Everyday, millions of individuals make their way to a place of employment similarly to each other, although workplaces vary from location to location to best suit the needs of the company that inhabits them. Employers typically strive to ensure the safety of their employers in every field regardless of their office environment. For these workers and those in Illinois, every employee has the right to work in a safe environment ensured by the employer as a way to prevent and reduce the possibility of a workplace accident.
Unfortunately, some workplaces are more dangerous than others, simply because of the work that is required. Earlier this month, a fatal accident occurred at a West Coast service center for Volvo Construction Equipment. The 48-year-old mechanic was allegedly working on heavy machinery at the time of the incident.
Reports suggest that the man was performing service work on the loader when it fell on him. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the collapse. When emergency personnel arrived on the scene, the employee appeared to have been crushed in an industrial accident. Safety officials believe the man was working underneath the machine when the accident occurred; resulting in his death.
Unfortunately, workplace accidents happen all too often across the U.S. For this reason, some states like Illinois require that employers provide some amount of workers’ compensation coverage. In accidents like this one, where a workplace accident results in a fatality, the victim’s family would have the right to seek financial compensation to assist with lost wages, medical and funeral expenses and sometimes pain and suffering caused by the sudden loss of a loved one.
Source: San Jose Mercury News, San Leandro: Construction equipment company worker killed in industrial accident, Natalie Neysa Alund, Feb. 14, 2014
