I’ve been injured at a construction jobsite, what should I do?
While every situation is different, construction job-site injuries can often have severe real-world impacts on your life. These can include losing the ability to continue to earn a living, substantial missed time from work, or even loss of employment. To maximize your opportunity to file a successful lawsuit, receive appropriate medical care, and preserve as much evidence as possible here are some things to consider in no particular order.
Document everything
Document everything. We cannot stress the importance of gathering as much information as possible surrounding your injury before too much time passes. We are all human and memories fade with time. You would be surprised how quickly after an incident even once clear memories can become hazy. Within the first few days of the incident (assuming you’re healthy enough to do so), you should document everything you remember about the incident including who was present, what day/time the injury occurred, what happened, how did your employer react, have you been asked to do the task before, weather, time of day, etc. A good rule of thumb is for whatever the subject detail is, no matter how minor, think of the who, what, when, where, why, and how that detail may matter.
Report the injury to your employer
The moment you are injured on a jobsite it should go without saying but you need to immediately report the injury to your employer, supervisor, superintendent, manager, etc. Whoever is in your direct chain of leadership needs to know about your injury and the circumstances surrounding the same. This serves a few functions. First, it puts your employer on notice that an injury has occurred and whatever internal policies they have regarding on-the-job injuries should trigger. Second, it should trigger your employer to create a written record and timeline of your injury and what the employer did or did not do after they became aware of your injury. Lastly, it gives your employer the opportunity to try and make the situation right with financial compensation, time off, benefits, and more. You will want to document all actions, or lack thereof, including remedial actions taken by your employer after you report your injury to them.
Seek medical care
If you’ve suffered a construction job-site injury you should immediately seek appropriate medical care. Even if you feel like you want to sit home and see how you feel in a few days or “walk it off” it’s always better to go seek medical care to get yourself looked at. Often you may be more injured than you initially believed and only a medical professional can appropriately diagnose you. Other times, delaying medical care can lead to your injuries getting worse. If, however, you do decide not to seek immediate medical care after your injury, listen to your body. There is nothing prohibiting you from going to seek appropriately medical care days or weeks after an injury.
Seek legal counsel
If you were injured on a construction jobsite due to the negligence of another, or an unsafe condition, or you were forced to do something you were untrained to do, or a coworker injured you due to their lack of training, etc, you should immediately seek counsel to advise you on your rights, and if financial compensation may be available to you through a lawsuit. It’s an unfortunate reality, but a lawsuit is often the best and only way to hold an employer accountable for injuries you’ve sustained on a job site that aren’t your fault.
Texas Personal Injury and Civil Trial Lawyer
A Texas personal injury and civil trial attorney understands the serious and complex ramifications of being injured due to the negligence of another. Retaining a good personal injury civil trial attorney is your best and first opportunity to build a robust case, offers your best chance of obtaining the financial compensation to make you whole, and is the best way to hold the negligent people and corporations accountable for the damages they have caused you. If you've experienced a personal injury or believe you have a civil case in Dallas, Texas or its surrounding counties, the Law Office of Alton James III is prepared to fight for you. We have dedicated our practice holding negligent people and greedy corporations accountable for their actions when they harm Texans. To set up a free consultation, and to see how we can fight for you, contact the Law Office of Alton James III today at 469.638.5571.
