by Karl Voigt
A Lehigh Valley man was recently awarded workers’ compensation benefits for a stroke that was related to his employment. Namely, he worked in Victaulic’s “hot room” for decades. In part due to his constant exposure to this unusual heat, his doctors concluded that he had suffered a work-related stroke.
Because the Judge found in his favor, he will receive weekly wage loss benefits as long as he remains disabled, plus payment of injury-related medical bills. Because the stroke left him partially paralyzed, that may be for the rest of his life
Our attorneys have secured benefits for work-related strokes in the past, but it is a very difficult burden of proof to meet. It is not unusual for an employer to defend such a case by pointing the finger of blame somewhere else. They will blame a “pre-existing condition” or a history of smoking, rather than concede that it is work-related. Such was the case here; Victaulic fought the case by arguing — unsuccessfully — that his high blood pressure was the cause. However, the Judge found that this condition — which was controlled by medication — was less the cause than the oppressive heat of their foundry. Anyone who has worked in a foundry will be far too familiar with the desert-like temperatures workers endure.
You can read the Morning Call article here:
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