Railroad Employee Injury

Federal Employer Liability Act (FLEA)

Florida railroad workers have to work in dangerous environments, including train yards, ballast, among heavy cargo, and train cars. Heavy machinery, equipment, debris and hazardous materials surround our rail workers.

When a railroad worker is hurt on the job, he or she does not receive workers compensation. Instead, that railroad worker can file a lawsuit for those injuries directly against the employer under the Federal Employees Liability Act (FLEA). FLEA seeks to provide compensation to railroad employees who are injured on the job.  It enables injured railroad employees to bring claims directly against their employers when the railroad's negligence caused the injury.

The railroad’s negligence can take on many different forms, including:

• Unsafe premises – such as unstable ballast, improperly guarded rails, defects in the ground that cause falls;
• Failing to provide proper tools or equipment;
• Failing to provide adequate training or supervision;
• Co-worker causing injury to another through negligence.

Under the FLEA, the injured railroad employee may file a lawsuit in the state or federal courts and have a jury decide the damages, if any, to which he is entitled.  Unless the claim is settled the lawsuit must be filed within three years of the date of the accident.

Because FLEA is not the same as workers compensation, you can file a lawsuit directly against your railroad employer to recover lost wages, pain and suffering, permanency of injury and effect on life style, future pain and suffering, future lost wages, and out-of-pocket expenses including medical costs.

Injured Railroad Employee

If you are a railroad worker and were injured on the job, then contact a personal injury lawyer at our law firm to discuss your FLEA claim. Your inquiry is confidential, and we will provide you with an honest assessment of your FLEA claim, and whether FLEA lawsuit is warranted. We may also refer you to, or co-counsel your case, with a FLEA attorney whom we trust.

Vision. Values. Justice.^SM