Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog

February 10, 2011

Electricity a primary cause of work accidents in Boston

The electrical power and transmission industry is extremely important to consumers who need power to go about their day. But for the workers who work in this field, it can be extremely dangerous.

Our Massachusetts workers’ compensation lawyers feel that given the magnitude of the dangers employees face in these kinds of companies, safety should be a priority above all others in this industry.

Every two to three years, Occupational Safety & Health Administration renews their partnership with power transmission and distribution trade associations. Recently renewed in January, their goal will be to reduce injuries, illnesses, and fatalities of workers in the electrical transmission and distribution industry.

“I am pleased to see the members of this OSHA Strategic Partnership back at the table today to sign a new agreement. This tells that the previous years of the partnership have been successful for everyone concerned and that you find value in working with OSHA and with each other,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “The families of workers in this industry are counting on us to work together so that every worker returns home, safe and healthy, at the end of every single workday.”

Other members of the partnership joining OSHA include: Quanta Services, Inc., Pike Electric Inc., National Electrical Contractors Association, MYR Group Inc., MDU Construction Services Group Inc., Henkels & McCoy Inc., Edison Electric Institute, and Asplundh Tree Expert Co.

Other proposed goals for this group is to determine the causes of the injuries or fatalities so that steps can be recommended in preventing them; training employees once the methods for safety are established; and designing a strategy to make sure the goals of the partnership are being reached.

The partnership has experienced success in achieving goals in the past. The number of deaths went from 6 in 2008 to 2 in 2009. They also saw a reduction in Days Away from Work, Restricted Work Activity, and Transfer in Jobs reduced from a rate of 4.04 in 2008 to 2.95 in 2009.

OSHA offers a 10-Hour Outreach Training program that was completed by almost 4,400 workers in the electrical transmission and distribution industry. The completion of the program is advantageous due to the fact that workers can be trained on occupational safety and health hazards, as well as prevention methods to reduce illness, injuries, or fatalities on the job.

Most people probably take for granted having power in their homes and work places. There are dangers like electrocution and fires that are involved in jobs that help supply this power to consumers. Employers in these industries need to ensure the safety of their employees to prevent the risk of injury or fatality from occurring.
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February 8, 2011

Boston work injuries often involve musculoskeletal disorders

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Our Massachusetts workers’ compensation attorneys frequently report on accidents and injuries caused by work environments and that is true of musculoskeletal disorders.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has for the time being withdrawn its proposed work-related musculoskeletal disorder (MSDs) column on employer injury and illness logs.

OSHA will be gathering more input from small businesses on this proposal with the assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy.

“Work-related musculoskeletal disorders remain the leading cause of workplace injury and illness in this country, and this proposal is an effort to assist employers and OSHA in better identifying problems in workplaces,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “However, it is clear that the proposal has raised concern among small businesses, so OSHA is facilitating an active dialogue between the agency and the small business community.”

In 2009 theBureau of Labor Statistics, reported that 28% of all workplace illnesses and injuries requiring time away was from work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Overall there were 348,740 cases of MSDs, at a rate of 33 cases per 10,000 full time workers. Backs had the greatest risk of injury. Occupations of nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants had a back injury rate of 226 cases per 10,000 full time workers.

Under the proposed rule the existing requirements would not change regarding when employers must record work-related musculoskeletal disorders on their illness and injury logs. A large majority of small businesses aren’t required to keep track of work-related injuries and illnesses. Companies that are currently required to use the OSHA Form 300 log to document work related illnesses and injuries would now have to check a box in a new MSDs column.

The history of the MSDs column dates back prior to 2001, when the OSHA form had a column combined repetitive trauma disorders like noise and many kinds of musculoskeletal disorders. In 2001, OSHA gave noise its own column, MSD was also given a separate column but it was deleted in 2003. This new ruling would put the MSD column back on OSHA Form 300.

