Scaffolds are probably the most useful pieces of equipment at a California construction site. They’re also the most dangerous. Considering that 65 percent of hardhat-wearing construction workers frequently use scaffolds on the job – and the fact they involve working high up in the air – it’s understandable scaffold-related injuries are some of the most common at construction sites.
Because workers on scaffolds are often elevated several stories high, fall injuries related to scaffolds can be severe. Let’s say you were painting the side of a multi-story building. You were strapped into a scaffold, painting a fresh coat of primer on the third floor when suddenly your restraint gives way. Even though you were wearing a hardhat, the three-story fall leaves you with a broken pelvis and a serious head injury.
Getting workers’ compensation benefits for a scaffold injury
Fortunately, workers’ compensation insurance will cover the medical costs of most California workers that suffer an on-the-job scaffold injury. It doesn’t matter whose fault the injury was. Even if you were at fault for not belting yourself in with a restraining device, and even if your employer was at fault for not properly maintaining the scaffold, the California workers’ compensation system will have you covered.
Injured workers who successfully apply for compensation benefits can get money to pay for all of their medical care stemming from their work-related injury. If the injury prevents them from working for an extended period of time while they’re recovering, workers’ can also seek wage replacement benefits. The wage replacement income is only about two-thirds of the workers’ normal income. However, since the IRS does not tax workers’ compensation benefits, the wage replacement income could be relatively close to the injured employee’s usual pay.
Getting help with a denied workers’ compensation claim
In some circumstances, the insurance company will try to deny a workers’ claim for benefits. A denial of benefits is an unfortunate obstacle for the average injured construction worker, who is usually desperate to pay for the medical care he or she needs, while suffering from the constraints of being too injured to earn an income.
If you’re facing a denial of benefits for a scaffold-related construction injury in California, an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer can help you try to cure the noted deficiencies related to your claim. An attorney can also challenge the denial of benefits by filing a request for another review, or by filing a lawsuit in court.
