Working on construction sites is a difficult and dangerous job, and accidents do not happen infrequently. Working at great heights and with machines that can cause enormous damage at a moment’s carelessness is very demanding, and the risk of injury is certainly many times higher than it would be during a peaceful walk in the park. We have made a list of the procedures you should know if you find yourself in that situation.
Duties of workers
In the event of an injury, the first thing is, of course, to get adequate medical help to prevent any form of risk. After you have made sure that your life is not in danger and that you have got adequate help, you must report the accident that happened to you. You should report the accident to your authority or another responsible person on the construction site. You must also report the accident to the medical staff, who will then react adequately and call the competent authorities. In some cases, if your injury at work was serious and your life was at risk, then you should immediately report the accident to government agencies, namely the labor inspector and the occupational safety agency. If you are facing difficulties from the company that is responsible for your injury, then it is a good thing to report the case to the trade union, which will additionally support you in your legal battle.
This is an essential procedure because an investigation will be started immediately to determine that the mistake was not yours. After these procedures, it is desirable to collect evidence, which can be done by recording and photographing the scene of the accident on your mobile phone. Your duty, first of all, is to follow the regulations on safety at work that your employer has provided, which includes observing all safety measures and wearing protective equipment that the employer should also instruct you. The occupational safety procedure clearly states that you must not work under the influence of alcohol, narcotics, and other intoxicating substances. Also, the handling of machines and the driving of your company’s vehicles must be according to the written procedure without bringing risks. It is important that before starting our work in each company, we familiarize ourselves with all the regulations that should be assigned to us.
Legal procedure
After the employer reports an accident at work, the administration of safety at work initiates an investigative procedure to determine how the accident happened and whether the regulations on safety at work, which the company must adhere to, have been violated somewhere. This investigation may include a visit to the construction site by officials from this institution who, during the visit, will talk with the workers, look at the construction site, and review safety documentation. The consequences can be different and vary from the seriousness of the case, where criminal proceedings can be initiated for the death or severe injury of the worker.
The company may bear part of the treatment costs, and in some cases, it may be obliged to bear the entire treatment costs. If the accident meets the conditions, the injured worker should be paid compensation that the authorities will prescribe. If your employer refuses to pay you damages or, even worse, refuses to report the entire case, you should get a lawyer as soon as possible who will help you with the further procedure. Your case can be completely managed and resolved by a professional forklift accident attorney who focuses on cases of this type. Some of the consequences that the company may face are a damaged reputation, a criminal charge, problems with restoring security, as well as problems with regulatory authorities. It is crucial that you react quickly even if an injustice occurs, and the legal consequences for the company you worked for can be very serious.
Duties of the company
The main and basic role of your employer is to provide you with safe working conditions. Owners of construction companies are obliged to draw up a safety and health plan for workers, which should include all potential hazards that may occur and how to avoid them. The employer is obliged to deliver this plan to his employees before the start of their work on the construction site. In addition to creating a plan, the employer is also obliged to provide professional supervision that will check the safety condition of the construction site and its machines, as well as to report the accident to the authorities in the event of an accident.
All equipment that you handle on the construction site should be provided by your company and must be checked. All the equipment that is intended for you must be correct and of the right size for you and must be complete depending on the type of work you are doing. Also, safety training for workers must be held, and this is one of the employer’s obligations that must be respected. The company you work for must provide you with adequate first aid. After that, you need to report the accident to the health and safety service and to the labor department, and the deadline for reporting depends on the country you are in but generally varies from 24 hours to 48 hours. If your employer does not report the accident within the stipulated period, he may face serious legal consequences.
No matter how hard we try due to various circumstances, an accident can happen to us sometime in our lives, so it would be good to prepare legally for that. It is important that each party, both employees and employers, observe all prescribed safety measures so that such situations are as rare as possible. The legal procedure is extensive for all involved parties, and they should follow it step by step in order not to avoid an important procedure that may be essential to us. We hope that this list was helpful to you throughout the whole process and that you will recover as soon as possible from any type of on-site accident.
