Workplace Injuries

• Death at Rainier Vista Construction Site Underscores Risks

  Michael Myers | September 17, 2008 2:36 PM | 0 CommentsSeattle, WA

  Earlier this month a construction worker, Steven Dale Slee, was injured while working in a trench at a Rainier Vista construction project.  Seattle firefighters took Slee to Harborview Medical...

• Labor and Industries Worker Falls on Stairs and Later Dies

  Michael Myers | August 31, 2007 8:11 AM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  Last week L&I employee Bill Harmon fell and suffered fatal injuries at the Department's headquarters. Mr. Harmon was 87."Although there were no witnesses to this unfortunate situation, L&I employees heard the sounds of a fall and responded immediately. They called 9-1-1, notified building security, and took action to block the area. In addition, a number of L&I staff went to the hospital to...

• Extra compensation for injuries on the job

  Don Jacobs | January 03, 2009 6:43 PM | 0 CommentsVancouver, WA

  Oregon and Washington both have statutorily defined workers compensation benefits. If injured on the job in either state, an injured worker is entitled to these benefits. Medical bills, wage loss,...

• Jobsite Injuries--Don't Overlook the Third Party Claim

  Michael Myers | January 14, 2008 5:25 PM | 0 CommentsSeattle, WA

  You get hurt at work. You file a workers compensation claim. But that shouldn't be the end of the story. Workers compensations claims yield significantly less money for injured workers than third-party personal injury claims. A good example appeared in the paper recently. Rolondo Dudley, 32, suffered a compound fracture on his right leg during a construction accident this past Friday. Dudley...

• Construction Worker Killed In Fall Down Elevator Shaft

  Chrissie Cole | November 18, 2007 10:19 PM | 0 CommentsVancouver, WA

  A construction worker, 40, of Plainfield, was killed in a construction accident after falling eleven stories down an elevator shaft at a Loop construction site, Saturday morning.The worker was working on renovations of a downtown office located on the 11th floor of the building, according to Chicago police. He stepped into the dimly lit rear freight elevator attempting to go down, but the...

• Company Fined in Connection With Lineman's Death and Teacher's Injury

  Michael Myers | December 13, 2007 2:53 PM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  Last spring Hiawatha Elementary School in Othello was conducting their annual science experiment where students make protective egg cases that they test by dropping eggs from various heights.The experiment took a tragic turn when the boom lift truck holding a line worker and a teacher broke, causing both to fall 20 to 30 feet to the ground. Robert D. Smith, 50, died and a teacher, Melissa...

• Redmond Worker Injured when Boom Truck Falls, Potential "Third-Party" Claim

  Michael Myers | October 12, 2007 4:18 PM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  On October 9th a construction worker at Microsoft in Redmond was injured when a boom truck tipped over. The Department of Labor & Industries, an agency designed to protect and advocate for workers, will do an investigation as to the cause of the accident. It will focus on the cause of the accident and what the general contractor could have done to make the construction site safer for not only...

• Worker Crushed In Crane Accident

  Chrissie Cole | November 26, 2008 12:37 PM | 0 CommentsKing County, WA

  A construction worker, 46, was killed when a crane fell on him at a work site in Whitman County, according to Whitman County Sheriff’s Office. The worker was helping to upload a section...

• Injured Workers and Third-Party Elections

  Michael Myers | September 16, 2008 11:21 AM | 0 CommentsSeattle, WA

  I read a story in the Seattle Times this morning.  It reported that a man was burned and other injured when equipment made contact with a high-voltage power line.  The two men were painting a...

• Construction Accident Kills Tenino Man

  Mark McLean | August 23, 2007 3:53 PM | 0 CommentsSeattle, WA

  A 28 year old Tenino man died last week when he slipped at an Olympia construction site, hit his head on a backhoe and fell 15 feet into a ditch. The construction site was operated by Olson Brothers Excavating, Inc. This was the second construction-related death in a week in Thurston County. Washington's Industrial Insurance Act allows for fault-free "worker's compensation" benefits to...