Articles Posted in Work Injury

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The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has found in favor of a truck driver, Billy Couch, employed by B&B Trucking, a U.S. Postal Service contractor that sued the government under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) for injuries he suffered. The court considered whether the postal service was immune under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act as a “borrowing employer.”

However, since this case was a federal matter, the federal courts have applied an alternate definition of “loaning employer.” Belluomini v. United States, 64 F.3d 299 (7th Cir. 1995), and Luna v. United States, 454 F.3d 631 (7th Cir. 2006).

In this case, Couch’s employer was a contractor engaged by the U.S. Postal Service, hauling mail to postal facilities. Couch was delivering a truckload of mail to an Elk Grove Village, Ill., facility. A federal employee allegedly ran over Couch’s foot with a forklift and injuring him. Couch died two years later from lingering complications stemming from that injury.

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In September 2008, Robert Jones, a delivery man bringing pizza dough to the Pizza Hut restaurant in South Elgin, Ill., was hit by a Pizza Hut employee. Mr. Jones was delivering pizza dough on a loaded dolly through the parking lot heading toward the restaurant’s back door when he was hit by Bibiana Bojorge, who was on her way to deliver a pizza.

Jones, 41, sustained a leg fracture that required surgery. He also will require a knee replacement surgery in the future.

The defendant argued at the trial that Mr. Jones had pizza dough stacked up too high on his dolly, so he was not able to see in front of him. The defendant contended that Mr. Jones ran into the car driven by the 19-year-old pizza delivery driver.

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In October 2004, the plaintiff truck driver was hauling a pre-loaded 2,000-pound bundle of steel rebar. When the plaintiff reached his destination and loosened the cargo straps, the bundle of rebar rolled off the flatbed of the trailer and severely injured the truck driver by falling on his leg.

The plaintiff, age 31, sustained a tibial fracture. He was out of work for six months after surgery to repair the fracture. It was argued at the jury trial that the defendant company, Menard Inc., was negligent in preparing the pre-loaded cargo and securing the bundle of rebar. Menard maintained that the truck driver was negligent in loosening the cargo strap causing his own injuries.

The Whiteside County, Ill., jury found in favor of the plaintiff truck driver and awarded him $615,451 in the following manner:

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Renardo Lynch was working as a mechanic for Metra when the top rail of a chain-link fence he was installing fell on him. He injured the back of his neck and shoulders. In a lawsuit that was filed under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act, 45 U.S.C. 51, (FELA), the lower court granted a summary judgment motion brought by Metra. Lynch took this appeal to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago.

Lynch was hired by Metra in 1987 in the track department but was moved to bridges and building where he held a number of different positions. When Lynch was injured, he was working as a bridge and building mechanic. Part of that job was installing fences at railroad crossings and depots. Although Metra did provide some training regarding these duties, no training was given to Lynch in installing fencing.

The installation of fences was a routine job done several times per month. When Lynch was injured, he was being assisted by a co-worker installing the mesh part of the fence; they were on their knees next to each other tightening brackets at the bottom of the fence post. The top rail of the fence fell, hitting Lynch across the back of his neck and shoulders. Lynch missed 28-30 days of work. Metra acknowledged that there was nothing Lynch or his co-workers did to cause the pole to fall.

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A judge has ruled that federal law allows railroad employees to file suit if their employer blocks them from getting medical treatment for an on-the-job injury.

U.S. District Judge John J. Tharp Jr. declined to throw out Rene Delgado’s claim that Union Pacific Railroad Co. violated the Federal Railroad Safety Act (FRSA) by directing him not to go to the hospital after he injured his foot. Tharp cited Section 20109 of FRSA, saying Congress intended to provide a private right-of-action for railroad employees whose employers obstruct their attempt to get medical care following a workplace injury.

Subsection (c)(1) prohibits railroad carriers from acting to “deny, delay or interfere with the medical or first aid treatment of an employee who is injured during the course of employment.”

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An Illinois federal district court judge has ruled in favor of a railroad employee who provided a deposition and an affidavit following an injury he sustained while operating equipment that was designed to prevent runaway trains. The judge ruled that the employee’s affidavit did not squarely contradict a statement given in an earlier deposition.

The subject of the case was the injury to B.S., who hurt his shoulder allegedly because of defective equipment that the railroad should have spotted and corrected during routine inspections and maintenance. The plaintiff brought suit against BNSF under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA).

According to the lawsuit, the accident involved a safety device called a “derail,” which was designed to prevent trains from running away, reaching mainline tracks by shifting wheels off of those tracks. The derails are turned on and off by throwing a large handle.

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A federal district court judge in Illinois has ruled that an expert’s testimony cannot be barred in the case of a truck driver who became ill while transporting chemicals.

The case stemmed from a suit filed by S.N. against the Valspar Corp. and one of its subsidiary companies. S.N. claimed that he became ill because of exposure to fumes from a defective drum of Dynaprime. He was transporting the chemical from Illinois to California.

The lawsuit claimed that toxic vapors were responsible for the death of S.N.’s dog, Boomer.

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The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled that the trial court was correct in granting the defendants’ motion to prevent a plaintiff’s expert from testifying in an asbestos case. In this case, the plaintiff’s expert theorized that “each and every fiber” of inhaled asbestos was a substantial contributing factor in asbestos-related diseases.

The defendants sought to bar or prevent that testimony using the U.S. Supreme Court’s rule in the Frye case.

In Betz/Simikian, Charles Simikian brought a product liability case against Allied Signal, Inc., Ford Motor Co. and others. The plaintiff claimed that throughout his 44-year career as an auto mechanic, he was exposed to asbestos products, which in turn caused him to develop the condition known as mesothelioma.

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The World Health Organization has declared that diesel fumes cause lung cancer. The announcement is important for people who are exposed to diesel exhaust in their work places. In the announcement, experts said diesel fumes were more carcinogenic than secondhand cigarette smoke.

Diesel exhaust now shares the W.H.O.’s Group 1 carcinogen status with smoking, asbestos, ultraviolet radiation, alcohol and other elements that pose cancer risks.

The United States and other developed nations require modern diesel engines to burn much cleaner than they did a decade ago. Most industries, like mining, already have limits on the amount of diesel fumes to which workers may be exposed.

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Robin R. Foreman v. Gunite Corporation, 2012 IL App. (1st) 091644U.

Robin Foreman was a truck driver employed by Distribution Services, Inc. (DSI). He had a regular truck route transferring material from Gunite Corporation‘s Illinois facility to its Indiana location.

Foreman was traveling eastbound on I-290 near its intersection with the Tri-State Tollway when the load in his trailer shifted, causing the truck to roll over.

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