Chicago Workers Compensation Lawyer Blog

Paralysis is a serious condition that can render a person unable to move parts of his or her body because he or she got injured or sustained a disease. Work injuries are leading cause of paralysis—especially among workers in the construction industry, industrial industry, trucking industry, and other industries requiring that a worker engage in intensely physical or dangerous labor.

If you became paralyzed in a work accident, there is a very good chance that you are entitled to Illinois workers’ compensation benefits. These payments should help you get the medical care that your injuries require and also provide you with some compensation while you recover.

If your paralysis injury is a permanent one that prevents you from being able to return to your job, your employer is supposed to give you proper compensation. The best way to make sure that all of your future needs are taken into consideration is to have experienced Chicago workers’ compensation lawyer working for you—because once you settle, you can't negotiate further.

Paralysis in America
It turns out that there are more Americans living with paralysis than what previous estimates indicate. The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation says 1 in 50 Americans lives with some kind of paralysis, which can be caused by SCI’s. That’s almost 6 million Americans—a much higher figure than the nearly 4 million that was previously estimated.

Spinal cord injuries, a common cause of paralysis, also occur more often than previously thought, with 1.275 million people in the country suffering from SCIs. Work injuries rank first as the leading cause of SCI’s, with traffic collisions and recreational/athletic activities coming second and third. Other conditions that cause paralysis include multiple sclerosis, post-polio syndrome, stroke, and cerebral palsy.

Living with some form of paralysis is never easy and losing your job because you can no longer work not only takes away your source of financial support but it can take away part of your identity, your family's livelihood, and irrevocably alter your life.

One in 50 Americans Lives With Paralysis, Forbes.com, April 20, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation

National Spinal Cord Injury Association

Continue reading " Illinois Workers’ Compensation Law Firm: More Americans Living With Paralysis than Previously Thought " »

If you have been injured in an Illinois work accident, you should try to get medical help as soon as possible. You are also entitled to certain medical benefits under Illinois’ workers’ compensation law:

• You are entitled to the doctor or hospital of your choice and your employer must pay for the medical care. However, the medical services must be necessary and reasonable. Experimental or unproven procedures are not covered under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act.

• However, the employer only has to pay for emergency and first aid services and two doctors, hospitals, or surgeons, and anyone that the two medical providers recommends that you see.

• You are entitled to an independent medical exam to determine whether you need ongoing care or if you can go back to work.

• You are also entitled to have your employer pay for treatment and training should you require rehabilitation services, as well as vocational training to help you get back to work.

To ensure that additional medical services are paid for, you need to obtain your employer’s approval. It is important that you give your employer all pertinent information about your medical care. It is also important that your doctor submit medical updates to the employer or the insurance company.

Unfortunately, medical disputes can arise over whether or not your employer should pay for certain medical services. They may even deny certain claims.

The best way to make sure that you receive all of the Illinois workers’ compensation benefits that you are owed is to speak with an experienced Chicago workers’ compensation attorney immediately.

Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act

Related Web Resources:
Workers' Compensation FAQ

Your Right to Workers' Compensation Benefits, Nolo

Continue reading " Illinois Workers’ Compensation: Making Sure that Your Employer Pays for Your Medical Care to Treat Your Work Injuries " »

Today is Workers Memorial Day. The day is set aside to remember workers who were injured or died in work accidents. According go the AFL-CIO, 5,657 workers died in work accidents in 2007, while over 4 million others who were injured or got sick. That breaks down to about 15 workers killed a day and 10,959 others were injured. However, considering that there are limits to the injury reporting system, this amount is likely a conservative estimate. More likely, about 8 to 12 million workers get hurt or sick each year.

As part of its observation of Workers’ Memorial Day, the AFL-CIO issues its annual report, “Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect.” Among its numerous findings:

• 50,000 to 60,000 workers sustain occupational disease each year.
• 5,657 worker deaths occurred because of traumatic injuries.
• $145 billion to $290 billion a year is spent directly and directly on disabling injuries. But again, these costs only take into account injuries reported to employers.
• The report also reveals that Latino workers continue to be the group most likely to risk death while working.
• 937 Latino workers died in work accidents in 2007.

The report says that the Bush Administration neglected to address a number of health problems and safety issues during its eight years and even blocked or took away certain Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Mine Safety and Health Administration rules.

