Scaffolding Accidents at Work

By Pyle Law, February 16 2021 9:17 pm
CLICK FOR YOUR FREE CONSULTATION

Ourblog

Put our experience and expertise to work for you in your personal injury, workers’ comp, or wrongful death case! We’re ready to fight for what you’re entitled to receive!

Scaffolding Accidents at Work

By Pyle Law, February 16 2021 9:17 pm
Scaffolding Accidents at Work

If you are injured in a scaffolding accident at work, you may be entitled to legal compensation. The type of compensation that you can receive depends on how you were hurt, and a Kansas workers’ compensation lawyer should review your case.

Scaffolds on a job site are inherently dangerous, and they cause numerous injuries each year. Your legal remedy can range from filing a workers’ compensation claim to a lawsuit against a non-employer party that was responsible for your injury. Always allow a Kansas workers’ compensation lawyer evaluate your rights. 

Statistics About Scaffolding Accidents

Scaffolds are present at many construction sites across the country and in the State of Kansas. According to OSHA, nearly two-thirds of employees in the construction industry work on scaffolds. According to OSHA statistics, an average of 60 workers each year die in scaffolding accidents. Another 4,500 workers are injured annually.

Scaffolds are dangerous because they are almost always at some degree of height. This poses a danger to both the workers who are standing on the scaffold and people in the immediate vicinity. This includes construction workers and passersby. When construction workers fall from scaffolds, it is almost certain that they will be seriously injured.

Common Scaffold Injuries

Here are some of the more common scaffold injuries:

  • Workers can step through a plank and fall.
  • The railing on the scaffolding may not be sturdy or high enough, and the employee could fall.
  • The worker trips on debris or equipment and falls off the scaffold
  • Workers or passersby can be struck by equipment or debris falling from the scaffold.

Employers are subject to a very strict set of rules that govern the use of scaffolding. OSHA safety rules require that employers be trained and given the proper safety equipment. There are also very strict safety standards for the use of scaffolds. They include limitations on weight load and guidelines for guardrail height. However, employers do not always follow OSHA rules.

How You Can Obtain Financial Compensation

Depending on how the injury happened and who was responsible, you have a number of possible legal remedies:

  • If your employer was responsible for the scaffolding, you would file a workers’ compensation claim.
  • When another contractor or company is responsible for the scaffolding, you can file a negligence lawsuit against them. The actions of third parties who are not your fellow employees may be grounds for a lawsuit
  • If the scaffolding itself was defective, the manufacturer would be liable in a product liability lawsuit.

The one caveat is that workers’ compensation in Kansas is the exclusive remedy as far as your employer is concerned. This is even if your injuries were caused by the negligence of your fellow employee. In Kansas, the law makes it nearly impossible to sue your employer for a workplace injury, even if they failed to follow OSHA rules. Nonetheless, with scaffolding, you can always try to seek workers’ compensation and file a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the scaffold if it was defective. 

Contact a Kansas Workers’ Compensation Attorney

At Pyle Law, we can help injured employees file a workers’ compensation claim or a lawsuit when necessary. To contact a Kansas workers’ compensation attorney, call us at (620) 241-9000 or reach out to us online. Your initial consultation is free, and you owe us nothing unless your claim is successful. 

Share our post

REQUEST A
FREE CONSULTATION

All fields are required*