Bethlehem Scaffolding Collapse Attorney
Scaffolding collapses are a common cause of serious work injuries. If your employer or coworker set up a scaffolding without proper safety training or without following proper safety rules, you and others may have fallen and faced serious injuries from the fall itself, from the structure collapsing on top of you, and from the falling debris and materials.
Our attorneys seek to help victims injured in scaffolding collapses get compensation through Workers’ Compensation. This system covers most employees who suffer work-related injuries, potentially covering your scaffolding collapse and paying significant benefits to you and your family for your injuries.
For your free case evaluation, call (267) 651-7945 to reach Cardamone Law’s Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Specialists.
When Scaffolding Accidents Qualify for Workers’ Compensation
If you are an employee – that is, you are not an independent contractor and instead do your work according to your boss or supervisor’s instructions – then you should be covered for any injuries you sustain in the course of your work. These “work-related” injuries should include nearly any injury, including scaffolding collapses that occur while doing your job.
Qualifying Employees
Self-employed workers and independent contractors are not required to be covered under their employer’s Workers’ Comp, but all employees should be covered. This means that if you are a painter or construction worker who works for a company or works as an employee of a general contractor – rather than as a subcontractor – then you should have Workers’ Compensation coverage.
Your employer provides this coverage; unlike Social Security or unemployment, you do not pay into Workers’ Comp to get coverage. Instead, this should be provided from your first day at work.
If you have any questions about whether you were covered or think that your employer might have been misclassifying you to try to save them money on Workers’ Comp coverage, talk to our lawyers about your options.
Qualifying Injuries
As mentioned, any injury that happens in the course of your work should be covered through Workers’ Compensation. This actually means that fault is not taken into account.
If the scaffolding collapse occurred because your employer or supervisor set it up in violation of OSHA standards, that should be covered. If the collapse occurred because a coworker who was not trained in scaffolding setups put it together wrong, that should be covered. It may come as a surprise that even if you were the one who set up the scaffolding wrong or made a mistake in how you erected it, your injuries should still be covered.
Any time the injury occurred within the scope of your work, it should be covered, even if you caused the accident. The main exception is that intentional injuries or accidents caused by drug use or alcohol use are not covered.
Benefits for Workers Injured by Scaffolding Accidents in Bethlehem
If you are seeking benefits for a work-related scaffolding collapse, there are three main areas of benefits you should potentially qualify for.
Medical Coverage
First, all medical care to treat the injuries you sustained in your work accident should be covered. Even if your injury does not ultimately keep you out of work for a long time, the medical care you need could be quite expensive.
There are restrictions with these benefits, such as the requirement that you must treat with a doctor from a list of approved care providers for the first 90 days. This list is put together by your employer or their insurance carrier, and it usually includes at least six providers, not all of which have to be medical doctors.
Many injured workers end up treating with Workers’ Comp doctors who focus on patching workers up and getting them back to work. After 90 days, you might choose your own doctor to ensure more control over your quality of care.
If you need to see a specialist that is not listed, you can usually go off the list or seek a second opinion of your choice if you need surgery. You can also go off list entirely, but that care will not be covered at all.
Wage-Loss Benefits
If your injury is disabling – whether on a total or partial basis – you will miss out on income because of the injury. Replacement wages are typically issued at a rate of 2/3 your average wages.
If your injury is totally disabling, you receive 2/3 of what you made before the accident, subject to some caps and floors, for as long as you continue to be totally disabled. If you can work with partial disabilities, either with reduced hours, in a different job, or with light-duty restrictions, then you usually receive 2/3 of the difference between pre- and post-injury wages.
There are requirements to continue receiving benefits, such as keeping all doctor’s appointments, informing your employer about any changes in your capacity to work, and accepting any replacement work that your doctor approves you for. Refusing to work when you are able to or withdrawing from the workforce usually disqualifies you, so be careful about any communications you make with your employer and discuss any communications with our scaffolding collapse attorneys.
Specific Loss Damages
Additional benefits are paid for specific types of injuries as a number of weeks’ worth of 2/3 your average weekly wage. The number of weeks is assigned based on what injury you suffered.
These benefits are paid for any permanent injury, loss, or loss of function, such as paralysis from a fall or amputation from a crush injury. Additionally, lost eyesight or hearing can occur from serious head injuries or trauma to the eye during a scaffolding collapse, and these losses also receive specific loss damages. Lastly, if you suffered serious facial scars, such as from cuts or impalement by broken scaffolding or building materials you fell into, that also pays specific loss benefits.
Call Our Workers’ Comp Lawyers for Scaffolding Collapses in Bethlehem
If you were hurt in an accident, call the scaffolding collapse attorneys at Cardamone Law today at (267) 651-7945.