Lawmakers are hoping to implement better laws to protect our workers. Last week, HR 2067 was introduced. The bill calls for tougher safety and health penalties, grants more workers protection by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, provides more worker safety rights, and protects whistleblowers.

April 28 is Workers Memorial Day. The date was chosen because it is also the date that OSHA was created in 1971.

Fortunately, many US workers are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits.

Workers Memorial Day 2009, AFL-CIO

HR 2067, The Protecting America's Workers Act, Washington Watch

Related Web Resources:
Death on the Job Report, 2008

Mine Safety and Health Administration

Continue reading " Chicago Workers’ Compensation Law Firm: Workers Memorial Day Honors People Killed and Injured in the Workplace " »

According to the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, the blast that killed to workers at the Bayer Crop Science Chemical plant in August was caused by human error and management decisions. The federal agency also determined that Bayer had tried to conceal details about the work accident, arguing that portions of the board’s report did not have to be disclosed per antiterrorist legislation. Now, the US Attorney’s Office may conduct an investigation to determine whether Bayer engaged in criminal conduct.

The deadly blast took place on August 28, 2008 at around 10:30pm in the “residue treater” of the unit where the plant manufactures methomyl, a raw material used to make an insecticide called Larvin. The production process that took place that night was unusually hazardous because it was the unit’s first start-up following a three-month shutdown—both procedures can be dangerous. Also, a new computer control system had been installed during the renovation period and Bayer had yet to set up a proper operating procedure or training system.

An undersized heater used for the unit was not creating enough heat. As a result, workers had to deactivate two safety valves so more methomyl could enter the treater in order to generate more heat. Also, workers neglected to add a solvent, which let the methomyl concentration hit dangerous levels. According to the board, the Bayer management’s system failed and let the operators make these decisions. Also, worker fatigue may have been a factor because the two workers who were killed in the blast, 58-year-old Bill Oxley and 45-year-old Barry Withlow, had been regularly working 12- to 18- hour shifts without any time off.

Among the errors and management decisions cited was the violation of safety protocols. Bayer plant manager Nick Crosby said the company is trying to learn from the deadly work incident and has implemented more operational procedures, additional training, safety improvements, and a compliance structure. Chemical safety board chairman John S. Bresland says the Bayer plant is one of the most dangerous chemical plants in the US.

Chemical Plant Injuries
Many chemical accidents are a result of negligence or recklessness actions by the chemical plant owner, the manufacturer of defective machinery, or another liable party. Not only are injured workers likely entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, but there may be parties that are not the worker’s employer that can be held liable for personal injury or wrongful death.

Safety Panel Cites Errors in Blast at Chemical Plant, New York Times, April 23, 2009

Report Released on Institute Chemical Plant Explosion, WSAZ, April 23, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Bayer Plant Cited for 13 Serious Violations Including Safety, Huntingtonnews.net, February 27, 2009

Bayer CropScience

Continue reading " Worker Deaths At Chemical Plant Caused by Human Error " »

About 7,000 motor vehicle crashes occur in Illinois Highway work zones every year. Construction workers and traffic employees risk injury whenever they do their jobs, which is why it is important that the public be made aware of steps they can take to keep our workers safe when they are working on our roads.

Earlier this month, US transportation officials held the 10th National Work Zone Awareness week. They also had a number of facts to offer, including:

• The number of work zone injuries and deaths have decreased over the last decade.
• Nationally, there were 835 work zone deaths in 2007, compared to 1,006 in 2006.

Steps motorists can take to keep work zone workers safe:
• Pay attention to the roads and signs letting you know that you are in a work zones.
• Turn on your headlights so that drivers and workers can see you.
• Don’t tailgate.
• Don’t speed.
• Slow down and obey posted speed limits.
• Make sure you are keeping up with the pace of traffic flow.
• Don’t change lanes when you are driving through a work zone.
• Keep a close watch in case construction machinery or workers suddenly appear before you.
• Although there may be delays when driving in a work zone, practice patience and know that the workers are there to make your roads safer.

Highway worker injuries can be catastrophic injuries and similar to injuries that a pedestrian or a vehicle occupant might sustain during an Illinois motor vehicle collision or a Chicago pedestrian accident. Injured workers’ and their families should file an Illinois’ workers’ compensation claim with their employer immediately and speak with a Chicago personal injury attorney to find out about filing a claim against a negligent motorist or another liable party.

