The Mayo Clinic defines chronic exertional compartment syndrome as “a…muscle and nerve condition that causes pain, swelling and sometimes disability in the affected muscles of the legs or arms.”
Again according to the Mayo Clinic, the signs and symptoms may include:
Pain caused by chronic exertional compartment syndrome typically follows this pattern:
Taking a complete break from exercise or performing only low-impact activity might relieve your symptoms, but relief is usually only temporary. Once you take up running again, for instance, those familiar symptoms usually come back.
Compartment syndrome is usually associated with athletes or crush injuries, and certainly may be a type of work-related injury, qualifying you for workers’ comp benefits. If you have developed compartment syndrome through work, let a Lancaster workplace injury lawyer help with your workers’ comp claim, so that your employer or their workers’ comp insurance company doesn’t talk you into an undervalued settlement.
If you’ve ever disregarded a simple sprained ankle or stubbed toe suffered at work, but then began to feel a fairly severe and uncomfortable pressure around the area hours later, this inflammation-type pain could easily turn into compartment syndrome. This complication can be deadly.
Generally speaking, compartment syndrome is an injury complication that causes increased pressure and bleeding within muscle tissue groups, which are surrounded by strong connective tissue called fascia. When this fascia is injured, blood and fluids rush toward the muscle tissue group, causing pressure. Any dangerously high pressure in the muscle tissue may impede the flow of blood throughout the affected tissues, and if the pressure is not released, it continues to build up and cause severe pain and muscle deterioration.
Compartment syndrome is a common complication with crush injuries. However, compartment syndrome isn’t confined to one area but may be caused by any number of work-related injuries.
Although compartment syndrome is relatively obscure, any number of work-related injuries may lead to it. After even a seemingly minor injury at work, you should ask your doctor specifically about it during your post-injury exam. The last thing you need is the discovery of compartment syndrome after your case has been settled.
A Lancaster workplace injury lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC understands the dangers of compartment syndrome and can help you be sure your workers’ comp claim accounts for this dangerous condition. Contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
A large number of Pennsylvania residents work with scaffolding every day, most commonly in construction jobs or other building sites. If you are one of these workers, you know that scaffolding presents serious risks to workers. Many serious injuries and fatal accidents are caused by scaffold falls.
If you have suffered an injury at work in Pennsylvania due to faulty scaffolding, let a Lancaster workplace injury lawyer help with your workers’ comp claim so that your employer or their workers’ comp insurance company doesn’t talk you into an undervalued settlement of your claim.
Due to the inherent dangers involved in scaffolding work, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) (PDF) has developed strict guidelines for the setup and use of scaffolds on job sites. Employers must follow the guidelines set out by OSHA as part of the requirement to provide all employees a safe work environment. Some of the topics covered by the OSHA guidelines include:
The OSHA guidelines are comprehensive and detailed, but, as is the case with many government agency documents, they are formal and complex. Most construction veterans focus on common-sense safety tips, such as:
Scaffolds on the worksite are among the most dangerous tools at any construction site. Many construction workers simply won’t use them. If you’re a construction worker who has been injured by a scaffolding accident, a Lancaster workplace injury lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC can help you with your workers’ comp claim. After all, workers’ comp is all we do. Contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
According to the Center’s Orthopedic & Neurological Care & Research:
If you have suffered from an injury at work in Pennsylvania that requires total knee replacement, a Lancaster job injury lawyer can help you with your workers’ comp claim so that you can recover all the financial losses related to such extensive and extended medical care. We understand the laws in Pennsylvania and have experience dealing with severe, long-lasting injuries of all types.
Total knee replacements have become a regular culprit in Pennsylvania workers’ comp claims. They may occur when a worker has a preexisting condition, such as arthritis, which is then aggravated by a work injury, or when the work injury itself causes damage to a previously healthy knee.
Part of the problem is unrealistic expectations. Candidates for the procedure are often told that total knee replacement is the “cure” for their chronic knee pain or that the procedure will “reduce knee pain by X%.” However, research has suggested that a significant number of total knee replacement recipients are unhappy with the results and that a substantial number of recipients weren’t even ideal candidates in the first place.
Still, it cannot be discounted that most people do well with their total knee replacement. Nonetheless, as is the case with any type of surgery, the procedure does carry certain risks, which may include:
As discussed, all of this comes with the risk that the procedure simply won’t relieve your pain in any meaningful way.
There is a procedure called “minimally invasive total knee replacement,” during which a smaller incision is used and is often performed under general or spinal anesthesia. This procedure causes less damage and is easier to tolerate and recover from. It may not, however, provide adequate repair or relief from pain. A Lancaster Job Injury Lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC can help you discuss your options with your doctor and select the best procedure for your particular circumstances.
