Although a variety of jobs are dangerous and put employees at risk of serious injury, the construction industry has proven to be one of the most dangerous workplaces for employees. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) estimates that as many as 4,379 workers lost their lives in private industry in a single year, and that approximately 937 of those tragic deaths occurred in the construction industry.
Scaffolding accidents have proved especially common and tend to result in particularly traumatic injuries, as they often involve falls from great heights, so if you were injured in a scaffolding accident in Ohio, it is critical to speak with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney who can help you seek compensation for your medical bills and other losses.
Those who are employed in the construction industry are required to work around heavy machinery, at great heights, and with dangerous tools and materials. It is no surprise then that these individuals are some of the most at-risk employees across all industries. The leading cause of construction-related injuries include:
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, these causes were responsible for approximately 65 percent of all construction-related worker deaths that occurred in 2015.
While all construction-related accidents are dangerous, those involving scaffolding tend to have particularly serious consequences, in large part because employees are at-risk of falling several stories or of being crushed by the scaffolding itself. The most common causes of scaffolding accidents include:
These types of mistakes cause hundreds of people to sustain serious and even deadly injuries in scaffolding accidents every year, such as:
Catastrophic injuries of this nature require multiple surgeries, expensive prescription medications, and extensive physical therapy. Even after treatment, many injured parties are permanently disabled and will require care for the rest of their lives. Fortunately, injured employees in Ohio can collect workers’ compensation benefits to help them cover medical benefits and lost wages, regardless of who was at fault in the accident. However, if a third party’s negligence was the cause of an accident, the injured party could file a claim against that individual or entity in court and collect additional damages.
Please contact Lafferty, Gallagher & Scott, LLC to discuss your case with a compassionate and experienced workers’ compensation lawyer.
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