A general contractor and a developer have reached a $2.1 million settlement with a carpenter who suffered a serious on-the-job accident in Chicago.

Plaintiff Adam W. incurred a traumatic brain injury when he fell off a beam at a residential project in March 2016. He was approximately 10 feet from the ground floor when he fell and hit his head. Adam’s brain injuries allegedly included a right subdural hematoma, a subarachnoid hemorrhage and several skull fractures. He was working for DOM Construction at the time.

According to WebMD, a subdural hematoma occurs when blood collects outside of the brain, which can become a life-threatening condition. A subarachnoid hemorrhage is a type of stroke that occurs when blood vessels on the surface of the brain break, which also is potentially life-threatening.

Adam said he incurred the work-related injury because he wasn’t using any type of fall protection at the time he fell. In fact, DOM Construction purportedly provided fall protection equipment, but Adam said he was never trained on how to use the gear. He said it was routine for him to work at elevated heights without using anything to prevent him from falling.

In April 2016, Adam filed suit against general contractor MBI Builders Ltd. and property owner Grand Development Group. He alleged the two businesses did not adequately supervise the construction job site. He also alleged the companies did not comply with OSHA regulations because no fall protection equipment was required when construction workers were expected to work at elevated heights.

On-the-Job Accident Proves OSHA Regulations are Integral

According to OSHA regulations, employers must provide fall protection when employees are working at elevations of four feet in general industry workplaces and six feet in the construction industry.

While some jobs might just require a guard rail or toe-board around an elevated open-sided platform or floor, other jobs might require a safety harness and line, safety nets, stair railings and hand rails.

In Adam’s case, he alleged his company provided some sort of safety equipment, but he never received training on how to use the system.

OSHA says on its website, “If personal fall protection systems are used, particular attention should be given to identifying attachment points and to ensuring that employees know how to properly use and inspect the equipment.”

According to OSHA, there were 4,674 worker fatalities in private industry in 2017. Of those, 971 were in the construction industry. A total of 381 out of those 971 construction worker deaths were due to falls, which equaled just over 39 percent.

In addition to falls, being struck by an object (80 deaths), being electrocuted (71 deaths), and being caught in between structures or equipment (50 deaths) were the top causes of an on-the-job accident in the construction industry. OSHA calls the four causes of death the Fatal Four because they are the most common reasons, year after year, that construction-related deaths continue.

“Eliminating the Fatal Four would save 582 workers’ lives in America every year,” says OHSA on its website.