Baton Rouge, LA — There was a serious work-related accident this past Thursday (November 27, 2014) after a worker at an ExxonMobil plant lost his legs. The accident happened at an ExxonMobil refinery, though the worker’s name hasn’t yet been released.
Allegedly, the worker was at the refinery last Thursday when an accident happened and he suffered severe injuries to his legs. After paramedics responded to the plant, they took the worker to a hospital. However, due to the severity of his injuries, the worker ended up losing his legs.
Police said they’d investigate this some more and haven’t gotten any kind of statement from ExxonMobil yet.
ExxonMobil
Commentary:
This accident appears to have happened at one of the facilities in Louisiana, and not off the coast. The reason I make the distinction is that there’s a difference in how the law applies to the situation. Since this is a work-related accident, it’s going to be handled by relevant law. In Louisiana, all employers are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance coverage, which provides automatic benefits to injured workers and families of deceased workers.
However, in a lot of offshore drilling and oil refinery accidents, it’s “maritime” law that applies — which is completely different. In my opinion, the workers’ compensation benefits system is deigned to help the employer more so than the employee because it prevents lawsuits from being filed. Unfortunately, lawsuits are the way our government has decided to settle disputes between two parties that have sufficient cause to be in court. With the exception of employers, nearly everybody has to follow the same rules. For some reason, we give employers a mere slap on the wrist and protect them against lawsuits, which would otherwise force them to re-think their policies and the way they treat their employees.
— Grossman Law Offices
