By Lesley Ranft

Railroad workers compensation for injuries is unlike most any other industry worker who become injured on the job.  Whereas, injuries sustained during work hours are traditionally compensated through worker’s compensation, injured railroad workers do not have the ability to proceed with worker’s compensation claims. Some typical railroad worker injuries include:

• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• Exposure to asbestos
• Exposure to noise
• Spinal injuries
• Soft tissue and joint injuries to the elbows, shoulders, hands, and feet.

Many railroad workers experience injuries due to their career long exposure to asbestos, noise, or the risk factors for the development of cumulative trauma disorders to their spines and hips.  These railroad workers have often worked 25 or 30 years at the same job.  Frequently, they are between 50-60 years old.  Many of them undergo surgery to alleviate their pain and attempt to get back to work.  In some cases they may never be able to return to their lifelong job. This is unfortunate, particularly when compared to the benefits provided to workers in other industries through worker’s compensation. Worker’s compensation may provide for vocational retraining, job placement assistance, disability payments and pain and suffering compensation. David Lockard, an attorney in Philadelphia, who focuses on representing railroad workers, explained: “Too often, railroad workers are forced off the railroad because there are no accommodations provided for their disabilities.” So, what can railroad workers do if they are injured?

The only opportunity for remedy from a railroad worker injury is to identify negligence of the railroad, which involves an intensive investigation and filing suit in state or federal court. As David Lockard adds, “To identify negligence on the part of the railroad for a cumulative type musculoskeletal injury, it is necessary to retain an expert in ergonomics who can assess whether a job exposed a railroad worker to risk factors such as repetition, force, awkward posture or vibration.”

Only a few lawyers dedicate their practice to representing injured railroad workers.  Even fewer focus on representing railroad workers who have been injured due to cumulative exposure to factors such as asbestos, noise, or years of vibration.  Lawsuits for railroad workers assist in drawing attention to the need for improvements to prevent others from injury. Lawsuits for railroad workers may provide for financial compensation to replace income loss from job loss and disability.