Labor Law News and Updates

ANTI-WORKER BILL PROPOSED IN LEGISLATURE



A bill vigorously pursued by New York's contractors and owners would endandger New Yorker's who work at high elevations. By imposing a comparative negligence standard for claims brought under Labor Law §§ 240 and 241, A.1895 effectively eliminates the worker protections provided in New York's Scaffold Law.



The fundamental premise behind The Scaffold Law is straightforward – that the safety equipment to protect workers must be in place no matter what and that the penalty for losing one's balance should not be death or permanent disability. Labor Law §§ 240 and 241 therefore holds the owner and general contractor directly and completely responsible for an injury that results from a worker's fall if the proper safety equipment – such as a scaffold or harness – was not in place to prevent it.



If a worker is instructed to use an available device and ignores that instruction, the contractor or owner can invoke the "recalcitrant worker" defense. The Court of Appeals has consistently held that if the worker's injury was caused by his or her failure to properly use the safety devices that were provided, there can be no liability.



A.1895 imposes a comparative negligence standard to Labor Law §240, and turns the logic and intent of the Scaffold Law on its head. This bill ignores the day to day realities of working on a construction site by unfairly shifting the burden of safety to the worker, who exercises no control over the worksite, from the owner or contractor, who exercises ultimate control of the worksite and profits from the job.



It is sound public policy to place the duty of ensuring safety on the entity that controls the work site. Owners and general contractors often award the job to the lowest bidder, who then cuts corners to get the job done quickly and cheaply in order to make a profit.



Without the Scaffold Law, owners and contractors could avoid liability for unsafe work sites by hiring sub-contractors, delegating all responsibility to them, and then looking the other way. Economic forces in construction should not be permitted to place the dollar above worker safety.