Construction workers on Long Island job sites face gravity-related hazards every day. Falls from scaffolding, collapsing structures, and falling objects cause some of the most serious injuries in the construction industry. New York Labor Law Section 240, commonly called the Scaffold Law, was enacted specifically to address these risks, and it gives injured workers a set of protections that go well beyond what standard negligence law provides.
What Section 240 Covers
New York Labor Law Section 240 applies to construction, demolition, repair, alteration, and cleaning work performed on buildings and structures. It requires owners and general contractors to provide proper protection for workers engaged in these activities against the hazards of elevation differentials. When a worker falls from a height, or when an object falls and strikes a worker below, Section 240 may apply.
The statute covers a specific category of accidents involving the force of gravity. The most common scenarios include:
- Falls from ladders, scaffolds, rooftops, and elevated work platforms
- Falls through unprotected floor openings, skylights, or unguarded edges
- Scaffold collapses that send workers to the ground or a lower level
- Being struck by tools, materials, or equipment that fall from above
- Accidents involving hoists, pulleys, stays, or other elevation-related equipment
What makes Section 240 distinctive is not just what it covers but how liability is assigned when it applies.
Absolute Liability Under the Scaffold Law
Section 240 creates absolute liability for property owners and general contractors when a covered accident occurs and proper safety equipment or protections were not in place. This means that if a worker falls because scaffolding was inadequate or a safety harness was not provided, the owner and general contractor are liable regardless of whether they were directly involved in the day-to-day work. The worker does not need to prove that the owner or contractor was negligent in the traditional sense. The failure to provide adequate protection is itself the basis for liability.
This is significantly stronger than the ordinary negligence standard that applies in most personal injury cases. A Long Island construction accident lawyer handles cases where Section 240 applies and where establishing that the required protections were absent is the central factual question in the claim.
What Section 240 Does Not Cover
Not every construction injury involves a Section 240 claim. The statute applies specifically to gravity-related accidents. Slip and fall accidents on the same level, equipment malfunctions that do not involve elevation, and repetitive stress injuries are not Section 240 claims. The statute also does not apply to routine maintenance activities that fall outside the definition of construction, demolition, or repair as those terms are interpreted under New York case law.
Polsky, Shouldice & Rosen, P.C. is a Long Island workers' compensation and construction injury firm that has represented construction workers across New York for more than 30 years, including cases where Section 240 and related Labor Law provisions are the foundation of the claim.
How Section 240 Claims Interact With Workers' Compensation
Workers' compensation is the primary no-fault remedy for injured construction workers in New York. It covers medical treatment and partial wage replacement without requiring the worker to prove anyone was at fault. Section 240 claims are third-party claims filed against the property owner or general contractor rather than the employer, which means they can proceed alongside a workers' compensation claim. The two remedies are not mutually exclusive, and a Section 240 claim can produce a recovery that is substantially larger than workers' compensation alone because it allows for pain and suffering damages that the workers' comp system does not provide.
Protecting Your Rights After a Long Island Construction Site Fall
If you were injured in a fall or struck-by accident at a construction site on Long Island, speaking with a Long Island construction accident lawyer about whether Section 240 applies to your situation is one of the most important steps you can take toward understanding the full range of claims available to you and what compensation you may be entitled to pursue.
