Construction Site Injuries: Who is to Blame?
A lawsuit seeking personal injuries and unspecified damages due to a wrongful death recently filed in the Supreme Court in Staten Island, New York according to reports, highlights the potential problems with work site injuries.
In the Staten Island case, a construction contractor was working on a home when he apparently fell to his death approximately 8 -10 feet off of an unguarded and unprotected area. Although the article reported that there is a dispute as to what initially caused the individual to fall, it is clear that the lack of a railing or other protective barrier device led to his fall and ultimate death. However, who is to blame? Isn't the worker responsible for his own safety? Is his employer? Is the owner of the premises?
Construction site or work site type accidents and injuries are commonplace. Depending upon the location and type of construction site that is being worked on, various standards of care and varying rules and regulations may apply to the required safety measures and safety devices which must be provided to the on site workers. For instance, in a fact pattern as is set forth above, various OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration) rules and regulations may require certain types of handrails or other barriers where there is a specific height differential or drop.
These rules and regulations may also inform us which party or entity would have the ultimate responsibility to install and/or maintain such barricade devices. For instance, depending on the circumstances and the type of work site, the obligation may be imposed on the general contractor on the site or any one of many subcontractors. There are so many issues concerning these standards that attorneys representing individuals injured in such accidents will almost always rely upon construction and work site experts to navigate them through the regulations and provide an ultimate opinion as to who was at fault.
It is important to note that in such cases, the injured or killed worker will be entitled to a Workers Compensation award so long as the injury was incurred within the course and scope of the worker's employment. However, in the State of New Jersey, other than proceeding with a Workers' Compensation claim, an employee generally may not sue his own employer for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, disability and impairment or wrongful death. Therefore, when one suffers an injury on a construction work site, it is imperative for an injured person to team up with an experienced attorney and a construction safety expert early on to determine where liability rests in order to insure that the injured party is fully and fairly compensated under the law.
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