Whether you’re considering total knee replacement or minimally invasive total knee replacement, you need to look at all of your options and how each impacts your workers’ comp claim. A Lancaster Job Injury Lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC can help you with your claim; simply contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
Many states have seen the gradual erosion of workers’ comp benefits in favor of employers and their workers’ comp insurance carriers. In Pennsylvania, one of the mechanisms available to employers or their insurance companies is to “modify;” in other words, reduce workers’ comp benefits through the Labor Market Survey (LMS), also known as the “Earning Power Assessment” (EPS).
If you have suffered from an injury at work in Pennsylvania, a Lancaster workers comp lawyer will help you recover the maximum benefits allowed by law. This is particularly important as laws change or benefits are reduced, in that understanding your rights under the law is critical in recovering all of the benefits you are entitled to.
An issue arises when injured workers have physical limitations that prevent a return to their previous occupation. One of the changes negatively affecting workers was the creation of the LMS or EPS. Before the change in Pennsylvania law, if an employer or their workers’ comp insurance company wanted to reduce a worker’s benefits, the insurance company was required to refer the injured worker to jobs that were open and available.
If the injured worker made good faith applications to these jobs and was not hired, these jobs were deemed unavailable, and the worker’s benefits would continue. Employers and their workers’ comp insurance companies determined that this process was not favorable enough for them, and subsequently lobbied for changes to the Pennsylvania workers’ comp law.
So, in 1996, the Pennsylvania legislature passed Act 57, which allows benefits to be reduced as long as the employer or insurance company can show that suitable LMS/EPA employment is generally available to the injured worker in the worker’s usual area of employment.
Pennsylvania courts have litigated the LMS/EPA issue and decided that the employer or insurance company may reduce benefits and only has to address the LMS/EPA issue if an injured worker offers evidence that a suitable job is available with the employer, at which point the employer or insurance company has to show no such job exists. This ruling ignores the fact that it is far easier for an employer to show an absence of a job than it is for an injured worker to show a suitable job exists. This seemingly small change to workers’ comp law is reflective of the ways in which the law continues to slowly erode the rights of injured workers.
A reduction in workers’ comp benefits can have a substantial impact on the quality of life for workers who have been injured on the job. A Lancaster workers comp lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC can help you with your claim and be sure that you are receiving all of the benefits allowed by law. Contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
Scaffolding, also known as staging, is a temporary metal structure used to provide a platform for a work crew to perform its work at heights that are too high to work on from the floor. It can be a supporting structure made of poles, frames, or platforms that are suspended from above. Because scaffolds are high up by their very nature, they are also inherently dangerous.
According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 2.3 million construction workers, or 65% of the U.S. construction workforce, work on scaffolds. With numbers this high, scaffold and ladder-related accidents are, for the most part, inevitable.
In Pennsylvania, OSHA safety regulations regarding scaffolding apply to those who work in the construction industry, but there are also additional legal options for such workers. For example, construction workers may also be protected by Pennsylvania’s product liability laws. A defective product can cause serious injury, and unfortunately, if scaffolding is defective, the end results can be deadly.
If you have suffered from an injury at work In Pennsylvania, a Lancaster workplace accident attorney at our law firm can help. Whether it is a workers’ comp claim or a legal claim, we understand the Pennsylvania workers’ comp laws and strategy behind the burden of proof and will use these standards to help you establish your claim.
Scaffold and ladder workers can maximize their safety with a few simple steps, including:
Scaffolding and ladders have been extremely dangerous in the workplace for far too long and can be even more dangerous when they’re used together in unsafe conditions. It is the employer’s responsibility to ensure you know how to use all equipment properly and in a safe manner. However, it is always best to lookout for our own protection and safety needs. That said, you are encouraged to use your own common sense based on the specific situation at your workplace and always follow any instructions or guidance provided to the letter. It’s a good idea for you to practice a bit with an experienced scaffold or ladder worker before you go up on your own.
If you have been injured at work because of a scaffolding or ladder accident, let a Lancaster workplace accident attorney at Vanasse Law LLC help you with your claim. You can contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHAs) regulations regarding trenching and excavations have made getting rid of potential and actual trench and excavation hazards on construction sites a top priority. Trench collapses and subsequent cave-ins pose a great risk to trench workers’ lives. That said, it is important for workers to know and understand their rights under the law.
Some typical ways to prevent cave-ins include:
Employers should also provide safe ways to enter and exit. Additionally, all workers should be on constant lookout for hazardous materials or leaks. And if there’s ever any question or concern, NEVER enter a trench unless and until it has been properly inspected.
There are other hazards related to trenching and excavations that workers need to know about before beginning any construction project. For instance, the atmosphere itself may be a health hazard for workers. OSHA requires testing for all excavations that are more than four feet deep, as well as in situations where oxygen levels may be low or other hazardous atmospheric conditions may exist. If this safety step is skipped, workers could be exposed to toxic chemicals or even worse — they could suffocate.
