NYC Construction Worker Safe Place To Work Law & Scaffolding Law

New York City is home to one of the most impressive urban landscapes in the world. Unfortunately, the awe-inspiring and ever-changing cityscape that is home to millions can also create extremely dangerous and even deadly conditions for NYC construction workers. In fact, according to the New York City Buildings Department, 246 construction workers suffered serious injuries in 2009 and between 5 and 20 construction workers die each year in New York City while on the job.

Because of the distinct dangers of the construction industry, New York State has a specific set of labor laws meant to protect workers whom construct, demolish, renovate, excavate, or repair buildings and other structures. These NY labor laws strive not only to reduce the number and severity of construction site accidents in New York, but also to ensure that construction workers who have been injured while on the job may receive fair compensation for their injuries and losses.

New York Labor Law Section 200

Section 200 of the New York Labor Laws simply states that all construction industry employers must provide a reasonably safe environment for all of their employees as well as anyone else legally on their work site. Specifically, the law requires that employers properly maintain, guard, light, and operate all machinery and other equipment on the construction site.

New York Labor Law Section 240

New York Labor Law Section 240 is also known as the Scaffolding Law. This construction worker law is geared toward accidents involving heights, such as falls from ladders or objects falling onto workers. The law states that the responsibility of keeping workers safe when working at significant heights should be placed on construction companies, property owners, and contractors as opposed to the workers themselves. These owners and contractors should provide appropriate safety measures and guards to all workers, such as safety harnesses, lanyards, barricades, fencing, netting, and safety railings. Under this law, scaffolding must be able to hold four times the amount of weight it is expected to bear.

New York Labor Law Section 241

Section 241 of New York’s Labor Laws is similar to Section 240 but pertains to ground-level construction sites and injuries that are not necessarily related to falls or falling objects. This section outlines specific construction site regulations relating to how areas of construction or demolition should be “constructed, shored, equipped, guarded, arranged, operated and conducted.” This Safe Place To Work Law includes rules designed to keep workers safe from tripping accidents, drowning and water accidents, slipping hazards, chemical hazards, and air contamination hazards on the job site.

If you have been injured in a construction accident in New York and believe that your employer or the site’s property owner did not comply with New York’s Labor Laws, you should speak to a specialized NYC construction accident attorney immediately. Contact us today and speak to a knowledgeable, experienced construction worker lawyer about your case.