Remember Highway Construction Zone Safety, EHS Today, April 12, 2002

Work Zone Safety, Illinois Tollway

Related Web Resources:
National Work Zone Awareness Week 2009, Federal Highway Administration

Illinois Workers' Compensation Act

Continue reading " From Our Chicago Workers' Compensation Law Firm: Keeping Illinois Highway Workers Safe " »

A Champaign worker is dead from an Illinois work accident at the ACH Food plant. Kurt Davis was pronounced dead at the accident site this morning. An autopsy is scheduled for today.

A co-worker reportedly found him inside an empty rail car located in one of the buildings. He had been preparing the car for the loading of vegetable oil. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says the agency is conducting an investigation into is death.

Last week, another Illinois man died in a work accident. This incident occurred in Missouri at the Holcim Inc. cement plant. Vincent Lavite, a Wood River resident, had to be airlifted to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Lavite, who was not employed at the plant, was an outside contractor.

If you have been injured in an Illinois work accident, an experienced Chicago workers’ compensation lawyer can make sure you receive all of your benefits. Your attorney can also determine whether any OSHA violations were factors in causing your work accident.

Last Tuesday in Galva, investigators say a machine that malfunctioned caused a spark that triggered a number of dust explosions at the All-Feed Processing and Packaging plant. Three workers were injured from the blasts. They were treated and later released.

OSHA investigators arrived at the Illinois work accident site to determine if these recent blasts were connected to OSHA violations that were issued against the company a few months ago. The All-Feed Processing and Packaging plant was cited for 28 OSHA health and safety violations and fined tens of thousands of dollars.

Violations were issued for electrical issues, fire hazards, and other serious safety issues. Some of the violations were accompanied by the term “willfull,” which means that company knew that they were occurring. The OSHA’s probe could take up to six months. The plant owner says the explosions are not connected to the previous OSHA violations.

ACH employee dies in accident at plant in Champaign, News-Gazette.com, April 22, 2009

Owner says Galva explosion isn't linked to OSHA violations, WQAD, April 14, 2009

Owner says Galva explosion isn't linked to OSHA violations, WQAD, April 14, 2009

Related Web Resource:
Occupational Safety and Health Administration

A construction work experienced in working with a pipe cutter is dead after the saw that he was operating kicked back, hitting him on the throat on Tuesday morning. Eugene Hakes Jr., employed by A-1 Excavating, was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Hakes was engaged in open excavation and using a hand-held gas-powered cutoff saw to cut a water main when the catastrophic construction accident happened. None of the other workers nearby reportedly saw the deadly incident.

A-1 President Terry Pecha said the experienced laborer had worked with a saw hundreds of times. Meantime, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and police are investigating the work site so they can figure out how the work accident happened and whether any safety violations occurred.

In February, OSHA announced that A-1 was being fined almost $700,000 for 11 workplace violations, many of them life-threatening, at a trenching operation. A-1 disagrees with the violations and has challenged them. According to an OSHA inspector, workers were exposed to cave-in hazards in a trench that was not properly protected. In addition to the six OSHA citations that the company received for failing to protect workers from such hazards, A-1 also received 5 citations for failing to place the spoil pile material that was excavated from the trench at least two feet from the excavation edge.

Excavation Site Accidents
Regardless of how much experience you have, working at an excavation site can lead to serious work injuries if an accident occurs. Examples of excavation accidents that can cause serious work injuries:

• Cave-ins
• Insufficient oxygen, which can cause asphyxication
• Drowning
• Inhaling toxic fumes
• Explosions
• Electrocution accidents

You should file an Illinois workers’ compensation claim any time you are injured on the job.

Man Killed On the Job After Power Saw Kicks Back and Cuts His Throat, WEAU, April 15, 2009

Cadott man dies in work accident, Leader-Telegram, April 15, 2009

Related Web Resource:
OSHA

Continue reading " Chicago Construction Accident Law Firm: Worker Dies After Saw Kicks Back, Cutting His Throat " »

A man who used to work for Morgan’s Food is suing the company. Tommy A. Loftis says he was wrongfully terminated as retaliation because he had filed an Illinois workers’ compensation claim.

Loftis says he got hurt during a work accident on June 20, 2008. As a result, he claims he could not perform his job and became temporarily disabled. He then filed for workers’ compensation benefits.

In his Illinois lawsuit, Loftis contends that his former employer disregarded his rights and punished him because he pursued his rights under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act. Loftis says that because he was fired, he experienced loss of benefits, loss of income, emotional trauma, pain, and suffering. He is seeking a judgment of over $100,000 plus costs.

