Construction site accidents often result in serious injuries or wrongful death. Falls are the leading cause of injury and death for construction workers. Workers are most likely to fall from scaffolding, ladders and roofs. According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 65% of construction accidents occur while workers were on scaffolds that were not erected or used properly. Other construction-related accidents happen when objects strike workers when workers get caught between objects and from electrocutions, or slips and fall. Contacting a Chicago slip and fall attorney can help you fight for the compensation you deserve on the job site.
OSHA manages the regulations and standards that all construction workers face. You can request a review of the job site or submit an anonymous complaint if you feel your employer is not providing safe working conditions. Even if your working environment is safe, accidents still happen.
Most employers in Illinois are required to carry a workers’ compensation policy for the benefit of their employees who suffer job-related injuries or death. To be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, two conditions must be met: the injury must have arisen from the victim’s employment and happened during their employment.
These two conditions can sometimes be difficult to prove. The availability of workers’ compensation benefits is no guarantee that a claim will go through. The employer may refuse a claim on the victim’s pre-existing condition. The victim must prove that their injury was caused by a risk connected with their employment, in order to create a causal connection between their job and their injury. Depending on the type of injury you sustained, proving such a causal connection may not be easy.
The objective of workers’ compensation is to avoid the costs associated with filing a lawsuit against an employer for injuries suffered on the job. If you have workers’ compensation through your employer, your benefits will cover your medical expenses and a portion of wages lost as a result of any injury you suffer while on the job.
There are circumstances under which you may be able to sue your employer for your injuries. If you can prove that your employer acted in an exceptionally egregious manner and failed to create a safe construction site, you may be able to sue. You may also have the right to file a lawsuit if your employer did not purchase workers’ compensation coverage as required by law.
If your injury was caused by a third party, like the manufacturer of defective machines and equipment, you may be able to sue the manufacturer in a product liability case. Seeking the advice of a product liability attorney can help you understand if you have a case.
Determining who is responsible for your construction accident injury can be tricky. On a construction site, there could be contractors and sub-contractors working side by side. Determining which employer or entity is responsible for your injury will require an investigation into how your work was performed and which party exercised control over your work.
Generally, if a company exercises any control over the way you perform your work, including supervising you, then they could be held legally responsible for the injuries you suffered on the construction site. A general contractor can be directly responsible for sub-contractors if they retain sufficient control over the construction project’s safety; that is, if they are contractually responsible for the safety of the project, for designating a competent supervisor and a person responsible for preventing accidents, for coordinating the work, and for the methods and procedures used on the site.
If you are confused about the legal aspects of your situation, an experienced personal injury attorney can help you get clarity. At Smith LaCien, we can help ensure that you receive the benefits you deserve. We offer a free, no-obligation consultation, and our personal injury claims are handled on a contingency fee basis. In other words, you pay nothing if your case does not yield results.
Our attorneys are committed to helping you navigate the complicated legal system. Our reputation for results, now totaling more than $2.5 billion, is proof of our commitment to helping people throughout Illinois get the justice they deserve. When you work with us you can expect honesty, professionalism, and attention to detail every step of the way.
Call our office in Chicago today at (312) 509-8900 or fill out our contact form online.