Construction Work Accidents

Chicago Law Firm for Construction Workers

The construction industry is notorious for its many dangers. Construction work accidents can result in catastrophic or even fatal injuries. With respect to your employer, your exclusive remedy after a work accident that causes injuries is a workers’ compensation claim. However, when someone other than your employer or a coworker contributed to your injuries, you may be able to file a third party lawsuit in court. You should discuss your situation with the seasoned Chicago workers’ compensation benefits attorneys of Katz FriedmanEisenstein Johnson Bareck & Bertuca. We also litigate personal injury lawsuits and handle Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) claims. We can look at your specific situation and pursue all available relief.

Construction Work Accidents

A sizeable chunk of workers’ injuries and deaths across the country occur in the construction industry. While there are numerous Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations set forth to govern the industry, some Illinois employers don’t follow these crucial rules or provide appropriate protections. Additionally, even when employers do follow these regulations, accidents occur that result in catastrophic and fatal injuries.

Common work accidents at construction sites involve falls from heights, slip and falls, crane or hoist accidents, gas leaks, explosions and fires, forklift accidents, electrocutions, elevator shaft accidents, equipment accidents, machinery accidents, collisions, and more. Unlike third party lawsuits, our lawyers do not need to show someone else was at fault in order to be able to pursue workers’ compensation benefits. Conversely, your employer and its insurer cannot blame you for a work-related accident, and thereby get your benefits reduced, the way it could in a personal injury lawsuit.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Contractors, Subcontractors and Suppliers

Those who work on construction sites face risks from all directions. They are often limited to workers’ compensation benefits because these are an exclusive remedy; you cannot sue your employer or a coworker for damages arising out of your construction work accident. Workers’ compensation benefits can include emergency care, medical benefits, medical mileage, temporary total disability benefits, permanent total disability benefits, disfigurement, loss of use, and vocational rehabilitation.

The amount and nature of benefits depends on the severity of your injuries. For example, if you were horribly disfigured in an explosion at a construction site where you were working, you may be able to obtain disfigurement benefits under Section 8 (c) of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act, which provides for compensation when workers sustain serious and permanent disfigurement on specific portions of their bodies, including their heads, hands, necks, lower legs, or above the axillary line of their chests. You may also be entitled to reasonable and necessary medical care such as emergency medical services, regular doctor’s and specialists’ visits, pain medication, and medical equipment.

For another example, if your spouse suffocated in a trench collapse at a construction site where he worked, you may be entitled to obtain death benefits. These are benefits that are intended to make up for a portion of the deceased worker’s lost wages. In addition, you may be able to obtain funeral and burial expenses in the form of a benefit.

Third Party Liability

Our attorneys can file third party lawsuits against other parties when a worker is injured by the negligence or misconduct of someone other than his employer or a coworker. It’s important to understand that in a third party lawsuit, the defendant may assert that you were comparatively negligent. This makes the lawsuit quite different from a workers’ compensation claim.

Motor Vehicle Accidents

When trying to recover damages in a motor vehicle accident caused by a supplier for whom you don’t work, we may need to establish negligence. We will need to show it’s more likely than not: (1) the defendant owed you a duty to use reasonable care, (2) breach of the duty to use reasonable care, (3) causation, and (4) damages.

Hire a Chicago Construction Work Accidents

Chicago construction work accidents can result in devastating and disabling injuries. Our lawyers represent contractors, subcontractors, materialmen, and other workers at construction sites in Champaign, Rockford, Quincy, and Aurora, as well as Sangamon, Winnebago, Kane, Cook, and Adams Counties. Call us at 312-724-5846 or complete our online form.

• Aggravation of Preexisting Condition
• Construction Site Wrongful Death Claims
• Crane Accidents
• Dealing with Insurance Companies
• Equipment Accidents
• Falls
• Industrial Accidents
• Medical Benefits for Construction Workers
• Permanent Total Disability for Construction Workers
• Vocational Rehabilitation for Construction Workers