For years, New York officials, attorneys and others have been arguing about reforms to the state’s scaffold law.
It’s well known within the construction industry that the New York law is quite a few steps beyond similar laws in many other states. By imposing “absolute liability” for scaffold- or ladder-related injuries, the law gives a preference to injury victims in court.
Unlike some other states where contributing fault considerations can lead to fewer settlements for these types of cases, New York’s law is very supportive of workers, unions and labor interests.
Still, many people propose reforming the scaffold law to include some sort of contributing fault, or limiting or restricting the types of cases that lead to settlements in some way.
New York Scaffolding Law: Outcomes
Critics of the current law point to certain outcomes in the state of New York, including higher construction costs and possibly fewer jobs in some types of trades because any higher costs price certain parties out of the market or provide disincentives.
But there is another possible outcome — more support for injury victims and as a result, less negligence or carelessness involving these types of workplace accidents.
Laws like these absolutely clue everyone in on the importance of workplace safety. The large settlements that everyone is talking about do help to show companies their responsibility for supporting workers and providing safe work environments.
Should the law be reformed? At bare minimum, New York and any other states should continue to provide robust protections for workers who do tough jobs in high risk industries like construction. Large settlements are not just pointless exercises — they help the injury victim handle all of the expenses and costs that fall on that person’s shoulders, including, but not limited to medical bills and lost wages.
Professional injury lawyers understand why clients need them to secure these settlements –a family should not have to go into bankruptcy or struggle financially because of someone else’s mistakes.
Representing Workplace Injury Victims
Professional workers’ compensation and personal injury attorneys understand that no matter what kind of injury happened on a work site, it’s important to do the necessary fact-finding and research to understand whether negligence or inattention to public safety played a part. These professional attorneys listen closely to their clients, and help them take stock of their legal options, to bring an injury case forward in a court of law.
The attorneys at Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff strongly support the law as it exists and oppose the big landlords’ and large insurers’ interests in taking away the protections of workers who work in high-risk, elevated height situations. In such situations, workers utilize scaffolds and other equipment provided by the company or owner, and if they are injured, they should be entitled to compensation, as the injuries sustained are usually very serious.
New York City Construction Accident Lawyers at Your Service
New York City residents who are injured because of a construction accident at a work site can get help from the experienced local attorneys at Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff. Our lawyers help New York City area families determine what do to after an unfortunate emergency harms a family member.
Let us help you evaluate a workplace injury case and promote your best interests in local New York courts. We fight for construction workers’ rights and have obtained substantial amounts of monetary compensation for them and their families.
