Railroad workers have special protections under the FELA, or Federal Employer’s Liability Act. With FELA, injured railroad workers can collect benefits that will help them cover medical bills and lost wages following a railroad accident. Many railroad employees are uncertain of their rights and their employer’s liability requirements under FELA and find answers with the help of an experienced FELA lawyer in Illinois.A railroad is guilty of violating the FELA and there are employer’s liability issues to address when railroad workers are injured due to negligence such as:
- failure to provide necessary equipment in safe working condition to do the job;
- failure to properly perform work in a safe manner and/or failure to properly train railroad employees to do work safely; or
- failure to provide a safe place to work.
Railroads aggressively defend claims made by injured railroaders. However, injured workers are protected by specific provisions in the FELA which make it illegal for a railroad to retaliate against an injured railroader for asserting his or her rights under FELA. It is also illegal for railroads to keep co-workers of the injured railroader from assisting them in the prosecution of their case.
We help railroad workers like you fight for the FELA benefits you deserve. To make a successful claim, we will show that negligence on the part of the railroad or co-workers was a factor in your injury. In the event that negligence on your part was a contributing factor in the accident, we may still be able to recover damages.
Many times, railroad claims agents will try to discourage injured railroaders from hiring a FELA lawyer in Illinois. There is a good reason for this – at least for the railroads. One study showed that only 30% of injured railroaders hire lawyers, but these injured workers receive 80% of the claim dollars paid out by railroads for FELA cases.
If you or a loved one suffered severe injury after a work-related railroad accident, don’t wait to file. A FELA claim has a statute of limitations of 3 years from the date of the accident to assert your right to file a claim of employer’s liability for your injuries.
A FELA lawyer in Illinois from the Law Offices of Barry G. Doyle, P.C. will bring years of experience and understanding of the FELA provisions for employer’s liability. Our free eBook on Illinois Workers’ Compensation claims can give you a general overview of what’s considered a work-related accident, and a FELA lawyer in Illinois can help you with the specifics of your case.