Hardesty, Tyde, Green & Ashton, P.A. blog

Friday, April 27, 2007

Workplace Safety, Difference between Life and Death

Additional interest and coverage by the news media regarding Doug Koceja's terrible injury from being impaled by uncapped rebar is bringing much needed attention to the unsafe practices of employers. Simple precautions which cost very little are often not used because they are perceived as taking too much time and/or costly. Sadly, this approach boils down to laziness and corporate greed. What does the employer tell someone run through by rebar? The caps were too difficult to install (takes less than a second); The caps were too expensive (25cents); or the best: Sorry and we hope you feel better! Sorry doesn't cut it for someone injured that has a life to lead and family to support and bills to pay. Sorry isn't good enough when your wife wants to take an evening walk or your child wants to be picked up but the massive injuries prevent that. Workplace safety is critically important and violations must be corrected or reported immediately. This is the most recent coverage of this terrible rebar impalement accident in the St. Petersburg Times :
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/04/27/Hillsborough/Impaled_and_still_in_.shtml

posted by Attorney W. Marc Hardesty at 9:59 AM