young worker shot in head with nail gun

Worker shot with nail gun

These are headlines that I don't enjoy reading. I've read reports that as many as 100 people a day show up in Emergency Rooms with injuries due to nail guns. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says that over $300 million in medical care is spent each year to treat injuries due to nail guns. The situation is becoming so prevalent that even Hollywood is currently shooting a movie entitled Nailed about a woman who gets accidentally shot in the head with a nail gun. At least the early reports of the plot suggests that the woman, in this political satire, goes to Washington, D.C. to fight for the rights of the "bizarrely injured." I don't like the idea of poking fun at those injured by the dangerous tools, but I would agree that a campaign to warn people of the dangers of nail guns needs to be mounted. My InjuryBoard colleague Steve Lombardi has enlisted several of us to start this campaign within the pages of InjuryBoard. Steve started us off with an informative piece entitled "Useful Tools or Dangerous Weapons?" I think the answer to his question is that nail guns are both.

The fact is, more and more people are injured by these useful tools. Nail guns have made hand-nailing almost obsolete due to their quickness and efficiency. The biggest advantage of nail guns is their ability to rapidly fire a nail into a surface and do so repeatedly. However, the quickness and ease of the nail gun sometimes lures people into a false sense of security. Sometimes people use them in precarious situations, meaning perhaps not on stable footing, because they believe the job will be done quickly before they are able to fall. I f you happen to loose your balance just as you pull the trigger, it is possible to fire two or three nails into the same hole. Only the first one makes it in - the other two go off in random directions. Those other directions could be towards a co-worker or family member standing in the same room. An InjuryBoard colleague, Paul Jacquart recently posted about one of his clients who was hit in the head with such a nail when a co-worker was using a nail gun above him.

Nail guns are dangerous tools and must be used with an abundance of caution. To quote another InjuryBoard colleague, David Mittleman, folks must remember that nail guns are useful, but can be dangerous and deadly. Nail guns look easy to use, but we must read the manufacturer's instructions prior to using the nail gun. Wear safety glasses when using a nail gun. When moving about the work area, keep your finger OFF of the trigger. Never assume that the nail gun is empty and never point it towards someone and never use it above someone's head.

Even if you take all precautions, nail guns are still dangerous. Please read a great article by my InjuryBoard colleague Brooks Schuelke on the defective design of many nail guns that pose an inherent risk. As Brooks explains, there are two types of triggers used on nail guns - contact and sequential. The sequential trip-trigger makes unintentional firing of nail guns less likely. With nail gun accidents and injuries on the rise, I simply don't understand why more manufacturers are not using this type of trigger. Consumers, whether professional construction workers or do-it-yourselfers should pay close attention to the type of trigger used with a particular model. Read this safety bulletin that gives you tips on how you can tell which type of trigger you have.

As we enter the warm summer months and start more construction projects, please use all caution when using nail guns. If you or a loved one are injured by a nail gun, then please call an InjuryBoard member who can help you determine what legal rights you may have.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jean Martin

Wake County Employee Dies in Workplace Accident

Gary Shipman — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:12:53 GMT

An employee of Wake County died in a workplace accident when a pneumatic jack slipped and the ambulance that the victim was working on fell and fatally crused him.

The jack, manufactured by Grey, slipped, according to an investigative report, and the ambulance upon which David Lee Champion was working on (unsupported by jack stands) fell. The North Carolina Department of Labor's Occupational Safety & Health Division, continues to undertake an investigation regarding the incident.

Workplace injuries and deaths are covered under North Carolina's Worker's Compensation statutes. However, in many circumstances, there are other contributing factors, like equipment failure, that contributes to a worker's injury or death, and therefore, claims otherwise not available under the worker's compensation laws can be pursued against responsible third parties.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gary Shipman

Employment Discrimination - MLK had a dream and a mission

Jean Martin — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 12:16:09 GMT

The time is always right to do what is right. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

As we reflect on all that Martin Luther King, Jr. was able to accomplish in his life cut too short, one can only wonder what he could have achieved for workers' rights and what he could have done to end the on-going discrimination in the workplace. Everyone is quite familiar with his accomplishments in stomping out racial injustice, but just how many of us know that the mission he was pursuing at his death was to champion the rights of workers and to end the in justice and inequality that runs rampant in the workplace. If that Memphis shot had not taken his life, would we now live in a world where people were not fired for the color of their skin or the gender of the body in which they live? Would there truly be equal pay for equal work? Would workers receive the benefits and protections that they ought to receive? Would workers have health insurance? Would everyone have a safe place in which to work? We all dream that dream, but would he have been able to make it a reality? Because it is not yet a reality, Shipman & Wright, LLP fights everyday for the protection of employment rights and equality. This is our continuance of the dream.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jean Martin

California Workers Allowed to Bring Class Action

Gary Shipman — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 16:41:59 GMT

The California Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, August 30, that workers in California may bring a class action against their employers for alleged labor code violations, notwithstanding the fact that the workers had signed agreements requiring those disputes to be submitted to arbitration.

In the 4-3 ruling, the Justices rules that agreements prohibiting the litigation of cases by employees in a class action undermined employees' "unwaivable statutory rights" and "pose a serious obstacle to the enforcement of the state's overtime laws." Some lawyers opined that the ruling would spark the filing of more class actions on behalf of workers. Others hailed the ruling as simply holding employers accountable for their conduct.

"Corporations are trying to wipe out their employee's ability to hold them accountable" by barring class actions in wage and hour cases, employment discrimination and sexual harassment cases, said Arthur Bryant, executive director of Washington-based Public Justice, a public interest law firm that file an amicus brief on behalf of the plaintiff. Thursday's ruling, he said, "essentially preserves employment class actions in California."

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to the section on Workers Compensation.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gary Shipman

AIG Sued by Workers' Compensation Group

Christina Cole — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 03:04:13 GMT

American International Group Inc. may have to pay out more than the $317 million it has set aside to settle claims they shortchanged state workers' compensation programs.

Filed Thursday, in U.S. District Court by the National Workers Compensation Reinsurance Pool, the lawsuit estimates the world's largest workers' comp insurer may owe over $1 billion. AIG, in a separate lawsuit filed Thursday, asked a judge to declare they aren't responsible for payments beyond the fund they set up last year as part of a settlement with the former New York Attorney General.

In most states, companies that sell workers' compensation insurance must fund pools that serve as insurers of last resort to cover worker injuries at employers that pose unattractive risks. AIG misstated the premiums used in calculating its contributions, triggering a settlement fund for underpayment between 1985 and 1996.

The group, which represents 600 insurers in 40 states, said AIG underpaid for 35 years.

In its own lawsuit, AIG said it "believes that the amount it actually owes" is "significantly less" than $317 million. The suit, in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan, also said the number in the settlement was "subject to multiple analyses both by experts at AIG and independent experts retained by and reporting to the attorney general."

Companies' contributions to the pools are based on how much workers' compensation coverage they sell in the regular market, and the lawsuit said AIG misrepresented those amounts. AIG apologized in its settlement last year, saying it regretted the conduct that led to the suit.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole