Shapiro Law Offices, PLLC has a sincere appreciation and high regard for hard-working window washers who are seriously injured or killed as a result of falls while performing their jobs. These courageous individuals are exposed to enormous dangers as a result of having to work at great heights. All too often, window washers are not provided adequate safety devices, resulting in falls from scaffolds. Each of the following devices has failed to adequately protect window washers, leading to serious injuries and deaths:
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While the majority of window washer accidents involve a scaffold system, the law provides that any device that is used must be safe. The failure of any device to properly protect a window washer is actionable. Claims can be brought under Labor Law section 202 (the "window washers’ statute") and New York State Labor Law section 240.
Under Labor Law 240, an absolute liability provision, the building owner is fully responsible for the injured window washer’s damages as a result of a fall -- even where the worker was partially at fault. In addition, under the window washers’ statute, Labor Law 202, an owner’s violation of the statute is evidence of negligence. Hence, an injured window washer may maintain a lawsuit under each of the two statutes.
Proper handling of a window washer accident case requires an attorney with specialized knowledge in the field. Jason Shapiro, founder of Shapiro Law Offices, PLLC, devotes an entire section in his textbook, The Lawyers' Guide to Personal Injury Law, to the proper handling of accident cases involving window washers.