As a construction worker, you already know that you work in a dangerous profession. In fact, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) reports more serious injuries and deaths in construction than any other occupation.
Despite this knowledge and your own efforts to stay safe on the job, you still expect the company that employs you to do its part to create a safe working environment. When it puts you at unreasonable risk instead, the physical, financial, and emotional consequences can be devastating. If you are suffering the effects of a serious construction accident injury, it’s in your best interest to contact a personal injury attorney los angeles as soon as possible.
Common Accidents Among Construction Workers
Falls are one of the most common ways that construction workers can become injured on the job. A fall can occur because your employer didn’t provide a safety harness, the scaffolding or netting system was faulty, and a variety of other reasons. Other common accidents in the construction industry include:
- Burns: Welding and other typical construction equipment can cause serious burns if handled improperly or if you never received adequate training on their use.
- Cave-ins: Trenching or excavating mounds of dirt can cause a dangerous cave-in situation where you could get buried under hundreds or thousands of pounds of earth. This situation also increases the risk of injury by explosion, asphyxiation, electrocution, or toxic fume inhalation.
- Electrocution: Construction employees who work around live wire or lockout circuits that no one tagged properly face the danger of electrocution.
- Run over by heavy machinery: Being a construction worker means that you must frequently use heavy and dangerous machinery to complete your job. If the equipment tips over while you’re driving it, you could be trapped underneath.
- Struck by a fallen object: Improperly secured objects or falling debris pose a significant threat to all construction workers.
Third-Party Compensation in a Construction Accident Case
As an injured worker in Texas, you’re entitled to file for workers’ compensation benefits. You could also qualify to hire a tenant attorney lawyer if you can prove that the actions of another party were especially negligent and directly caused your injuries. However, determining liability in a construction accident can get complicated as it could be one or more of the following:
- Construction site owner
- General contractor
- Manufacturer of faulty equipment
- Sub-contractor
- Other third parties that contributed to your injuries through gross misconduct or negligence
Moving Forward with a Personal Injury Lawsuit
Although Texas law typically doesn’t allow injured workers to sue their employer due to the workers’ compensation system, several exceptions exist for construction workers. However, you must do so within the two-year statute of limitations imposed by Texas law. If successful, you could recover wages not paid by workers’ compensation, medical expenses, and reimbursement for other losses.