Workers Comp Lawyer
$340,000 Workers Compensation for Union Elevator Constructor
Claimant was an apprentice member of the International Union of Elevator Constructors, when he was injured on the job. According to his lawyer, Douglas Rallo of Libertyville, the occurrence took place when claimant was sliding heavy equipment off the back end of a truck on to a lift. The claimant threw his shoulder into the equipment to keep it from falling off, causing a tear in his “rotator cuff”. The “rotator cuff” consists of four muscles and tendons which hold the shoulder socket in place. It provides dynamic stability and assists in movement of the shoulder in elevation (raising your arms) and rotation. Symptoms of a rotator cuff tear include pain in the front of the shoulder and difficulty reaching behind the back.
After surgery, claimant’s doctor asked claimant to submit to an important test known as an FCE. An FCE is a “functional capacity evaluation”. An FCE is a four hour test where the claimant is asked to perform a variety of tasks to determine what level of work the claimant is capable of performing. These tasks including lifting, pushing, pulling, carrying, climbing and grasping, among others. The FCE evaluator carefully observes the claimant to see if he is putting forth a full effort. If the FCE is valid (based on full effort), the evaluator will determine whether the claimant is capable of performing sedentary, light, medium or heavy categories of work. Once the FCE is completed, the treating physician will release the claimant to return to the workforce, usually in accordance with the findings of the FCE.
“In the case of this elevator constructor, the FCE determined that he was not able to do heavy lifting on the job anymore, and as a result, we were able to achieve an excellent, $340,000 settlement for our client”, said Rallo.
Want to learn more about FCEs? Call Douglas Rallo at 847-816-8780.
