Along with the rest of the state, South Florida experienced a significant rise in workplace fatalities in 2013, with the death rate increasing by nearly 20 percent above the previous year. This rise bucks the trend of fewer on-the-job fatalities elsewhere in the country and marks the fourth straight year of increased worker deaths in the region. Countless other workers are injured every year while performing their many tasks. Those who suffer any type of harm at work may be entitled to financial assistance, but they will need the help of a Coral Springs workers’ compensation attorney.
The 78 occupational fatalities in South Florida represented a third of the workplace deaths suffered in the entire state in 2013. The region experienced 66 such deaths in 2012, 59 in 2011 and 52 in 2010. As a region, South Florida ranked sixth in terms of the total number of workplace fatalities in 2013, with New York City suffering the most deaths. The state experienced 234 worker fatalities during the year, ranking third behind Texas and California. The nation as a whole experienced 4,405 workplace deaths in 2013, some 200 fewer than during the previous year. A Coral Springs workers’ compensation attorney can provide the victims of workplace accidents and their families with the help they deserve.
The largest number of occupational deaths in Florida resulted from transportation mishaps, which took the lives of 84 workers in 2013. Scores of other deaths resulted from slips and falls, contact with dangerous objects, equipment or substances, and from workplace violence involving dangerous animals or other humans. The industries with the greatest number of workplace deaths were transportation, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, construction, mining and oil or gas extraction. Health services, the educational industry and finance businesses suffered the fewest fatalities. However, any employee can experience an injury while at work, and those who do should consider seeking the services of a Coral Springs workers compensation attorney.
One of the most hazardous occupations is fighting fires, which is why those employed in this field need access to workers’ compensation. However, Florida law does not cover firefighters unless they are directly employed by the state. Possessing experience in workers’ compensation issues, Evan M. Ostfeld believes that firefighters deserve the same protection as other workers. This is why he is dedicated to the premise that injured firefighters should be given at least two years of workers’ compensation. Workers who believe that they have been unjustly denied compensation should contact his law firm at 866-478-3968.
