The Revival Of The Structural Work Act House Bill 2094 -- The Construction Safety Act Of 2008
May, 2008
by P. Scott Ritchie and Kyle P. Kickert
House Bill 2094, the Construction Safety Act of 2008 ("Act"), is sponsored by state Rep. John A. Fritchey, a democrat from the 11th District in Chicago, and was filed on April 8, 2008. The stated purpose of the Act, "is to provide for the protection and safety of persons in and about the construction, repair, alteration, or removal of buildings, bridges, viaducts, and other structures, and to provide for the enforcement thereof." The proposed Bill re-establishes the Structural Work Act. On April 9, 2008, Bill 2094 quickly moved through the House Judiciary Committee on a partisan vote. It is now on its Second Reading.
The proposed Bill states:
"It is the intent of the General Assembly that this Act is to be liberally construed to effectuate its beneficial purpose of protecting persons engaging in occupations of working in and about construction, repairing, alterations, or removal of buildings, bridges, viaducts, and other structures. This liberal interpretation exists so as to provide workers with a safe place to work and to afford relief to injured workers."
The Bill, if passed, would raise requirements for safety features on scaffolding, require posted work site safety information and warnings, as well as other detailed requirements to improve the working conditions for construction workers in Illinois. According to the Bill, the new Act is to be "interpreted consistent with prior precedent and court decisions interpreting the Structural Work Act."
The Structural Work Act was repealed in 1995. It had previously allowed workers to sue third parties for their injuries sustained on construction sites. The Construction Safety Act of 2008, if enacted, would allow the workers to go above and beyond the Workers' Compensation System and sue anyone who may have been involved on the construction site, including suppliers, contractors, subcontractors, architects, and retailers. Currently, New York is the only state that has a statute similar to the proposed Construction Safety Act and former Structural Work Act.
We wanted to make our readers aware of this new development. A complete and full analysis and report on the progress of the Bill will be in the next issue of the CM Report on Construction.
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