Construction sites are extremely hazardous, and workers suffer construction accident injuries much too frequently. When an accident occurs on a New York construction site, it is critical for workers to know that they have rights under the law. Our New York construction accident lawyers want to say more about a construction worker’s right to seek compensation after a serious accident.
You Have the Right to Seek Workers’ Compensation Benefits
If you were injured on a construction site in New York and your injuries arose out of your employment, you have the right to seek workers’ compensation benefits under New York Law. When you do seek workers’ compensation benefits—which can cover medical expenses, a percentage of lost wages, and disability compensation—you also have the right to be free from retaliation. To be clear, the owner of the construction company where you work cannot take any adverse actions against you because you filed a claim for workers’ compensation benefits after a construction site injury.
You May be Eligible to File a Lawsuit Under New York Labor Law
New York Labor Law allows injured construction workers to sue their employers when their injuries resulted from the employer’s negligence. This aspect of New York Labor Law is distinctive, and the laws that allow construction workers to file these types of lawsuits do not exist in most other states. In most states, workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy for construction workers who have been injured.
You may be eligible to file a lawsuit under Section 200, 240, or 241 of New York Labor Law, which holds employers liable for general construction site safety negligence, certain scaffolding and related injuries, and certain trenching and excavation injuries, among other types of injuries. A New York construction accident attorney can evaluate your case for you to determine whether you are eligible to file a lawsuit against your employer under New York Labor Law.
You Have Rights Against Adverse Employment Actions if You Do File a Labor Law Claim
As the New York State Department of Labor explains, New York Labor Law prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who take action under the law. Retaliation can include firing you from your construction job, cutting your hours, reassigning you to a construction location that is less desirable or farther from your home, docking your pay, engaging in intense supervision of you that other workers are not being subjected to, or taking any other kind of disciplinary or adverse action against you. New York Labor Law also gives you the right to find out about your rights and to ask your employer to fix Labor Law violations.
You should know that New York Labor Law protections apply to construction workers (and all workers) regardless of the worker’s immigration or citizenship status.
Contact a Construction Accident Lawyer in New York
If you were injured on a construction site, you should seek advice from our New York construction accident attorneys about seeking financial compensation. You may be eligible to file a workers’ compensation claim and to file a lawsuit under New York Labor Law. Contact Leitner Varughese Warywoda PLLC today.
