Rhodeside’s Efforts Yield Injured Worker Benefits and Settlement

October 11, 2023 | News

Recently, Attorney Jesse Rhodeside of Marzzacco Niven & Associates assisted our client by helping him pursue workers’ compensation benefits after he was injured while working in January, 2020. The client was working as a roofer’s assistant and slipped and fell over twenty feet from the roof to the ground below, causing severe hip, elbow, and ankle fractures. Our client was hospitalized for weeks afterwards and was in need of workers’ compensation benefits such as medical bill payment and wage payments. Unfortunately, our client’s employer did not carry workers’ compensation insurance. It appeared that the client would be out of work, losing income and facing thousands of dollars in medical bills.

Jesse was hired and he and his support team filed petitions against the uninsured employer and the Pennsylvania Uninsured Employer’s Guaranty Fund (PUEGF) seeking medical and lost wage benefits. The PUEGF is a fund that pays workers’ compensation benefits to injured employees where the employer does not carry its own workers’ compensation insurance. After a thorough investigation and review of subpoenaed records, we learned that the uninsured employer was subcontracted for the work by another company, the general contractor on the job, and Jesse “joined” them as a defendant in the claim, arguing that they were a “statutory employer” under the Workers’ Compensation Act. The judge agreed with Jesse’s arguments and found the general contractor responsible under the Workers’ Compensation Act for payment of nearly two years of past-due and ongoing lost wages to our client stemming from the injury.

After some additional litigation regarding payment of certain medical expenses, we reached a favorable, final resolution by way of a settlement agreement to resolve the case for $175,000.00.

Jesse said of his work in this claim “Pennsylvania’s legislature and courts have made clear that employers cannot avoid liability for workers hurt in their projects by subcontracting core parts of their business to uninsured entities. There is no excuse for businesses operating in Pennsylvania without workers’ compensation insurance, or for businesses to fail to ensure that the companies they work with are properly insured. Unfortunately for our client, who suffered life changing injuries, his employer’s failure to secure insurance left him without income for more than a year while we fought for his right to benefits.”

The result for this client was truly a team effort. Rhodeside commented that “I am very proud of our team’s work in crafting a litigation strategy which looked for all potential avenues for recovery, and were able to ensure he was properly compensated, despite the complicated circumstances of his employment.”

In the past, Jesse has earned the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s distinction as a Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation and assists injured workers throughout Pennsylvania. Marzzacco Niven & Associates is believed to be the only firm in Central Pennsylvania to have two certified workers’ compensation specialists available to injured workers seeking legal help in work-related injury claims.

If you’ve been injured in a workers’ compensation, please contact us at the nearest location to schedule a free consultation today:

Harrisburg Law Office
945 East Park Drive, Suite 103 Harrisburg, PA 17111
(717) 231-1640

York Law Office
2550 Kingston Road, Suite 210A York, PA 17401
(717) 995-8998

Wyomissing Law Office
833 N. Park Road, Suite 103, Room A Wyomissing, PA 19610
(717) 388-2325

Chambersburg Law Office
79 St. Paul Drive, Suite 1 Chambersburg, PA 17201
(717) 388-2378

Carlisle Law Office
354 Alexander Springs Road Carlisle, PA 17015
(717) 995-8732

Carbondale Law Office
30 Lincoln Avenue, Suite 101 Carbondale, PA 18407
(717) 995-8810

Lancaster Law Office
2173 Embassy Drive, Ste 123, Lancaster Pa 17603
(717) 616-2954

Lebanon Law Office
937 Willow Street, Suite D Lebanon, PA 17042-1140
(717) 995-8963