The Benefits of Respiratory Protection
Respiratory protection. In construction and other heavy industries like manufacturing, it’s not only required by law, but can help prevent costly, painful, and potentially fatal illnesses. Using the right respirators at all times has greatly reduced many of these illnesses, but proper protection must continue to be enforced. When employers don’t comply, they assume the legal—and moral—consequences.
Hazard Communication Protects Employees
Hazard communication saves lives every single day in New York. Not only is letting workers know about potential hazards required by law, but it is a common-sense way to ensure people understand what they are handling—and don’t get hurt.
Facts on the “Fatal Four”
The term “fatal four” refers to the four types of hazards most common on construction worksites. These hazards account for almost 60% of all deaths that occur during construction. Recognizing and understanding these hazards can greatly reduce a worker’s chances of being seriously injured or killed by one of them. The fatal four are:
High Winds Cause Scaffold Collapse
A construction accident in New York City’s trendy SoHo District on the weekend before Thanksgiving has given a lot of pedestrians something to be thankful for.
Wind gusts of 30 to 35 miles per hour caused scaffolding to collapse near the corner of Prince and Broadway. Remarkably, only six people suffered moderate to minor injuries from falling lumber and metal siding that rained down on the crowded intersection.
When Weather Makes You Put Down the Car Keys
While a little drizzle might not be enough to keep you off the city streets, there are some weather conditions so severe that you should just stay in for the night.
Is 3D Printing Safe for Construction?
The construction industry is often on the forefront of new technology, whether it involves tools and machinery or the materials from which a building is made. Technology is meant to make tasks less expensive, but new developments can also make buildings safer.
Can Hearing Loss Affect Your Healthcare?
Quality medical care requires communication: patients need to explain their issues fully to physicians, and must be able to hear treatment instructions provided to them.
Elderly patients who suffer hearing loss, however, are often unable to hear everything that is said to them by doctors and nurses, which can impact their overall medical care. This is something that doctors and nurses throughout New York should keep in mind as they care for their patients. Failure to do so may open them up to medical malpractice claims, especially if they know the patient suffers from reduced hearing.
Are Workers Liable for Materials They Leave Behind?
With so much construction and remodeling going on in New York, there is a very real chance of running into materials or debris left behind by a construction crew after a project ends. When this happens, if you are injured or sustain property damage, then you may be able to hold the company liable for causing your damages.
Congress Seeks to Cap Some Medical Malpractice Damages
A bill known as the Protecting Access to Care Act, or PACA, recently passed a vote in the House of Representatives and has moved on to the Senate for a future vote.
Despite the bill’s name, what it actually does (among other things) is place a limit on the “noneconomic” damages that can be awarded for medical malpractice cases at a federal level. In New York State, there is no cap on noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases, which means this federal law could override the state law in some instances.
Who Is Liable for Faulty Materials?
In any civil case, liability comes down to many different factors, which is why you should always hire a knowledgeable New York personal injury attorney to handle a lawsuit rather than try to do it yourself.
With that in mind, however, there are some basic, general considerations that can be explored. If cheap materials are used at a worksite and someone is injured, liability could potentially rest on either the company that made the material, or whoever chose to use it over a superior product. Perhaps both.