Workplace Injuries

• Company Fined in Connection With Lineman's Death and Teacher's Injury

  Michael Myers | December 13, 2007 2:53 PM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  Last spring Hiawatha Elementary School in Othello was conducting their annual science experiment where students make protective egg cases that they test by dropping eggs from various heights.The experiment took a tragic turn when the boom lift truck holding a line worker and a teacher broke, causing both to fall 20 to 30 feet to the ground. Robert D. Smith, 50, died and a teacher, Melissa...

• Redmond Worker Injured when Boom Truck Falls, Potential "Third-Party" Claim

  Michael Myers | October 12, 2007 4:18 PM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  On October 9th a construction worker at Microsoft in Redmond was injured when a boom truck tipped over. The Department of Labor & Industries, an agency designed to protect and advocate for workers, will do an investigation as to the cause of the accident. It will focus on the cause of the accident and what the general contractor could have done to make the construction site safer for not only...

• Labor and Industries Worker Falls on Stairs and Later Dies

  Michael Myers | August 31, 2007 8:11 AM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  Last week L&I employee Bill Harmon fell and suffered fatal injuries at the Department's headquarters. Mr. Harmon was 87."Although there were no witnesses to this unfortunate situation, L&I employees heard the sounds of a fall and responded immediately. They called 9-1-1, notified building security, and took action to block the area. In addition, a number of L&I staff went to the hospital to...

• Wages in Washington

  Ryan Nute | January 04, 2007 1:39 PM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  The minimum wage in Washington is set to increase to $7.93 in 2007--the highest rate in the U.S. By contrast, the federal minimum wage is $5.15 (and has been unchanged since 1997). (States are free to require an increase in the minimum wage beyond the "floor" set by federal law.) Employees also have unique protections under Washington law when it comes to unpaid wages.Washington has a statute...

• Industry and State Officials Meet to Discuss Crane Safety

  Ryan Nute | December 19, 2006 12:11 PM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  You may have read about the fatal crane accident in Bellevue, Washington. Members of the construction industry and state regulators met to discuss crane safety last Monday.The particpants agreed that cranes and crane operators should undergo mandatory certification, but predictably did not agree on how safety rules should be enforced. Historically crane safety in Washington has been relatively...

• Construction Accident Lawsuit Filed in Florida

  Staff Writer | May 24, 2006 8:55 AM | 0 CommentsOlympia, WA

  The family of a man who died in a high-rise construction accident in Florida has filed a lawsuit against the developers of the building. Forty-eight year old Menes Daniel was killed last earlier this month when a structural support collapsed on top of him, trapping him in quick drying concrete.Although contractors were working on the building at the time of the accident, Daniel's family's...