Further, heavy machines, trucks, backhoes, etc. are typically used on excavation and trenching sites. Employers have an obligation to ensure all workers on the project know how to properly use such equipment, as improper use could result in serious and severe injuries.
If you have been injured at work in Pennsylvania, a Lancaster workplace accident attorney can help you with your workers’ comp claims and review the circumstances surrounding the trench collapse and/or excavation accident. as well as advise on other potential legal claims you may have. We understand the laws and strategies needed for such cases and will use that to help you establish your claim.
Construction site managers and workers can maximize their safety by ensuring the following has occurred:
If you have been injured at work because of a trench or excavation accident, let a Lancaster workplace accident attorney at Vanasse Law LLC help you with your claim. You can contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
The attorney-client relationship may refer to all manner of issues involved when a client hires an attorney for legal services. However, one particular aspect, often referred to as the attorney-client privilege, refers to a specific legal privilege that keeps confidential communications between an attorney and a client private. The privilege may be asserted in response to a legal demand for information, most commonly a discovery request, for certain communications meant to be private. The privilege may even be invoked, under certain circumstances, to potential client communications.
If you have been injured at work in Pennsylvania, let a Lancaster job injury lawyer help you with any workers’ comp claims or any other types of legal claims you may have. The attorney-client privilege allows you to speak frankly and openly with your attorney.
As is the case with other types of legal litigation or quasi-litigation, communications between you and your attorney are protected by the attorney-client privilege in workers’ comp cases. Your lawyer will almost certainly take time to prepare you for your deposition and will also be at the deposition to raise objections, but be sure that you understand the privilege independently so that you know not to immediately respond to any questions that require answers that are protected by the privilege.
For example, you do not have to disclose the legal strategy you have developed with your attorney or the content of any other conversation that you and your attorney have had that is related to your workplace injury.
The most common situation where the privilege is lost involves sharing information with people other than your lawyer and the law firm’s staff. Other ways the privilege may be lost include:
It is clear that these circumstances rarely, if ever, arise during a workers’ comp claim process. To achieve the best chances for a favorable outcome, it’s best to speak very openly and honestly with your attorney. Your attorney can best handle any impediments to your claim if he or she knows ahead of time and has a chance to prepare.
The attorney-client relationship is sacrosanct and includes the attorney-client privilege. This privilege is an important aspect of any legal strategy you and your attorney may develop regarding your workers’ comp claims. If you have been injured at work, let a Lancaster job injury lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC help you with your claims in a private and privileged manner. Contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
Generally speaking, the “burden of proof” actually encompasses two types of standards: (1) the burden of production, and (2) the burden of persuasion. The burden of production refers to a party’s obligation to provide sufficient evidence to support the party’s claim. Typically, the burden of production lies initially with plaintiffs; i.e., plaintiffs must prove their case with sufficient evidence. If plaintiffs meet this burden, then the burden of production typically shifts to defendants to rebut plaintiffs’ evidence with their own evidence.
The burden of persuasion refers to how convincingly parties must be in proving their case. In civil cases, parties have the burden of establishing their claim or defense by a “preponderance of the evidence,” which means there is a more than 50% likelihood that their claim is true, or, put another way, the claim is more likely than not to be true. In criminal cases, the crime must be proved by the government “beyond any reasonable doubt.”
If you have been injured at work in Pennsylvania, let a Lancaster workers’ comp lawyer help you with any workers’ comp claims or any other types of legal claims you may have. We understand the laws and strategy behind the burden of proof and will use these standards to help you establish your claim.
In Pennsylvania, to successfully bring a workers’ comp claim, the injured worker has the burden of proof to establish their right to wage loss and medical benefits by a preponderance of the evidence. This applies not only to initial workers’ comp claims, but also to any claim made for reinstatement of benefits after wage loss benefits have been terminated, suspended, or modified.
Briefly, in workers’ comp claims, workers must meet their burden of proof regarding:
Ultimately, workers’ comp claims are similar to other types of civil law claims in that injured workers, or plaintiffs, carry the initial burden of proof to sufficiently establish their claims. This process sounds complicated and, unfortunately, is indeed quite complex. Due to the cost of medical treatment and lost wages, a workers’ comp claim should not be handled on your own, and should not be delayed. If you have been injured at work, let a Lancaster job injury lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC help you with your claim. You can contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
Due to the potential financial ramifications, ordinary working people in Pennsylvania often ask whether they are considered “employees” under Pennsylvania’s workers’ comp laws. This is a good and important question that our Lancaster workers’ comp lawyer will answer below. However, the answer is best given in context, and a brief overview of Pennsylvania’s workers’ comp laws can help with that.
In any event, if you have suffered a work-related injury in Pennsylvania, let a Lancaster workers’ comp lawyer help you be sure you’re receiving maximum compensation for your work-related injuries.
