FELA Claims for Non-Acute Trauma
Railroad workers face many dangers, and some such as a collision, a slip and fall, or an electrical accident, create an immediate risk of injury. However, railway employees are also at risk of non-acute trauma. Non-acute trauma may be the basis of a FELA claim.
Can Railroad Workers Claim FELA for Non-Acute Trauma?
Railroad workers can claim FELA compensation for non-acute trauma. Common conditions that form the basis of a claim are back injuries, musculoskeletal disorders, cancer, and harm to the senses. An employee must make their claim within three years of becoming aware of the injury.
What is non-acute trauma?
Non-acute trauma is harm or a disturbance resulting from multiple occurrences. When something is acute, it happens immediately or suddenly, often in a single incident. When trauma is not acute, it involves several harmful events, often over a period of time.
Non-acute trauma may also be called chronic trauma.
Understanding Non-Acute Trauma in Railroad Workers
Railroad work is physically demanding. Workers often perform tasks that strain the body. Even if the injury is not immediate, tasks can wear the body down over time.
Job duties can cause non-acute trauma because they can be:
- Repetitive: Performing the same task many times
- Awkward: Standing in an awkward position or demanding from the body in an unnatural way
- Burdensome: Putting more strain on the body than the body can withstand
When someone does a task once or twice, the body may heal from it during periods of rest. However, doing the same thing repeatedly may wear the body down.
Examples of non-acute trauma in railway work
Examples of repetitive tasks in the railroad industry include:
- Heavy lifting
- Use of vibrating tools or working with vibration
- Operating levers
- Using heavy machinery
- Performing the same body movements repeatedly to complete a task
- Awkward body positions for places that are hard-to-reach
- Long periods of sitting or crouching
- Noise exposure
Railroad injuries from repetitive stress
Just like repetitive tasks vary in the railroad industry, the types of injuries they produce also vary. An injured worker may experience repetitive stress injuries, chronic pain, hearing loss, and more. These injuries can cause secondary complications, including mental health issues like anxiety and depression. A person may suffer financially, medically, and personally because of non-acute trauma from railroad work.
Filing a FELA Claim for Non-Acute Trauma
Yes, you can file a FELA claim for non-acute trauma.
The standards for making a FELA claim for non-acute trauma are the same as they are for other cases.
- Employee injured in the scope of employment
- In the railroad industry
- Employer negligence
- Negligence contributing to injury
Injury in the scope of employment can happen in a single event, or it can happen over time (i.e. non-acute). The plaintiff bears the burden to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Challenges in Proving Non-Acute Trauma
A person suffering non-acute trauma in railroad work must address unique challenges in bringing a FELA claim. They face the factual challenge of proving that the injury is the result of railroad work.
When an injury is acute, it’s usually easy to point to an accident or single event that occurred. The victim must then get medical support as a result of the event that caused their harm.
For non-acute injuries, proving that traumatizing events occurred and that they resulted in the victim’s injuries can be particularly challenging. The injury is often removed in time from harmful activity. The worker may or may not still be working in the same position or even for the same company.
It’s important to present detailed factual and expert evidence. Medical experts will play an important role in any FELA claim based on non-acute trauma. Qualified experts must explain the medical condition and how it developed from workplace activity. They must be able to offer an opinion that workplace activity contributed to the person’s trauma.
FELA and the relaxed standard of causation
Fortunately, injured workers basing their FELA claims on non-acute trauma benefit from a relaxed FELA causation standard. The worker must show only that employer negligence played any part in producing their injuries. Employer negligence may be slight; this is also referred to as the featherweight burden in FELA jurisprudence.
Note: The admissibility of expert testimony itself is still held to prevailing standards of reliability. The relaxed burden is for burden of proof, not for admissibility of evidence. See Abraham v. Union Pacific Railroad, 233 S.W.3d 13 (Tex. App. 2007); Missouri Pacific Railroad v. Navarro, 90 S.W.3d 747 (Tex. App. 2002).
Time limit to file a claim
Plaintiffs in non-acute trauma FELA claims must be aware of the time limit to file a claim. A litigant must file their claim within three years of suffering an injury. They don’t need to have a definitive medical diagnosis, and their medical diagnosis may continue to progress from the time they first have symptoms. For the purposes of the statute of limitations, the clock begins to run when the person knows or should know they have suffered an injury. This is typically the first experience of symptoms.
The plaintiff must have the critical facts to clearly know about the injury and its cause. Once that is the case, the victim has three years to assert their claim; this deadline is unforgiving.
Types of Compensation for Non-Acute Trauma Under FELA
Non-acute trauma claims under FELA may seek compensation for the following:
- Lost wages, including to the extent that the person cannot work in the same capacity in the future because of disability
- Compensation for the nature of the disability, including the loss of lifestyle and mobility
- Decreased life expectancy
- Pain and suffering
- Medical expenses
- Physical disfigurement and deformity
- Emotional anguish and distress
Non-acute trauma is often life-changing and debilitating. In addition to economic loss, personal suffering and limitations may be included in a claim for compensation.
Contact an Experienced FELA Claims Lawyer
Daren Sarphie of Sarphie Law is an experienced FELA claims lawyer. He handles cases based on non-acute trauma.
If you suspect that you have non-acute trauma from employment with a railroad, don’t wait to contact us. We’re taking new cases. Contact us today.