Jointly the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy and OSHA will meet with small businesses to discuss this proposal. OSHA also recently backed away from instituting tougher requirements for reducing employees exposure to noise in the workplace.
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February 6, 2011

Massachusetts contractor faces work-safety violations

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A Wilmington, Massachusetts contractor is facing fines of $235,000 for citations, centered around fall hazards, issued by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Our Massachusetts workers’ compensation lawyers are often called to represent employees injured in fall accidents. Falls are among the most common types of serious and fatal work accidents in Boston and throughout Massachusetts.

NER Construction Management Inc. was cited for exposing its workers to falls and others hazards at a job site located in Boston.

Fall protection was not used when workers reached heights up to 17 feet while power washing a building and taking apart a scaffold. The employer also failed to completely plank the scaffold being used by workers to power wash the building.

“A fatal or disabling fall can end a life or a career in seconds,” said Brenda Gordon, OSHA’s area director for Boston and southeastern Massachusetts. “Scaffolding is an essential tool – and fall protection a basic and required safeguard – for this type of work. There’s no reason for an employer’s failure to have proper and effective protections in place and in use at all times at all jobsites.”

OSHA inspectors issued 3 willful citations for these infractions to the company, with proposed fines of $210,000. A ‘willful’ violation means an employer knows that a hazard exists and makes no reasonable attempt to correct it.

In addition to the 3 willful citations, 6 serious citations were also issued in the amount of $23,500. These violations included missing guardrails, faulty scaffold construction, improperly trained employees on the safe operation of powered industrial trucks, no emergency eye washing station and failure to guarantee the use of face, head and eye protection.

Serious violations, that the employer knew or should have known about, have a considerable chance causing death or serious harm to an employee.

Lastly, insufficient record keeping resulted in another $2,000 fine for other-than-serious citations. This type of violation does not cause serious physical harm or death but is related to job health and safety.

Georgoulis Construction Inc., a roofing contractor, was also recently cited for fall hazards at a work site in Tewksbury.

Georgoulis employees were observed by an OSHA inspector and cited for failing to use fall protection and improper use of ladders. Fall protection is needed whenever an employee is working on a roof that is higher than 6 feet. When using a ladder to get onto a roof, the top of the ladder has to extend 3 feet higher than the roof.

“The size of this penalty reflects the gravity of the hazard and the employer’s knowledge of its existence,” said Jeffery A. Erskine, OSHA’s area director for Middlesex and Essex counties. “A fall can occur in seconds but the resulting injuries can be permanent or end a life. There’s no reason for failing to provide this essential and legally required safeguard for workers.”

The company was cited for 1 willful citation for lack of fall protection, and 1 serious citation for improper ladder use, with proposed fines of $54,000.

In 2009 the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 59 fatal occupational injuries in Massachusetts, 11 were due to falls.
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February 3, 2011

Massachusetts to celebrate 100 years of workers’ compensation rights

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

2011 marks the 100th anniversary of Massachusetts workers’ compensation law; the state is generally considered to be the second to enact a workers’ compensation statute when it did so on June, 28, 1911, according to WorkersCompensation.com

Today the program protects thousands of Massachusetts employees, by providing medical care, lost wages and other benefits to employees who are injured as the result of a Massachusetts work accident. Our Boston workers’ compensation lawyers work with families each day to help ensure they collect all of the benefits to which they are entitled.

Workers compensation laws were enacted as the Industrial Revolution made it necessary to change the way compensation was handled for deaths and injuries as a result of workplace accidents. Wisconsin claims the first workers’ compensation law. Massachusetts joined eight other states to follow behind.

Massachusetts plans a centennial commemoration for April 7. The event will be hosted by the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys, the Massachusetts Bar Association, and the Department of Industrial Accidents, among others.

The event is expected to draw leading scholars of workers’ compensation for a symposium looking at economic, labor relations and legal concepts. A book is also being planned. As is a dinner in the Rose Kennedy Ballroom at the Intercontinental Hotel in Boston.
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February 2, 2011

Stay Home! Avoid the risk of a Boston car accident

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Authorities are warning of an increased risk of Boston car accidents and traffic accidents elsewhere in Massachusetts through the remainder of the work week as the area continues to deal with a storm that has pounded the nation from North Texas to Southern Maine.

