Charlotte North Carolina Legal Blog

Accidents can happen in any kind of workplace, but some kinds of workplaces are more hazardous than others. A worker can suffer a broken arm after tripping and falling at an office building, but tripping and falling at a construction site can easily lead to much worse injuries. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the deadliest industries in North Carolina are private construction, transportation and warehousing.

In its report on fatal occupational injuries in North Carolina, the BLS found 183 fatal work injuries in 2017, the most recent year for which final statistics were reported. This number represented an increase over 2016, when 174 workers were killed on the job. In fact, the 2017 number was the highest in more than 10 years.

Force equals mass multiplied by acceleration. This is Newton's Second Law of Motion, and a basic principle of physics. In terms of motor vehicle accidents, it means the heavier the vehicle, the more force it has when it collides with another vehicle. This is why accidents involving big trucks can be so dangerous to people in smaller vehicles.

Recently in North Carolina, at least two people were injured when two tractor-trailer trucks and a smaller pickup truck collided with each other. The accident occurred on U.S. Highway 64 E in Asheboro. According to officials, two of the drivers were transported to area hospitals. The third was apparently uninjured and refused help from emergency medical services.

People who work in the construction industry face risks that can lead to death. There are four specific hazards that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have dubbed the Fatal Four. Many deaths could be prevented if companies took steps to minimize these dangers.

The Fatal Four includes falls, struck-by incidents, caught in or between accidents, and electrocutions. The safety plan must include preventative measures that can help to keep workers safe. Not only should these be part of the plan, but they must also be the subjects of reminders throughout a worker's career. Even walking safety meetings can be beneficial in these cases.

Under North Carolina law, injured people can file a personal injury suit to recover compensation for their damages if their injuries were the result of another party's negligence. Typically, a plaintiff has to prove that the defendant acted negligently, that this negligence caused the injury, and that the injury caused the damages. Proving each of these elements can be difficult. One way to speed up the process is through a legal theory known as negligence per se.

Before we explain how negligence per se works, remember that to show negligence, a plaintiff must typically show that the defendant had a duty of care to others, that the defendant breached that duty, that this breach of duty caused the accident, and that the accident caused the plaintiff's damages.