The national railroad FELA lawyers Poolson | Oden with Grant & Eisenhofer have filed a FELA civil case on behalf of their client Charlie Hunter. Mr. Hunter is a retired railroad employee suffering from the consequences of his employer Norfolk Southern Railway’s negligence to provide him with a reasonably safe place to work after 40 years of service to the railroad Norfolk Southern Railway.
Mr. Hunter’s case precedes many others, all of which are being brought under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) of 1908 on behalf of railroad workers across the country.
Representing Charlie Hunter
There’s nothing so fulfilling as a career that you’re passionate about – providing a life for you and your family working hard on the railroad. Charlie Hunter dedicated four decades of his life to the work he did for the Norfolk Southern Railway. He started as a track laborer, and worked his way up to a foreman position never faltering in his passions.
Unfortunately, Mr. Hunter’s career and company did not love him back. Mr. Hunter’s recent lung cancer diagnosis reveals that he was exposed to life-threatening chemicals and conditions during his 40-year career that have permanently impacted his health and future. Exposures the railroad has known about for decades.
Today, Poolson | Oden and Grant & Eisenhofer represent Mr. Hunter as he fights for financial justice after decades of mistreatment. Hunter v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, No. 260701694 is the first of many new cases to come forward, citing employee abuses under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) of 1908.
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Railroad Workers Need Legal Protection
Railroad workers are at particular risk for exposure to dangerous chemicals, carcinogens, and environmental hazards.
Employees who work for railroads for years can find themselves dealing with health consequences brought about by their exposure to:
- Diesel exhaust
- Benzene
- Creosote
- Silica dust
- Asbestos
- Herbicides and pesticides
- Airborne heavy metals
These are hazards encountered across the railroad, from the shops and yards to the locomotives and the right-of-way, in the ordinary course of keeping Norfolk Southern’s trains running.
The health effects from exposure to these substances can vary from temporarily inconvenient to life-threatening and fatal. Unfortunately, the railroad has known about these occupational hazards for decades but failed to properly protect its railroad workers from daily exposures that may have devastated thousands of families.
Poolson | Oden and Grant & Eisenhofer Believe in Justice for Railroad Workers
“These workers built their careers—and in many cases, their families’ futures—working on the railroad,” said attorneys Adam Gomez and M. Elizabeth Graham of Grant & Eisenhofer, and
Carisa German-Oden and Daniel J. Poolson, Jr. of Poolson | Oden. “They went to work every day believing they were safe.”
“Decades later, we are filing these cases because Norfolk Southern owed these workers a basic duty to protect them and abjectly failed in that duty again and again,” the attorneys continue. “These filings are aimed at holding the company accountable, and seek the compensation to which these workers and their families are entitled under FELA.”
Targeting Cancer Risks in Railroad Professions
The complaint brought forward by Poolson | Oden and Grant & Eisenhofer emphasizes that Norfolk Southern had an obligation to investigate the cancer risks that it exposed its employees to, and that its knowledge or lack thereof represents industry negligence that dates back to the 1950s.
The complaint asserts that Norfolk Southern failed to take reasonable steps to protect its employees from dangerous exposure levels while also falling short of its responsibility to provide employees with safety equipment like respirators.
Poolson | Oden and Grant & Eisenhofer specifically argue that Norfolk Southern breached the Federal Locomotive Inspection Act (LIA) and did not meet ventilation standards or provide reasonable exhaust filtration. As a result, employees endured unreasonable and life-threatening exposure to diesel fumes and exhaust.
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Poolson | Oden and Grant & Eisenhofer Fight for Victims
Representatives from Poolson | Oden and Grant & Eisenhofer want to emphasize, with this claim and others, that worker safety should no longer take a back seat to profits in the railroad industry. The teams anticipate pursuing additional filings on behalf of injured railroad employees and their families in the weeks and months to come, not only for Norfolk Southern but also against other railroad carriers..
This team of trial lawyers prepares for cases with the intent of securing every dollar victims need to reclaim their lost quality of life. This team takes a “boots on the ground” approach to ensure comprehensive investigations into the negligence that can lead to devastating railway-related health conditions and other injuries.
If you or someone you love has fallen victim to negligence from a rail company, you can turn to Poolson | Oden to discuss how you can challenge attempts to misrepresent your losses or otherwise deny you the compensation you need to heal. We’ve secured more than $32 million in the last five years alone. Let us go to work for you.
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More Cases Are Forthcoming
The story that Mr. Hunter tells about his exposure to dangerous chemicals and the health impacts of his career are, unfortunately, not unique. Poolson | Oden intends to pursue hundreds of cases, filing collectively, to pursue justice for injured engineers, carmen, conductors, brakemen, welders, laborers, machinists, among others.
States represented by Norfolk Southern Filings, thus far, include:
- Michigan
- Indiana
- Tennessee
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Alabama
- Georgia
- Missouri
- West Virginia
- Indiana
- Louisiana
- Virginia
- Illinois
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Maryland
- Iowa
Don’t Get Railroaded®. If you’ve dedicated years of your life to a railroad carrier and developed a life-changing health condition as a result, there are attorneys ready to advocate for you.
In a statement, Mr. Hunter says, “You go in every day thinking you’re safe, doing a job you’re good at and proud of, and then you find out you got sick because the company never told you the truth about what you were breathing. It’s too late for me and a lot of my brothers and sisters on the railroad, but it doesn’t have to be too late for the next generation of rail workers.”