Our Boston Personal Injury Lawyers reported Massachusetts Winter Safe Driving Tips earlier this month on our Boston Car Accident Lawyers Blog.

The Worcester Telegram reports traffic on the Massachusetts Turnpike and other main roads is slow moving, with speed limits reduced to 40 mph.

A Massachusetts trucking accident was reported early Wednesday morning when a tractor-trailer hauling cornmeal rolled over and split apart on the Mass Pike. Other semi accidents have been reported in Millbury and Charlton.

The Boston Herald reports that the Massachusetts State Police have also responded to dozens of spinouts.

ABC 5 reported that Gov. Deval Patrick has ordered all non-emergency personnel to stay home.

State police report responding to 16 crashes, 22 spinouts and 34 disabled vehicles on Tuesday. Those who do not have to travel are encouraged to stay home until driving conditions improve.
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February 1, 2011

Massachusetts cab driver arrested for DUI after car accident during snowstorm

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

The recent arrest of a Somerville cab driver on drunk driving charges in the middle of a snowstorm illustrates the need for better supervision of the taxi industry in Massachusetts and highlights the rights of motorists in the wake of a Boston taxi cab accident.

A Boston personal injury lawyer should always be consulted when a citizen is seriously injured or killed in a taxi cab accident.

In this case, the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety reports the cab driver was extremely belligerent when found by police with his cab stuck in a snowbank on Soldiers Field Road.

Massachusetts State Police responded shortly before 5:30 a.m., in the midst of a Nor’easter, to find the driver behind the wheel of the running cab in the area of Leo Birmingham Parkway.

The 25-year-old East Somerville cab driver refused to identify himself and was ultimately identified through the cab company. He became argumentative and told troopers that he was walking, and then that he was a passenger in the cab. He also said he had crashed into a snowmobile.

At one point during the booking process, the cab driver put his fingers in his ears and repeated in a sing-song voice that he could not hear the officers informing him that he was under arrest.

He was charged with operating under the influence of liquor and refusing to identify himself.
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January 29, 2011

Friendlier streets may reduce risk of Boston bicycle accidents

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Solar glare is believed to have played a role in a South End car accident involving a white sedan and a cyclist on the corner of Tremont and Arlington late last week, the Boston Globe reports. The 74-year-old cyclist was killed, his death marking at least the third fatal Boston bicycle accident in the area in two years.

Our Boston personal injury lawyers remind motorists that cyclists enjoy the same rights to the road. Boston has been named one of the best cities for cycling in America. Every bike on the road is one fewer vehicle at rush-hour. Please treat them with the care and respect they deserve.

According to the article, a 2009 survey by the Boston director of bicycle programs found that since 2005 roughly 375 cyclists a year report being involved in a bicycle accident on Boston streets. Of those, 37 percent involved a bike and a motor vehicle.

With that said, a Jan. 27 Boston Globe article reports that while Boston has a “historic standing” among the nation’s least-friendly places to ride, an aggressive effort in 2010 to amend that perception led to the installation of 20 miles of bike lanes around Boston last year alone.

Since Mayor Thomas Menino brought on Nicole Freedman – a former Olympic cyclists and current urban planner – in 2007 to establish Boston Bikes (a city-wide initiative to make Boston streets safer and more accessible to cyclists), there are now 35 miles of bike lanes sharing city roads. In addition to adding bike lanes, there are now more than 1,600 hitch racks located throughout the city. Boston has also sponsored numerous community programs to encourage bicycling as a public health, traffic safety, pro-environmental initiative.

According to the Massachusetts Office of Public Safety and Security, 27 cyclists were killed in bicycle-related Massachusetts car accidents between 2006 and 2008. In an effort to make city streets safer for both motorists and cyclists and to raise public awareness regarding the issue of bike safety, the City of Cambridge and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health offer a few tips for riders and drivers:

FOR CYCLISTS:
~ You have a legal right to be on the road so steer clear of car door thresholds and don’t squeeze between lanes of traffic. Ride with the flow of traffic. Don’t weave and dodge. Unpredictable behavior only increases your risk of accident.

