Articles Tagged with Worker Safety

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According to a recent regional news release from the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a maker of granite countertops in Acton, Massachusetts has exposed employees to repeated safety hazards while violating worker safety regulations.

safetymaskThe company was cited for safety violations in 2014 following a finding of six specific infractions and was fined $8,500. Employer was also required to submit proof to OSHA that the dangerous working conditions likely to cause an on-the-job injury were corrected.   The employer allegedly did not submit this report, and OSHA reopened its investigation. Continue reading

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One of the more common scenarios that results in on-the-job injuries involves objects falling on an employee. In some cases, were are dealing with merchandise or supplies placed precariously on high shelves, and, in other cases, improperly installed shelves or retail fixtures have collapsed on workers causing serious injuries, including head trauma.

mjYB5dmAccording to a recent report from the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a large furniture chain store in Danvers, Massachusetts is responsible for an employee being seriously injured when boxes full of patio furniture fell on him. Continue reading

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Industrial workers often find themselves working in harsh environments. We have workers in steel mills and metallurgy plants working in and around molten metals, which are not only glowing hot but may also be emitting toxic gases. When conditions get dangerous, workers may have no clue until a serious or fatal accident occurs. This is also true of first responders who are constantly rushing into burning buildings or putting themselves under vehicles that are on the verge of collapse.

industrialsmokestackAccording to a recent news feature form EHS Today, Intel and Honeywell are teaming up to produce a wearable safety system for industrial workers and first responders. The wearable sensors can monitor employees’ present vital signs as well as conditions in the room. If the workers are wearing an air pack or other respirator or ventilator, the system can monitor that too.   The wearable technology will send its data to a local hub that can allow scene commanders to monitor all employees or first responders at one time. They will know if conditions are getting worse, and they will know if someone is hurt. This will increase the rate at which a rescue team can respond, which will help save lives of those injured on the job. Continue reading

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In a recent news feature from The New York Times, a once homeless man discusses his current struggles obtaining worker’ compensation benefits and a fear that he will be evicted from his small basement apartment.

misbgGcThe man first talks about the 18 months he was actually homeless after immigrating to the United States from Guyana, where he worked on a fishing boat. Before he was able to get a job that would pay his rent and other living expenses, he spent his nights sleeping on New York City subway system trains.   He said he first tried living at homeless shelter, but other residents were constantly threatening him. Violence in homeless shelters is common, including in those in Boston, because many of the residents suffer from serious mental health conditions, including schizophrenia with paranoid delusions. Continue reading

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Recently, there has been an increasing amount of coverage about the dangers faced by workers at the psychiatric hospital in Worcester, Massachusetts. This is one of a few state-run mental health facilities where inmates in the criminal justice system are sent for competency restoration and, in some cases, long-term inpatient commitment. This is a dangerous job, because healthcare workers are asked to care for patients who suffer from serious psychological illness, including schizophrenia and paranoid schizophrenia, as well as bipolar disorder and a variety of other disorders that can manifest themselves with violent tendencies. Many of the inmates are also classified into what is known as a dual diagnosis, with alcohol or drug addiction being the second diagnosis. This can amplify the psychotic behavior significantly.

mjQByzaHowever, as one could expect, Massachusetts is not the only place where this problem exists for hospital workers. According to a recent news article from Utica Observer Dispatch, a worker at central New York state psychiatric facility was recently assaulted.   Authorities say the woman assaulted was a treatment assistant at a secured hospital facility. Continue reading

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Sorensen v. Harbor Bar, LLC, a case from the Supreme Court of South Dakota, involved a claimant who graduated from high school and then enrolled in culinary school. However, she dropped out of culinary school in her first year and moved back home, but found her own apartment. She took a job as server at a restaurant in 2009.

1mri-head-scan-370098-mCourt records indicate that, while she was working on New Year’s Eve as a server for her employer, there was a fight, and claimant tried to break it up. One of her co-workers saw her in the middle of the fight, and he tried to help her. At this point he saw another customer hitting a person who was lying on the floor. He pulled the customer off the person on the floor, and he discovered it was claimant who the man was attacking as he laid on the floor. Claimant managed to get up and ran to the bathroom in an attempt to clean herself up. Later on, others in the bar noticed she had two black eyes and was complaining of a headache. Continue reading

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This time of year, families across the country are driving out to the country to go to county fairs, pumpkin patches, and apple festivals. While these events and festivals can be a lot of fun for the entire family, for workers it often means long hours and sometimes even dangerous conditions.

rideAccording to a recent news article from NBC, a worker at a state fair was working in the midway running an attraction when a nearby carnival ride malfunctioned. The ride was called the Crazy Mouse, and it was spinning carnival riders around when a piece of the ride broke off and went flying toward the state fair mainstay. Witnesses say the piece of the ride hit the worker in the midway and caused a serious, but non-life threatening injury. The worker was taken to a local hospital, so he could be treated for his injury. Continue reading

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Ball v. Multiple Injury Trust Fund, a case from the Supreme Court of Oklahoma, involved a claimant who was injured while working at a tire plant. The injury occurred in July of 2009. Workers filed a claim for workers’ compensation benefits, and a full hearing was eventually held. The judge concluded that worker was 24 percent partially permanently disabled due to her back injury and 5 percent partially permanently disabled as a result of psychological illness. She was awarded just under $50,000 in workers’ compensation benefits.

usdollars3However, the court also found there were preexisting back conditions in the amount of eight percent of her total disability, and the award was adjusted to reflect the partial preexisting condition. To avoid any further litigation, the parties ultimately reached a settlement, and claimant received an award of $75,000 in addition to the previous award of $50,000. Continue reading

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In Flowell Elec. Ass’n v. Rhodes Pump, LLC, claimant was working on servicing a well when he and his employer raised the boom on a work truck within close proximity to some high voltage power lines. They told other workers that they had raised the boom near the power lines and these other workers brought some type of “cover ups” to protect the workers from the power lines. These cover ups were laid across 15 of the high voltage line.

mhX6v10Despite the cover ups as precautions, claimant managed to come into contact with the high voltage lines and was seriously injured. He was working for his employer at the time of the accident and filed a claim for workers’ compensation benefits. His claim for workers’ compensation benefits was approved and he collected benefits but he also filed a negligence against a third party defendant who had its own workers involving in saying the job was safe and provided the covering material. Continue reading

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According to a recent report from ABC News, four workers were sent to the hospital after a chemical plant explosion in California. Authorities say the explosion occurred around 8 a.m., and, while the cause of the exposition is not yet known, they do know the chemical involved in the explosion was called silane and should not cause any danger to the general public.   However, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), says direct contact with silane can cause nausea, coughing, sore throat, frostbite, and hives.

lab-work-803100-mWitnesses say one 42-year-old male victim was taken by medevac helicopter to level one trauma center with severe burns on his face and chest. The other three workers injured in the accident were taken by ambulance to local hospitals, where they were treated and released. Continue reading

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