Category: Workers’ Compensation

Nevada retail workers face a heightened risk of injury during the holidays, necessitating a greater focus on worker safety. While retail workers enjoy benefits such as earning more money, they may experience stress during the busy shopping season that can lead to injuries. Crowds of shoppers can also increase the risk of injuries to workers during the holiday season. It is important for retailers to take proactive steps to help to protect their workers when their stores are busy.

Lightning is an occupational hazard that can severely injure or kill workers in Nevada and it is important for employers to take steps to reduce the risks to their employees. Lightning can strike anywhere, during any time of the year. Employers should make checking the National Weather Service’s forecasts a part of their daily routines. They should also implement policies about outdoor work when storms are approaching as well as when they have just passed.

Defective work equipment is responsible for many on-the-job injuries that range from minor cuts and abrasions to more serious injuries including broken bones, amputations, head trauma and even death. Liability for damages depends on the cause of the defect and whether the employer knew, or should have known that the equipment was unsafe.

Female hospitality workers and domestic workers suffer sexual assaults at work at alarming rates. With long hours and night shifts, women in these jobs are especially vulnerable to abusive employers and assaults by customers.

Workers can suffer serious injuries and death in confined workspaces that have insufficient oxygen, toxic fumes, combustible materials and tight spaces that can trap workers inside. The U.S. Department of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires all employers to provide safe work environments for workers, including confined spaces that present specific dangers. Confined spaces can be present in almost any occupation, but they are commonly found within the construction, mining, utility and drilling industries where workers often have to work underground. Confined spaces include, but are not limited to, areas such as manholes, storage tanks, silos, pits and vats, storage bins, sewers and tunnels, underground utility vaults and pipelines.

When a worker is injured on the job in Nevada and the amount of marijuana in his or her system is above the legal limit to drive, the injured worker is presumed to be impaired for workers’ compensation purposes and claims for damages may be denied. The circumstances of the accident, whether the worker had a current and lawful prescription for marijuana, and factors regarding usage may play a significant role in determining a claim, however.

Improperly controlled hazardous energy can seriously injure or kill workers. To minimize the risk, effective practices and procedures, as laid out by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, must be implemented.

Improper fall protection has been the number one OSHA violation every year since 2011. Falls are also the leading cause of death for people working in the construction industry. In 2014, there were 874 total construction industry fatalities. Three hundred thirty-seven of those deaths were due to falls. Employers are required to maintain safe and secure fall protection in areas where workers are at risk of falls. Anytime people are working at a height of six feet or more, the company must provide workers with guardrails, nets, or some approved personal fall arrest system.