Massachusetts Workers Compensation Lawyers Blog

In most injuries that happen to employees on the job in Boston, the worker will miss some time at work, receive medical treatment and then return to work.  However, there are some cases of on-the-job injuries where the claimant suffers a permanent loss of function to a particular body part, organ, or sense.

In some cases, the loss of function will fall under a category known as “Specific Injuries,” as defined in Chapter 152, Section 36 of the Massachusetts General Laws (MGL) , which is the workers’ compensation act for the Commonwealth.  Continue reading

Electrical General Corp. v LaBonte

In a recent case from the Maryland Court of Appeals, which is the state supreme court for that jurisdiction, a claimant was originally injured while he was at work for his employer.  The accident occurred when he caught a ladder that was falling. He caught the ladder to prevent it from injuring him or his co-workers and pushed it back up against a wall to keep if from falling.

This ladder was 40 feet in length and weighed over 300 pounds.  For this reason, when he saw it falling and was about to land on people, he did what he could to prevent that, but we are talking about a considerable amount of weight at very awkward angle. When he managed to stop the ladder from falling, he testified that he could feel a shift in his back, which then turned in to considerable and constant back pain.  He switched to a light duty position at the company, and then, when things did not get better, he had surgery on his back. Continue reading

Electrical burns can cause serious injury, and may result in substantial time off work. If it happens on-the-job, you may be entitled to compensation.

The Echo Park Patch reported recently two workers were seriously injured while working in an electrical vault.  An electrical vault is an underground room or chamber, typically made of metal or concrete, that provides access to subterranean electrical conduits.  They are in major cities that have underground utilities that are used by workers who need to access the grid.  There are also vaults for access to gas and water or sewage pipes in most major cities.  While they are supposed to be safe, there are many workplace accidents that occur in these utility vaults.

This particular accident occurred when the workers came in contact with electrical equipment that was charged with current, according to authorities.  The current discharged from the equipment into the two workers and caused them to suffer a critical personal injury.  Others on the scene immediately called for help and could get them out of the vault.  However, they had to be extremely careful, as there was still the possibility of an electrical discharge.  This incident caused a partial blackout in the neighborhood surrounding the site of the on-the-job accident. Continue reading

What does it mean to be an “employee” for the purposes of obtaining workers’ compensation?

A recent case from the Nebraska Supreme Court deals with the issue of defining what it means to be an employee for the purposes of obtaining workers’ compensation.  In that case, putative employer was the owner and sole proprietor of a company.  He normally works alone, according to court records, and performs carpentry services.

His carpentry work is normally done in the capacity of a subcontractor, meaning a general contractor hires him to do work on a building project.  His son is also a sole proprietor of his own company and does work on roofing and guttering on construction projects. Continue reading