~ Follow traffic signals. Meaning: red means stop (not just for cars but for you too). Give pedestrians the right-of-way when entering a crosswalk.

~ Be visible! Use lights when riding in the dark and reflective or bright-colored clothing during daytime and dusk.

~ Perhaps most important – protect your noggin. Always wear a helmet. It might save your life.

FOR MOTORISTS:
~ Cars and bikes aren’t in competition for road space, so share. If you grow frustrated because a cyclist is slowing you down, remember: more bikes means fewer cars. Fewer cars mean less traffic congestion.

~ Give bicyclists some room. Use your signals, not your horn. Exhibit street courtesy and look around before doing something unexpected, like opening your car door.

~ Remember, bikes can mix with traffic and legally ride on the road. Cars, not so much. Motor vehicles must steer clear of bike lanes.
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January 27, 2011

Massachusetts structure fires up 3 percent in 2009, igniting issues of premises liability

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

It was the stuff of nightmares, the Boston Herald reports. It was suppertime in South Yarmouth when a 67-year-old woman burst through the front door of her home, her body engulfed in flames. She was screaming. Four strangers, hearing the commotion, rushed to the scene and attempted to aid the burning woman, who was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators believe the woman attempted to extinguish a pan fire using water and the splash-back caught her clothes on fire.

As our Boston injury attorneys and Boston premises liability lawyers have noted in a prior post to our Boston Personal Injury Attorney blog, whether you are a homeowner or a landlord, fire safety and liability beings at home.

To help keep your family safe, be sure to install and maintain smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and keep a working fire extinguisher within easy reach of any heating or cooking source.

In 2009, state fire officials responded to 28,595 Massachusetts fires that injured 460 fire service workers, the Massachusetts Department of Fire Safety reports. Of those, 1,184 were reported arsons. While the number of serious and fatal fires dropped 5 percent when compared to 2008 stats, the number of actual fire-related fatalities dropped by 27 percent. In 2008, fire claimed 49 “civilian” victims.

With that said, in 2009, Massachusetts structure and car fires still claimed 36 lives, left 332 injured and cost $183 million in property damage.

The MDFS reports that structure fires alone were responsible for 30 deaths and 290 injuries and that car fires killed 5 and injured 14. Forty-seven percent of fire-related fatal victims were men, 39 percent were women, and 14 percent were children. Almost half of all fatal fire victims were over the age of 65.

At 30 percent, smoking remains the leading cause of residential Massachusetts fires and fire-linked deaths. Electrical fires were tied to 27 percent of house fires; cooking linked to 13 percent.

The Yarmouth Fire Department reports that across the country, fire department responded to 146,400 house fires linked to cooking equipment in 2005. Cooking fires claimed 480 lives, injured nearly 4,700, and caused more than $875 million in property damage.

In response to the fatal Yarmouth kitchen fire last week YFD suggests residents review the following cooking safety tips:

~ Stay close to your heating source when you are cooking. If you can’t see the stove or grill, either turn it off before walking away, or designate another adult to take your place.

~ Keep flammable items – potholders, shirtsleeves, plastic bags, etc. – away from a working stovetop or grill surface. Avoid wearing loose-fitting clothes when working around open flame, hot surfaces or liquids.

~ Implement a 3-ft. “no kid” zone around any area where hot food or drink is prepared, served or stored.

~ Never use water to extinguish a grease fire. Water will cause grease to splatter and disperse the flames. If the fire is small, you can use a pan lid to smother the flames. But don’t kid yourself: if you have any doubt in your ability to put out a stove or grill fire, get away, stay away, and call 911.
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January 25, 2011

Senior drivers at increased risk of Boston car accidents

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

By the year 2030, Smart Motorist reports, the number of drivers aged 70 and older is expected to triple in the United States. And, like it or not, with advanced age comes some degree of diminished capacity. Hearing loss. Vision loss. Slower response times.

As our Boston personal injury lawyers noted in an earlier post to our Boston Car Accident Lawyer blog, knowing when and how to discuss curbing a loved elder’s driving habits is a challenge every family must face.

