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Farming Accidents Put Agricultural Workers at Risk of Injury or Death

| Sep 22, 2016 | Personal Injury, Workers' Comp

No doubt about it: Farm work is tough work. Anyone who has worked on a farm knows all-too-well the intense demands that this work places on them—physical labor, often in dim light or poor weather, repetitive movements for many tasks, and work with and around large and dangerous machinery.

Every year, thousands of farm workers are injured and hundreds more die in farming accidents. According to the National Safety Council, agriculture is the most hazardous industry in the nation. Compounding the problem, when serious or life-threatening injuries occur, medical help may be miles away.

There are many types of farming/agriculture-related injuries, including, but not limited to:

  • Tractor rollovers or other tractor accidents
  • Farm implement injuries — balers, augers, combines, power takeoff (PTO)
  • Silo-related injuries
  • Front-end loader, skid steer and backhoe accidents
  • Pickup, farm truck and ATV accidents
  • Falls from heights or slip-and-fall injuries
  • Livestock injuries
  • Exposure to pesticides and other toxic substances

Farming/agricultural accidents can cause a multitude of injuries, diseases and conditions, including, but not limited to:

  • Head, neck and back injuries
  • Lacerations
  • Broken bones
  • Cancers
  • Respiratory disease
  • Dermatitis
  • Musculoskeletal syndromes
  • Noise-induced hearing loss
  • Stress-related mental disorders

Repetitive Stress Injuries Also Farming-Related

While farm injuries often are the result of specific accidents, farm work requires repeated motions for many tasks, so repetitive stress injuries are also very common among many farm workers.

Over days, weeks and years, activities like bending over, crouching and repetitive use of the hands can take their toll, causing back injuries and carpal tunnel syndrome, and leaving workers of all ages temporarily or permanently disabled.

Workers’ Compensation Relief May Not Be Enough

Depending on the circumstances surrounding a farming injury, the injured worker or loved one could claim benefits through workers’ compensation. Yet workers’ compensation only covers medical bills, a portion of lost wages and disability. Consequently, it often doesn’t return full monetary value for injuries sustained in the accident, or through repetitive stress-induced work.

Additionally, farming/agricultural workplace accidents may involve third parties who are not subject to the limitations of workers’ compensation. In these cases, workers’ compensation relief for all of an injured worker’s lost wages and other damages could be supplemented by compensation from those outside parties. For example, if a truck driver who delivers supplies to a farm runs over and injures a farm worker, that driver is liable for the accident he/she caused—and, the driver’s employer also is liable. Such liability is possible through “respondent superior,” a legal precedent which stipulates that employers are responsible for their employees’ actions when that employee is working.

Likewise, if a farm worker is injured by defective or improperly serviced machinery, the manufacturer or service company responsible for the defective equipment may be forced to pay civil damages.

No Cost Evaluation

If you or a loved one have been injured in a farming/agricultural accident, your rights are at stake—you need to seek immediate legal advice. At Nager, Romaine & Schneiberg Co., L.P.A., our personal injury and workers’ compensation attorneys may be able to help you pursue compensation for the pain and suffering that you have been forced to endure. The experienced personal injury and workers’ compensation lawyers at NRS are highly knowledgeable in workers’ compensation, personal injury and product liability litigation, including lawsuits against farm equipment manufacturers. We fight side by side with injured victims to make sure they and their families receive compensation for negligence that caused them to be hurt. We will aggressively pursue your case and work to help you obtain the medical care and compensation you need to rebuild your life.

In the event you or a loved one has suffered a farm/agricultural injury, contact the personal injury and workers’ compensation attorneys at NRS Injury Law by filling out our No-Risk Consultation form, or call (855) GOT-HURT and speak with one of our trained staff members.

Disclaimer: The information in this blog post (“post”) is provided for general informational purposes only, and may not reflect the current law in your jurisdiction. No information contained in this post should be construed as legal advice, nor is it intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter. No reader of this post should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this Post without seeking the appropriate legal or other professional advice on the particular facts and circumstances at issue from a lawyer licensed in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate licensing jurisdiction.

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