An investigation into a fatal workplace injury conducted by the U.S. Department of
Labor has found that a Setauket roofing contractor failed to provide necessary safeguards and protect his workers against falls. According to a news release from the U.S. Department of Labor, a worker died on Aug. 19, 2021 in a construction accident after falling 18 feet through an unprotected skylight. The agency found that in addition to the unprotected skylight, the employer exposed workers to falls of up to 22 feet from other unguarded roof openings and roof edges and failed to provide employees with any personal fall protection equipment.
History of Fall Safety Violations
Officials said the company’s job safety plan required fall protection for all employees walking or working on unprotected surfaces 6 feet or more above a lower level. Prior to this investigation, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) had cited the company seven times since 2011 for fall-related hazards including not providing protection from falls through skylights and from roof edges and for unpaid fines adding to more than $50,000.
Based on the company’s history of violations and intentional disregard for fall protection that resulted in a worker’s death, OSHA issued nine citations of willful violations to the company, including eight egregious per-instance citations for failure to provide fall protection for each of the eight employees who worked on the roof. The agency also cited the company for four serious violations for other fall hazards, and for violations related to a crane that was being used on site. The proposed penalties total more than $1 million.
Officials said the company has “continually ignored its legal responsibility to provide a safe workplace and that the failure cost a worker his life.” Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, companies are responsible for providing a safe and healthy workplace for workers. A lot of construction activity in New York requires working from a height or elevation. Ironworkers, steelworkers, roofers, carpenters, masons, laborers or electricians typically need to use scaffolds, platforms, ladders etc. to carry out their tasks.
Laws and Liability Issues
There are local, state and federal laws that protect workers who have been injured in falls at construction sites. Section 240 of the New York Labor Law is commonly known as the “Scaffolding Law.” This statute governs the use of scaffolding in work sites and provides several specific categories of construction work to which it applies, including erection, demolition, repairs, altering or remodeling, painting, cleaning and pointing. OSHA requires that fall protection be provided at elevations of 4 feet in general industry workplaces, 5 feet in shipyards, 6 feet in the construction industry and 8 feet in long shoring operations.
In addition, fall protection must be provided when working over dangerous equipment and machinery, regardless of the fall distance. This type of personal protective equipment should be provided at no cost to workers. Construction workers should also receive proper job training, safety training and adequate supervision on the job.
Workers injured in falls can bring civil actions against the construction company, contractor and property owner/manager, etc. responsible for the safety of the jobsite. Construction accident injuries can be debilitating and sometimes, even catastrophic or fatal. A construction accident victim can seek workers’ compensation benefits from his or her employer. In addition, workers and their families may be able to file a third-party lawsuit for substantial money damages against a number of parties, and thus have two sources of compensation.
Third-party claims are filed against parties other than the employer or co-employees and may include general contractors, sub-contractors, building owners, managing agents, construction companies, etc. In cases where a worker dies from injuries suffered on the job, surviving family members may seek death benefits through workers’ compensation and/or file a wrongful death claim against a third party.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If you have suffered injuries in a construction-related accident, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
Our law firm recovered $3,375,576 for a construction worker (an undocumented immigrant) who was injured on the job — one of the highest construction case settlements in New York that year. Our law firm also recovered $3,000,000 for a man who fell and suffered two broken legs when he walked into an open elevator shaft. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and/or medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com
Source: https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/osha/osha20220228