Work Place Injuries in Illinois: Workers’ Compensation may not be all to which you are entitled. Plaintiff was a leadman at a chemical plant. As part of a project, a crane was being prepared for use. As plaintiff was walking nearby, he noticed the crane shaking and realized that the operator had lost control. The crane fell backward and struck another crane, which struck a chemical tank. A large plume of smoke erupted from the tank and Plaintiff, fearing the tank was about to explode, began running down a set of stairs. He stumbled and fell, twisting and grabbing the railing. A number of other workers were killed or injured in the accident and our plaintiff has been unable to work because of the numerous personal injuries suffered. Is everyone and every worker limited to workers compensation in the workplace or are there other avenues to obtain compensation for workplace injuries? Absolutely!
The survivors of those killed and other workers who were injured sued the crane’s manufacturer, owner, and operator. The allegations successfully litigated and leading to a large settlement for all plaintiffs included defendant’s negligent preparation of the crane, failure to provide an automatic overhaul alarm/shutdown (see Blog 7/27/2011 Workers Compensation and Machine Guarding). Plaintiff’s were also able to prevail on complaints that defendant’s employees were not adequately trained to operate the crane despite the existence of written procedures requiring both classroom and practical training.
This case illustrates why it is important to hire a Chicago Injury Attorney who is familiar and experienced with workplace injuries. Often times, an attorney may practice either workers compensation law or personal injury. A combined law firm makes the most sense where workplace injuries are involved. This allows the attorneys to see all possible avenues of compensation for injured workers. South Chicago Accident Lawyers, Grazian and Volpe (now Lloyd Miller Law) have a combined law practice in both workers’ compensation and personal injury and advocate strongly and competently for all their clients injured in the workplace. Workers may not be limited to workers compensation for their injuries and should confer with experienced full spectrum accident law firms. Visit Grazian and Volpe (now Lloyd Miller Law) at WCUI in the morning, Facebook and YouTube to learn more about workers compensation and personal injury issues. You can also follow John Grazian on Twitter where he discusses recent court findings and changes in law regarding all personal injury issues in Illinois and nationally including car accidents, workers’ compensation, dog bites, nursing home neglect, and premises liability, ie., slip and falls and landlord liability