Under federal and Illinois laws, it is illegal for companies to take retaliatory action against a worker because he or she filed a claim for workers’ compensation benefits. Unfortunately, such incidents of retaliation do happen.

Examples of ways in which an employer might try to get back at a worker for seeking to obtain workers’ compensation benefits:

• Firing the worker
• Giving him or her a poor job performance review
• Purposely not promoting the worker
• Making threats
• Isolating the worker
• Giving the worker less desirable work or reassigning/transferring the employee
• Giving the worker more or less work
• Disciplining the worker for no justifiable reason
• Getting back at other coworkers who are cooperating with an investigation into the injured worker's case
• Providing the worker with negative employment references

Illinois workers’ compensation law is there to ensure that workers get compensated for their injuries that they sustain on the job—regardless of who is at fault—and also lets employers rest easy without the fear that a worker will sue them for personal injury or wrongful death. Employers are not allowed to deny employees their workers’ compensation benefits.

Food worker claims retaliatory discharge, The Record, April 15, 2009

Related Web Resource:

Illinois Workers' Compensation Act

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the food industry spends approximately $300 million in medical expenses, workers’ compensation payments, and time employees must take off from work to recover, for hand injuries. While to many professional chefs, cuts, burns, bruises, welts, and lacerations may be signs of the dues paid and the years of experience accumulated by kitchen workers and chefs, the injuries do exact a toll on both the bodies of the injured workers and the wallets of their employers.

In 2003, According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

• Almost 24,000 restaurant workers had to take at least one day off from work because of a cut injury, a scald injury, or a burn injury.

• While some of these workers sustained injuries to the face and other extremities, hand injuries seemed to occur most often.

• 62,000 restaurant workers were injured badly enough that they had to take time off from work.

• Between 1999 and 2003, 6,700 bar workers and restaurant employees had a digit or a fingertip amputated while at work.

• Common causes of these amputation injuries included misuse of band saws, choppers, slicers, and other cutting tools.

• While slip and fall injuries are a leading cause of injury to restaurant workers, hand injuries fall right behind at number two.

• Cooking, slicing, and cutting appear to be the activities that workers who were injured were most often engaged in when they got hurt.

• Poor training, restaurant worker error, coworker carelessness, and defective equipment are some reasons why hand injuries and burn injuries happen.

Regardless of who is at fault in causing your work injury accident, you are likely entitled to Illinois workers’ compensation benefits so that you can recover. Hand injuries while working as a chef, sous chef, cook, or another type of kitchen worker can be tough, because you need your hands to do your job (whether you are chopping up vegetables, preparing the ingredients for a soufflé, or frying up hamburgers over a hot grill).

Hand injuries on the rise among kitchen workers: on-the-job cuts and burns cost industry an estimated $300m each year in medical fees, lost labor, Bnet, November 21, 2005

Related Web Resources:
Food Services of America

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Continue reading " From Illinois Workers' Compensation Law Firm: Kitchen Workers at Risk of Sustaining Hand Injuries " »

The injury count involving construction workers continues to grow this year. In Florida, two construction workers sustained injuries yesterday when a large metal sheet fell on them. They were trying to guide the sheet through the construction site when it struck them. One worker’s leg injuries were reportedly severe.

In Kansas, a worker was killed on Tuesday during a construction accident at a power plant. The employee, Vatthana Vongtheva, suffered fatal injuries when he got pinned against a boiler wall. The 28-year-old was on a scaffold inspecting equipment when the deadly work incident occurred.

This is the second construction worker death at this plant in less than a year. In May, another construction worker died during a massive crane collapse.

Today, a civil jury awarded $7 million to one construction worker who sustained permanent injuries in an 2005 Iowa construction accident. Sub-contractor Allen Frohn got hurt when a lift tipped over and he fell three stories. He had been hired to do gutter work at the hotel. An expert who testified at the personal injury trial reported that the construction site where Frohn was hurt had been cited for about 8 OSHA violations.

Federal and state laws mandate that construction site owners and contractors provide workers with a safe environment. While most construction workers are guaranteed workers’ compensation benefits, there also may be third parties that are not the injured worker’s direct employer that can be ordered to pay personal injury compensation.

Laborers, ironworkers, masons, carpenters, sheet metal workers, electricians, plumbers, welders, and crane operators are just some of the many construction workers our Illinois construction accident law firm has represented in workers’ compensation cases and personal injury lawsuits.

