Recovering From Construction Accidents in Charleston, WV
Legal team advocating for workers’ rights to safety
Construction industry jobs are vital to modern progress, a healthy economy and a safe infrastructure. While contributing valuable skills to building our community, construction workers put their lives in danger every day. Many workers are injured or killed on the job, or they may develop diseases many years later as a result of exposure to toxic substances.
Since 1976, Calwell Luce diTrapano PLLC in Charleston has represented carpenters, millwrights, boilermakers, ironworkers, roofers, cement masons, painters, electricians, laborers, pipe fitters, insulators, operating engineers and other tradesmen injured while constructing buildings, roads and bridges throughout West Virginia. Learn how we can help you recover compensation if the negligent actions of your employer or a third party injured you or killed a loved one. You may have rights in addition to or in lieu of your workers’ compensation claim.
Construction fatalities
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports that 721 construction industry workers were killed in workplace accidents in 2011. OSHA calls the leading causes of construction deaths—falls, electrocutions, getting struck by objects and getting caught in or between objects—the “fatal four.” These fatal accidents are usually avoidable if contractors, supervisors and coworkers implement basic safety measures.
OSHA violations
Unfortunately, companies often put profit before worker safety. Cutting out standard safety provisions may speed the rate of construction and reduce expenses, but this carelessness places lives at risk. Common OSHA violations that can result in serious injuries or deaths involve scaffolding, electrical wiring, heavy machinery, ladders, fall protection, respiratory protection, and machine guarding.
Although OSHA cites companies that violate regulations, often the investigation occurs only after a worker has been hurt or killed because of the negligence. However, if you suspect that your employer is failing to abide by regulatory safeguards, you can initiate an OSHA investigation by reporting the matter to the agency. Whistleblower statutes protect you from retaliation for your role in reporting and assessing safety violations.
Workplace accident lawsuits
West Virginia statutes require most employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance protecting them from lawsuits, but you may file a personal injury for work-related injuries in certain cases, such as a supervisor’s purposeful removal of safeguards from a construction site. You may also have a products liability claim against the manufacturer of defective machinery or harmful substances or a third-party claim against individuals or corporations that negligently contributed to your accident.
Consult our Charleston lawyers about your rights to recover compensation after a construction accident
For more information about construction site injury claims, call Calwell Luce diTrapano PLLC at 304-400-6558 or contact our law firm online to schedule an appointment.
