Georgia Injury Law Blog

A new report suggests that federal data on construction accident injuries is likely flawed because of the widespread underreporting of these personal injuries. The report by the Center for Construction Research and Training is titled Injury under Reporting among Small Establishments in the Construction Industry. It has been published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. Construction accidents often involve wrongful death and some of the most serious personal injuries. They are also a major source of workers comp claims in the United States.

According to the report, data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics may be inaccurate because it underestimates the actual number of construction workers who are injured every year. The data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics does not include self employed or federal construction workers injured in accidents every year. These workers constitute approximately 25% of the national construction workforce. Data that does not factor in construction accidents and injuries that involve a quarter of the national construction worker population, is likely to be inaccurate. Additionally, Atlanta Workers’ Compensation lawyers often find that small construction companies are likely to under report injuries, or fail to report these injuries.

According to the report, recent changes made by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to record-keeping procedures could also likely have contributed to underreporting of construction injuries. Between 2001 and 1995, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration made changes to its procedures, and has probably inadvertently encouraged underreporting such injuries. 

Further, the Bureau of Labor Statistics data represents just a quarter of the injuries suffered by Hispanic construction workers in small companies. Approximately 42,000 of construction injuries that occur in small construction establishments are not reported annually. The researchers analyzed construction accident data at small establishments that employed 40% of Hispanic workers, and found that between 8% and 16% of the construction worker injuries at these companies were reported. In comparison, in establishments that employed up to 35% of white, non-Hispanic workers, between 21% and 25% of construction injuries were reported.

Posted By Robert Katz In Construction Accident , Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

More than 100 residents of a nursing home in Gwinnett County, Georgia were moved to another facility last week, after the roof of their nursing home collapsed. Fortunately, the 109 residents did not suffer injuries during the collapse. As an Atlanta injury lawyer, I have seen a number of roof collapses that did not turn out nearly as well. When it comes to nursing homes, we are generally more focused on nursing home abuse issues.

According to news reports, the collapse occurred around 10 AM on Thursday at the Golden Living Center at 213 Scenic Highway in Lawrenceville. According to facility staff, workers were in the process of replacing the entire roof of the building when the collapse occurred. Apparently, the workers were engaged in removing and replacing roofing materials at the time of the collapse. The collapse occurred in the dining area of the facility.

Fortunately, none of the residents were in the dining area during the collapse. However, there could have been serious injuries if the collapse had occurred later in the day. Just a short while after the collapse, the residents were scheduled to spend some time in the dining area. The residents have now been shifted to other living facilities.

It’s extremely fortunate that all the residents of the nursing home are safe and comfortable now. Most of these people are already in fragile health, and could have suffered serious injuries during the roof collapse. Besides, elderly people may suffer from a number of health conditions that make their ability to recover from injury, even more complicated. For instance, broken bones or fractures in older persons take a much longer time to heal. The elderly have weakened immune systems, and infections can quickly set in after an injury. There may be other complications that may even end in death. It's the reason why nursing homes must take extra precautions to keep their premises safe and secure at all times.

The Atlanta premises liability attorneys at the Katz Law Firm are dedicated to the representation of persons injured in construction accidents, nursing home abuse cases, slip and falls, swimming pool accidents and other unsafe property-related accidents across the metro Atlanta area our and Georgia.

Posted By Robert Katz In Construction Accident , Nursing Homes | 0 Comments Permalink

There has been yet another construction worker death linked to a trench collapse accident in Georgia. These types of construction accidents often result in the wrongful death of the worker or serious injuries. Unfortunately, workers compensation benefits fail to truly compensate the family of the worker since the workers comp statute provides for such a limited payment for the death of the construction worker. One of the things that Georgia needs to revise is the death benefit provided under the workers compensation laws for a worker’s family. Of course, the family may or may not have an injury claim, but that will depend on whether any third party may be held liable for the workers’ wrongful death.

According to authorities in Forsyth County, the man from Covington, Newton County was working in a trench when the walls begin to collapse. Personnel from the Forsyth County Fire Department rushed to the scene, but by the time rescue crews arrived, the man had been completely buried under the soil.

The crews managed to clear the soil from his head and shoulders, but by then, the man has succumbed to his injuries. At the time of his death, it had been more than one hour since the collapse. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has begun an investigation into the construction accident.

It's 2011, and there's no earthly reason why construction workers should be buried in a trench collapse. There are no details about this particular accident here, but in most of the trench collapses that Atlanta construction accident lawyers come across, the biggest cause of the collapse is a failure to shore the trench walls, to make them stable and prevent a collapse.

Unfortunately, trench shoring can be expensive, and very often contractors, supervisors and construction companies simply bypass these regulations, creating fertile conditions for collapse. Trench collapses are typically some of the deadliest construction accidents, because the damage is done so fast. The soil that is pouring into the trench can cover a man, and completely trap him underneath, before workers can get to him. Death is usually by asphyxiation.

Besides, rescue efforts may be painfully slow to really help the worker. Fire crews and other emergency personnel must work really slowly to clear the soil from the worker, without triggering another, possibly even more catastrophic, collapse. It's the reason why rescue efforts in these accidents often turn into recovery efforts.

Posted By Robert Katz In Construction Accident , Wrongful Death | 0 Comments Permalink