Two workers injured in construction accident at Fort Lauderdale private school, Sun-Sentinel, April 9, 2009

Scott County jury awards 7 million in construction accident, WQAD, April 9, 2009

Iatan construction accident kills worker, KansasCity.com, March 31, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Continue reading " Construction Accidents Injure More Workers " »

An Illinois worker is allowed to make a workers' compensation claim for repetitive trauma even if he had varied work duties. The Illinois Appellate Court made the decision to uphold the award for the claimant, an electrician who injured his upper extremities while on the job.

Because of the worker's hand intensive, repetitive work, the claimant sustained cubital tunnel, bilateral carpal tunnel, and pronator syndrome. He sought to receive past and future medical benefits by filing an adjustment to his claim.

During testimony, he explained how he had to work with a number of tools and that he used vibratory tools for at least five hours of his work day. His doctors said he sustained his injuries because of engaging in this repetitive work. Meantime, the claimant’s employer had argued that since the electrician performed so many tasks and not just one task, repetitive trauma was not warranted.

The Illinois Appellate Court, however, determined that there was enough evidence to support the electrician’s claim that he got hurt from doing his job. The court refused to reverse an award for proposed medical treatment that his doctor said was needed to help alleviate the repetitive trauma symptoms.

Cubital Tunnel Syndrome: Can be caused by frequently bending the elbow to lift, reach, or pull. Regular, direct pressure on the elbow can also lead to this condition. Irritation can occur while operating machinery or leaning on the elbow.

Pronator Syndrome: Can easily be mistaken for carpal tunnel syndrome. Can occur when the median nerve next to the forearm muscles get compressed. Can cause tingling and numbness. Condition may grow worse due to forceful twisting and gripping.

Bilateral Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: Involves carpal tunnel syndrome in both wrists.

Varied work duties fail to short circuit electrician's repetitive trauma claim, Risk & Insurance, February 11, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, AFSCME

Pronator Syndrome, Chiroweb.com

Continue reading " Illinois Appellate Court Upholds Electrician’s Repetitive Trauma Claim Even Though He Had Varied Work Responsibilities " »

An Illinois wrongful death settlement has been reached between the family of an Orland Hills refinery worker and Clark USA Inc, now named Premcor. The then-37-year-old worker, Gary Szabla, died on March 13, 1995 during an explosion at the Clark Oil refinery in Blue Island. The wrongful death case has been making its way through the courts for over a decade.

At first, a Cook County judge agreed with Clark USA and its claim that it could not be sued because it was protected under Illinois’s workers’ compensation law and that it was not directly in charge of daily operations at the refinery where the blast occurred. The wrongful death attorney representing Szabla’s family, however, argued that Clark USA was in charge of the refinery's decreased budget, which was forcing refinery workers to take on maintenance jobs that they were not trained to perform.

The Illinois Appellate Court would go on to overturn the Cook County judge’s ruling. Clark USA then took the case to the Illinois Supreme Court, which upheld the appellate court’s ruling that because the company was in charged of the refinery’s operating budget, it could be held liable. The Illinois Supreme Court also found that because Clark USA was not Szabla’s direct employer, it could not avail of protections offered under workers’ compensation law.

The $6 million wrongful death settlement will go to Szabla’s widow, Elizabeth, who has also received workers’ compensation death benefits.

Also killed in the 1995 blast was 50-year-old refinery worker Michael Forsythe. His family filed their civil lawsuit for his wrongful death. Three other people were injured in the explosion.

Refinery Worker Injuries
Sandblasters, painters, refinery maintenance operators, pipe fitters, welders, and corrosion removal workers are just some of the many refinery workers who are prone to serious injuries and exposure to toxic substances while on the job. Refinery worker injuries can occur during fires or due to chemical burns, explosions, electrocution accidents, improper scaffolding, lead poisoning, exposure to heat, exposure to asbestos, and slip and fall accidents. Refinery workers also risk contracting occupational diseases, such as lung disease, silicosis, and multiple myeloma.

If someone in your family died in a refinery work accident, you may be entitled to receive Illinois workers’ compensation death benefits. You also may be able to file wrongful lawsuits against other negligent parties.

Refinery worker's family to get $6M, Southtownstar.com, April 1, 2009

Related Web Resources:
OSHA

Industrial Accidents, Chicago Tribune