Analysis of national traffic crash data suggests that serious and fatal car accidents linked to older drivers often share a handful of common contributing factors. Older drivers, for example, are far more likely to be involved in multi-vehicle and fatal car accidents than any other age group on the road. They lane drift. And they are prone to episodes of poor judgment when making left-hand turns.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that in 2008, older drivers made up 8 percent of all motorists injured in car accidents, and 15 percent of all traffic fatalities nationwide. The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 500 older drivers are injured each day in car accidents.

In Massachusetts, there were 442 fatal car accidents in 2008, of them 53 – or 12 percent – involved drivers aged 65 and older.

NHTSA findings determined that older, predominantly male, drivers were more likely to be involved in weekday, daytime, crashes involving at least one other vehicle than all other motorists. In general, older drivers were far less likely to be intoxicated and far more likely to be wearing a seat belt.

With all that said, over the last decade the fatality rate for older drivers (aged 65 to 84) has steadily dropped. But, experts say safer vehicles, more sophisticated traffic engineering, the overall better general health of older drivers and better emergency medical care each have significantly contributed to the decline, the New York Times reports.

The AAA Foundation offers families a few indicators to look for to determine when having a driving safety conversation is appropriate.

A few questionable ‘behind-the-wheel’ behaviors include:

~ Does the driver have trouble using the gas or brake?

~ Does the driver physically turn and look in blind spots (or do they just scan the mirrors) before changing lanes?

~ Does the driver appear to have difficulty navigating intersections or busy streets or merging?

~ Does the driver ignore (fail to notice) traffic signals and signs?

~ Does the driver weave or straddle traffic lanes?
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January 23, 2011

Hearing loss a significant cause of Boston work injuries as government hedges on new rules

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Though hearing loss is not fatal, it remains a serious occupational hazard for workers who earn their paycheck from noise-related industries like construction, manufacturing, entertainment, transportation, mining, or military.

An average of only 15% of employees uses hearing loss protection in these high-risk occupations. This is why our Boston workers’ compensation attorneys are concerned about a recent announcement from U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which is backing away from enforcing tough new rules on noise pollution in the workplace after complaints from big business.

OSHA released a statement that they are not proceeding with the proposed “Interpretation of Provisions for Feasible Administrative or Engineering Controls of Occupational Noise” due to lack of resources and public outreach needed.

What this means is they won’t make an attempt to define what feasible administrative or engineering controls are as established by OSHA’s noise standard. Essentially they are backing off of a plan to require employers to do more than just provide ear plugs to employees endangered by excessive noise in the workplace.

“Hearing loss caused by excessive noise levels remains a serious occupational health problem in this country,” said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. “We are sensitive to the possible costs associated with improving worker protection and have decided to suspend work on this proposed modification while we study other approaches to abating workplace noise hazards.”

Michaels emphasizes that OSHA remains dedicated to finding solutions and preventions to reduce the toll some workplace environments can take on workers’ hearing. What else is he going to say?

However, OSHA’s lack of action means either that it did not properly consult with the various industries, which it had decades to do before making the announcement, or that it is buckling under the pressure of industry complaints.

In 2008, Bureau of Labor Statistics reported over 22,000 hearing loss cases. OSHA said it will regroup and work on the issue by:

-Getting the views of employers, employees, and public health officials by holding stakeholder meetings to discuss occupational hearing loss prevention.

-Consulting with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health experts about cases and feedback they can offer for hearing loss prevention.

Gotta love those stakeholder meetings.

As part of a hearing conservation program evaluation checklist, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health offers the following questions to determine engineering and administrative controls in the workplace:

-Has there been an evaluation conducted to determine the full potential of administrative controls? For example, break or lunch rooms are sound treated for employees; noisy processes conducted during less popular shifts.

-Are projects determining noise control completed in a timely manner?

-What training has been given to employees or supervisors who operate and maintain noise control devices?

-Are workers consulted and asked opinions about plans for noise control measures?

-Has various options for cost-effectiveness been discussed?

-What priority has been associated with noise control needs?
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