Top 10 Dangers On The Job

Here’s one Top 10 list that employers in Pennsylvania hope to never make.

The U.S. Department of Labor has released its Top 10 Workplace Safety Violations for 2012.

Inadequate protection against falls and insufficient warnings of job site hazards are the biggest problem areas, according to the DOL’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Following is the complete list:

• Fall Protection  (Total violations: 7,250)
• Hazard Communication (4,696)
• Scaffolding (3,814)
• Respiratory Protection (2,371)
• Ladders (2,310)
• Machine Guarding (2,097)
• Powered Industrial Trucks (1,993)
• Electrical – Wiring Methods (1,744)
• Lockout/Tagout (1,572)
• Electrical – General Requirements (1,332)

Free Consultation With A Pennsylvania Workplace Safety Lawyer

Have you been injured on the job? Concerned about safety conditions at your workplace? […]

Recent Workplace Fatalities Raise Awareness of Construction Hazards

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH) was put in place by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to prevent workers from being killed or seriously harmed at work.  Under the act, workers are entitled to working conditions that do not pose a risk of serious harm, and all workers have the right to a safe workplace. Unfortunately, no amount of rules or legislation can prevent all accidents, and just this month, at least two men lost their lives in separate workplace accidents.

The Wall Street Journal reports one worker died and two others were seriously injured when the building they were working on in New York City collapsed March 22. The workers were tearing down a two-story warehouse during a Columbia University expansion project in Harlem.  The collapse is still being investigated, but preliminary findings suggest the workers cut a structural beam supporting the warehouse “causing steel beams, […]

Asbestos Exposure Lawsuit Leads to $10 Million Settlement from U.S. Engineering Company

Asbestos exposure in Missouri courthouse leads to lawsuits

The family of a Missouri woman who died from mesothelioma, a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos, has been awarded $10 million in a settlement with U.S. Engineering Company for mishandling asbestos in the Jackson County Courthouse in Kansas City, Missouri.

The lawsuit claimed U.S. Engineering did not follow the proper rules and procedures when handling asbestos, and that now, significant amounts of asbestos still remain in the courthouse.   The lawyers for the plaintiff claimed there has been “significant accumulations of asbestos dust in and around the heating and air conditioning systems at the Courthouse for a number of years.”

The woman worked for 27 years in the Jackson County Courthouse.

In addition, a class action lawsuit has been filed for anyone that worked in the courthouse on a daily basis who may have been exposed to asbestos dust from 1983 to the present. […]

Wal-Mart Distribution Center Employee Awarded $21 Million

A Pike County (Alabama) jury has awarded an employee of Wal-Mart distribution center $21 million for injuries she suffered while working in the banana ripening room, reports the Dothan News.

In April 2008, the then 26-year-old woman was standing in the doorway of one of the newly constructed banana ripening rooms when a 3-4 foot tall metal plate covering the trim at the top of one of the room’s doors fell 30 feet and struck her in the face.  She not only suffered face lacerations, but it severed her nerves and muscles in her face.

Several days later, she developed seizures which now occur on a regular basis and puts her at risk of a condition called sudden epileptic death.  Due to the seizures, she’s not able to be alone and to completely care for her 2-year-old daughter.

The lawsuit was filed against Thermal Technologies and its contractor, […]

$9 Million to Worker Paralyzed by Caterpillar Tractor

Man paralyzed from the waist down due to defective Caterpillar tractor

Bloomberg reports Caterpillar has paid more than $9 million in one of last year’s largest product liability verdicts involving a man who was paralyzed by a Caterpillar tractor.

The 41-year-old worker was using a Caterpillar Wheel Tractor 623 G Scraper in August, 2006, when the machine “suddenly and without warning began dramatically bouncing up and down.”  The bucking caused the man’s seat to fail and slammed him against the machine’s frame causing spinal injuries and a punctured lung.  He is now paralyzed from the waist down.

The lawsuit claims Caterpillar was aware of the tractors’ defects that made them move erratically, but did nothing to fix them.  The jury found both Caterpillar and Holt Texas Ltd., the dealership that sold the scraper to the man’s employer, liable for actual and punitive damages. […]