Working as a road flagger means your job is to keep others safe and conduct the flow of traffic around a worksite. This can be hard work in difficult weather during long hours, and it results in injury risks from the weather, the construction conditions, and the traffic.
If you were hurt at work, then your employer’s Workers’ Compensation should cover your injuries. You might have grounds for a supplemental lawsuit to recover additional damages, but Workers’ Comp pays for all kinds of work injuries, regardless of fault.
Reach out to Cardamone Law’s Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Lawyers at (267) 651-7945 for a free case review.
What Workers Are Covered?
Nearly all road construction flaggers should be covered, but their employment status and who they work for specifically might change this.
Road Flagger Employees
If you are an employee at a road flagger company, like Flagger Force, then you should be covered. These companies typically hire workers as employees, meaning that any injury that happens to them within the scope of their work should be covered under their employer’s Workers’ Compensation insurance.
Construction Employees
If you are an employee at a construction site, for a construction firm, or of a construction contractor, and your job for the day happens to be flagging, then you should also be covered. Because of your status as an employee, Workers’ Comp should cover you, even in the construction industry.
Contractors
If you work as a contractor and you are assigned a flagging detail, then your status as a contractor might not be correct. Road flagging is not typically a contractor position, and your employer is likely controlling the timing, location, and manner of your work, making you more like an employee than a contractor.
It is likely that you might be covered as an employee, even if you are typically billed as a “contractor.”
Requirements for Workers’ Compensation Coverage
To get Workers’ Comp coverage, your case must meet these requirements.
Employee Status
As mentioned, you must be an “employee.” Independent contractors do not typically get Workers’ Comp coverage, but our Workers’ Compensation attorneys for road flagger injuries can fight misclassification if your employer had you listed with the wrong status.
Work-Related Injury
The injury must come out of your work tasks or stem from workplace conditions to be compensable through Workers’ Comp. This typically covers
- Road accidents
- Heat or cold exposure injuries
- Slip and falls
- Construction injuries and
- Nearly any other accident that happens while you are actively doing your job as a flagger.
Disabling Injury
Workers’ Comp covers medical care for all work injuries, but you are also entitled to wage-loss benefits if your injury disables you. This means that it causes you to miss work for at least 7 days.
Procedural Requirements
Workers’ Compensation has some requirements for paperwork and filing that you have to meet to qualify as well. For example, you must report your injuries within 21 days, file a Claim Petition on time, and continue with medical care while awaiting a decision.
Your lawyer can walk you through these requirements when filing your claim.
What if a Driver Injured You?
If you were hit by a car while working as a construction flagger, you might be able to file a Workers’ Comp claim and go after the driver through their insurance or a lawsuit.
No-Fault vs. Fault Claims
Workers’ Compensation is no-fault coverage that covers you by default as long as the injury was work-related. However, you can also file claims against the at-fault driver or sue them. You do, however, need to prove the driver was at fault to recover in that claim.
Additional Damages from the Driver
The claim against the driver can also pay additional damages, like pain and suffering, that your Workers’ Comp claim would not cover.
No Double Recovery Allowed
If you do recover through both systems, you cannot keep double damages. The Workers’ Comp insurance carrier can get paid back for amounts they already paid you for medical care and lost wages via a lien against the winnings in your claim against the driver.
How Long Do You Have to File?
After a work injury, you should report your injury as soon as you can. You are expected to get this report of injury in within 21 days of the accident. You cannot proceed with your Workers’ Comp claim if you get it in later than 120 days from the accident.
After your claim is rejected, you can file a formal Claim Petition with the state. This has a 3-year filing deadline, counting from the date of the injury, not the date of your claim denial.
Can You Sue for Work Injuries as a Construction Flagger?
You can often sue for injuries at work, as long as you sue someone other than your employer or coworkers. Workers’ Compensation rules prevent lawsuits against them, meaning you have to choose a third-party defendant, such as
- A driver who crashed into you or assaulted you
- A construction firm you were not employed by that injured you through dropped debris, vehicle accidents, etc.
- The manufacturer of dangerous or defective safety barriers or equipment being used on the road construction.
You also need to prove they were at fault to get damages from them.
Can You Sue Your Employer?
Generally, no. Your employer is immune to lawsuits from you for work-related injuries. However, there may be exceptions, such as if they injured you intentionally or did not carry Workers’ Comp insurance.
If they are partially responsible for your injuries – e.g., by providing improper training or safety gear – you cannot get paid for their share of the damages, even if a third-party defendant pays for the rest.
Can You Get Pain and Suffering for Work Injuries as a Road Flagger?
Pain and suffering damages reimburse you for the physical pain, mental anguish, and emotional distress of an injury, among other harms. You cannot get these damages through a Workers’ compensation claim, but you can get them through a lawsuit.
This means that if you do have grounds for a third-party lawsuit or car insurance claim, pain and suffering may be available. Otherwise, you might be left with only the damages Workers’ Comp covers.
Call Our Construction Flagger Workers’ Comp Lawyers in Pennsylvania Today
Call Cardamone Law at (267) 651-7945 for a free case assessment with the Workers’ Comp lawyers for road flaggers today.