Workers’ comp in Pennsylvania can be described as a compromise, or trade-off, between employers and employees, designed to keep personal injury cases involving work-related injuries out of the court system.
Under Pennsylvania law, workers’ comp pays out certain financial benefits for employees who are injured at work and their dependents, even if there is no fault by the employer. However, here comes the trade-off: workers’ comp laws also protect employers from being sued for job-related injuries or deaths, even if the employer was at fault or maintained a dangerous workplace environment. This limits the types of damages a plaintiff could recover in a personal injury claim.
Put another way, workers’ comp benefits are the only remedy an injured worker has and the only financial compensation they can receive, even if the employer was negligent in causing the injury. This is often known as the “Sole Remedy” rule.
Although workers’ comp was designed as a compromise, there are plenty of critics. It has been argued that the system allows employers to ignore unsafe working conditions since they know their workers’ comp insurance will pay out any damages to injured employees. Thus, there certainly is very little incentive to spend money on fixing any unsafe conditions.
It has also been argued that the benefits paid out by workers’ comp insurance are far too little to truly compensate injured employees. Under this argument, either workers’ comp benefits should mirror personal injury benefits or allow an employee to choose whether to accept workers’ comp benefits or file a personal injury lawsuit. The difference in recoverable damages is substantial. Workers’ comp will pay:
Comparatively, personal Injury damages include:
The only downside is that you have to prove fault. Nonetheless, it seems clear that workers’ comp benefits employers over employees. The best solution for employees would be a choice of either. If fault is clear, they could choose to pursue a personal injury lawsuit, but if fault is questionable, they could select workers’ comp benefits. All employers would have to do is purchase insurance for personal injury claims.
In Pennsylvania, it’s important to know if you’re considered an “employee” because if you’re not one, you can bring a personal injury claim. Under the law, an employee is “synonymous with servant, and includes–All natural persons who perform services for another for a valuable consideration, exclusive of … persons whose employment is casual in character and not in the regular course of the business of the employer, and exclusive of persons to whom articles or materials are given out to be made up, cleaned, washed, altered, ornamented, finished or repaired, or adapted for sale in the worker’s own home, or on other premises, not under the control or management of the employer.”
Put more simply, an employee in Pennsylvania is anyone who performs services for another in exchange for something of value. However, there are exceptions, such as domestic and casual workers, and some people may elect not to be covered, such as certain types of executive officers.
When LLCs have no employees, in other words, when its only workers are members, which is common, it has no workers’ compensation liability. However, if a member becomes an employee, or if the LLC adds an employee, either part-time or full-time, it would be required to insure them.
Furthermore, you may be able to bring a personal injury claim against your employer under certain circumstances, including:
Employers have an obligation to keep their workplaces safe and free of dangerous hazards. Unfortunately, many employers do not prioritize safety, especially knowing that workers’ comp insurance will pay for any injuries to employees on the job. Employees have the right to collect workers’ comp benefits, or, in some circumstances, personal injury damages.
If you have been injured at work, let a Lancaster workers’ comp lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC help you with any claims you may have. Contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
In Pennsylvania, like most states, most non-exempt employers are required to provide workers’ comp coverage for their workers so that in the event of a work-related injury or illness, the employees can recover medical expenses, lost wages, and disability. To meet this requirement, employers may either purchase workers’ comp insurance or obtain approval to self-insure.
Nonetheless, the system works only if everyone does what they’re supposed to do. If the employer fails to hold up its end of the bargain, a worker may find himself unable to recover from Pennsylvania workplace injuries. This breaks the relationship between employee and employer, and it also breaks the law.
If you have suffered a work-related injury in Pennsylvania, let a Lancaster workers’ comp lawyer help you ensure your employer is doing what it is required to do to provide you with financial compensation for your work-related injuries.
The workers’ comp laws in Pennsylvania are designed to streamline the process, not make it more difficult. As a result, employers have only a handful of responsibilities, including:
Employers have simple yet critical responsibilities when it comes to workers’ comp claims. Unfortunately, many employers, especially companies without designated human resources personnel, are simply unprepared and are left scrambling to identify and fulfill their duties at the last minute.
If you have been injured at work, let a Lancaster workers’ comp lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC help you through this complicated process. Contact us for a same-day response and a free consultation.
30 East Roseville Road, Suite C
Lancaster, PA 17601
Phone: 717-397-1010
Office Hours:
After Hours: 717-471-2168
Fax: 717-397-2644
Vanasse Law LLC is conveniently located just north of center city Lancaster just off Route 30. We are in Sterling Center just off Lititz Pike/Route 501. Our office has plenty of free parking and is handicapped accessible.
Located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Vanasse Law LLC serves injured workers throughout Lancaster County and surrounding communities.
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