Construction sites can be dangerous places. There are many different ways a construction worker can get hurt. To try and prevent construction accidents, many safety regulations have been adopted to try and keep workers safe. Despite these regulations, New York workers are still hurt — and killed — while doing construction work.
One 37-year-old New York construction worker was killed last November. He had been working as an ironworker for over 12 years when he fell three stories to his death. At the time of the accident, he was installing metal decking for a project at State University College at Oswego.
The man was the sole provider for his family who are now left without him. In order to raise some money for his family, the union the man was a member of recently held a benefit fundraiser. This fundraiser helped to raise money for the man’s wife and three young children. This money can be used to help pay for expenses that would otherwise be covered by the man’s salary.
While these types of private benefits might be extremely helpful for this family, it may not be the only compensation available to them following the construction accident. In fact, the family may have at least two other options.
One, the family may consider filing a wrongful death suit. In a wrongful death suit, workers’ families can receive compensation if the workers’ death was the result of someone else’s negligence. Here, if someone’s negligence caused the man to fall, that person may be responsible for paying the family for lost wages, loss of companionship, medical bills and pain and suffering.
Two, the family may want to apply for workers’ compensation. Workers’ compensation applies when workers’ have been hurt or killed on the job. By applying for workers’ compensation, this family may be able to get compensation for lost wages, medical bills and other expenses relating to the accident.
Source: The Post-Standard, “Benefit raises money for family of ironworker killed in construction accident,” Sarah Moses, May 16, 2013