Construction can be a dangerous profession, and construction workers can face serious injuries because of accidents or unsafe working conditions. Certain state and federal laws promote safety for construction workers, and there are several legal options available when someone gets injured.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a federal agency that regulates safety in different industries, including construction. The agency also conducts research on safety, sets safety standards, keeps track of workplace health and safety statistics, and enforces safety standards by conducting inspections and imposing penalties for violations.
All participants in the construction industry need to comply with the rules enacted by OSHA. Any violation of the regulations set by this agency will generally be considered a breach of the duty of care.
What are the Most Common Legal Solutions for Injured Workers?
When a worker is injured on the job, they can seek compensation either from their employer or from a third party. Although the laws can vary by state and apply differently depending on the type of injuries, the three main legal options for an injured employee are:
One or more of these legal options may be available, given the details of the situation and how and why the injury occurred.
What is a Workers’ Compensation Claim for Construction Injuries?
You are probably eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if you were injured while doing construction work. The details of workers’ compensation systems can vary from state to state, but all workers’ compensation systems generally have certain features in common, such as:
- Workers’ Compensation Insurance: Every employer is required to carry this type of insurance. Damages resulting from an injury claim are paid through this insurance.
- “No Fault” System for Payment of Benefits: In a workers’ compensation claim, you do not have to prove that another individual or entity was at fault. You do not have to allege that someone was negligent or caused your injury. You only have to prove that you were, injured and that the injury occurred in the course and scope of your employment.
A workers’ compensation claim is, more convenient than other options because you do not have to go through expensive litigation to prove that someone else was responsible for your injuries.
A workers’ compensation claim usually pays for medical expenses, lost wages, and partial or permanent disability but may not cover other damages, such as pain and suffering. To obtain those, you would have to go through traditional litigation.
What is a Personal Injury Lawsuit for Construction Workers?
Recovery for injury under a workers’ compensation claim only applies in a direct employer-employee relationship. However, it is possible that a third party caused your injuries. For example, many different individuals and entities are involved in most construction projects, such as:
- A general contractor;
- Multiple subcontractors;
- A property owner;
- Engineers;
- Architects; or
- Material suppliers.
If you want to file a personal injury claim, you need to prove that some individual or organization other than your employer is wholly or partially liable for the incident that led to the injuries. To prevail in a personal injury claim, you need to prove the following elements:
- The defendant had a duty to provide for your safety;
- The defendant failed to meet that duty (see above concerning OSHA – breaking an OSHA rule can be an automatic failure to meet the duty). The court considers whether a “reasonably prudent” person or company would have taken different actions than the defendant. If so, the defendant was likely negligent;
- The defendant’s action or inaction was the direct and proximate cause of the injuries. This test is usually phrased this way: but for the defendant’s action or inaction, would the injury have occurred?
- You suffered some kind of damage or injury.
Thus, parties other than the employer can be held responsible for unsafe conditions. For example, if an owner of a building that is under construction regularly tells the workers what to do and how to do it, the owner can be held responsible for any injuries which result from issuing these directions.
What is a Product Liability Lawsuit in the Construction Industry?
A construction worker can be injured by a piece of equipment not because of improper use but rather because the equipment had a design flaw or was poorly manufactured. In these situations, you can bring a civil lawsuit for product liability.
The defendants can be anyone from the equipment designers to the suppliers of the parts used in the assembly process. You generally must prove the following elements to prevail in a product liability claim:
- The equipment, part, or tool that caused your injury was unreasonably dangerous when it left the manufacturer or the supplier;
- You were using the equipment or tool in the manner in which it was intended to be used; and
- The equipment or tool had a dangerous defect that caused your injury.
What Damages Can You Collect for Negligence or Product Liability?
Nominal damages can be awarded. This means an award of just a small sum, mainly to establish for the record that the defendant was either negligent or was part of the process of creating or selling a defective product.
Compensatory damages are paid for actual injuries suffered by the worker. They are designed to return the worker to the same situation they were in before the injury occurred.
Sometimes compensatory damages are divided into “intangible” and “tangible” losses:
- Tangible losses are those that are simply calculated. For example, tangible damages for personal injury include all medical expenses associated with the injury (including those projected for the future) as well as lost wages, both current and projected.
- Intangible losses are those without a specific cost attached, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, mental anguish, and other mental health-related effects that damage the plaintiff’s quality of life. Intangible losses also include loss of consortium damages. (These damages compensate the spouse of the injured worker for any suffering they experience due to the injury to the worker.) Unlike tangible losses, which can be calculated by simply adding up the totals of the expenses paid by the construction worker, intangible losses can be difficult to quantify. The jury has the freedom to award any amount of damages that they think are merited.
Punitive damages are awarded if the defendant’s actions are proven to be reckless or intentional, meaning the person or company acted in complete disregard for others’ safety. They are not designed to compensate the construction worker but rather to discourage others from committing these acts. The amount is dictated by the legal doctrine from which the claim arose.
Some states use a guideline for punitive damages, such as three times the actual recovery amount. In other states, the jury is left to decide the amount based on factors such as the defendant’s culpability level, the severity of harm, the extent to which the worker bears a share of the responsibility, past conduct by the defendant, whether the defendant profited from the conduct in question, and punitive damages that have been awarded in similar cases.
Should I Contact a Lawyer for a Lawsuit Related to Being a Construction Worker?
The construction profession has some inherent dangers, and construction workers can face serious injuries at their workplace. If you were injured while performing your duties, it is important to consult with an experienced employment lawyer or a workplace injury lawyer who can help you recover compensation and represent you in court if necessary.
