As someone who has worked in concrete or masonry in North Carolina, you could be at increased risk of health problems due to silica dust exposure. When inhaled, the tiny quartz particles can irritate the lungs and eventually lead to serious occupational diseases like silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and even lung cancer.
If you have been diagnosed with one of these or a related occupational disease, you could be entitled to compensation for your medical care, lost income, pain and suffering, and more. The team at Ward Black Law wants to help you seek it.
Contact us today at (336) 333-2244 to speak with a North Carolina masonry and concrete worker silica exposure lawyer. We look forward to meeting you for a free, no-pressure consultation and explaining your legal options in detail.
Why You Need Ward Black Law’s North Carolina Silica Dust Exposure Lawyers
When your health and your family’s future are on the line, you need to know that your law firm has what it takes to protect your rights and fight for maximum compensation. Choose Ward Black Law for your silica dust-exposure case because:
- We serve our clients like we would our own mothers, putting in the long hours and hard work it takes to help them recover.
- We’ve helped thousands of people across our 30 years in practice, including 1,300 individuals who developed diseases associated with asbestos exposure. We understand how complex occupational disease claims can be, and we prepare each one carefully.
- Our faith calls us to go the extra mile for our clients and to support our community. To that end, we work with over 100 non-profits throughout North Carolina.
- Our core values are to act with integrity, relentlessness, respect, and excellence. We are always seeking to improve and put service above self.
We are ready to start work on your claim at no upfront cost to you. You will not pay us an attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation for you.
What Is Crystalline Silica and Why Is It Dangerous for Concrete and Masonry Workers?
Crystalline silica is a naturally occurring compound found in quartz. It is used in industrial applications such as sand, stone, concrete, brick, block, mortar, and engineered stone.
In its intact state, silica is not hazardous. Rather, the danger arises when workers cut, grind, drill, saw, crush, chip, or demolish silica-containing materials.
Such activities release extremely small particles called respirable crystalline silica dust (RCS) into the air. RCS particles are so fine that they are easily inhaled deep into the lungs, where they irritate lung tissue and, over time, can develop into serious health conditions, including irreversible lung disease.
Which Concrete and Masonry Jobs Are Most at Risk for Silica Exposure?
Any concrete- or masonry-related job that involves cutting or grinding quartz products can potentially expose a construction worker to respirable silica dust. Particularly at-risk occupations include:
- Cement masons and concrete finishers, who work directly with concrete and often cut and install it
- Brick masons and block masons, who routinely work with brick, concrete block, and mortar
- Stonemasons, who cut, shape, grind, and install natural and manufactured stone
- Tuckpointers and pointing and cleaning workers, who remove and replace deteriorated mortar, often using grinders that can produce very high silica exposures
- Concrete cutters and saw operators, who specialize in sawing, drilling, or coring concrete and masonry, putting them close to major fine dust sources
- Concrete and masonry laborers, who may demolish, chip, drill, and handle silica-containing materials
- Construction demolition workers, who break apart concrete, masonry, brick, and stone
- Heavy equipment operators at concrete demolition or recycling sites, who can be exposed when crushing, moving, loading, or processing concrete and masonry debris
Common On-the-Job Tasks That Create Hazardous Silica Dust
Certain tasks put workers in general masonry and concrete work at heightened risk of exposure to crystalline silica dust, including:
- Concrete cutting and sawing
- Grinding and surface preparation
- Tuckpointing and mortar removal
- Drilling and coring concrete, brick, block, and stone
- Jackhammering and chipping concrete or masonry
- Demolition work
- Concrete crushing and recycling
- Brick, block, paver, and stone cutting
Health Conditions Caused by Silica Dust Exposure in Concrete and Masonry Work
Silica dust exposure in concrete and masonry work is associated with an increased risk for:
- Silicosis, or permanent scarring of the lungs that makes it difficult to breathe and gets worse over time
- Lung cancer, as crystalline silica is a known human carcinogen that increases the risk of cancer by as much as 70 percent, according to an article in the American Journal of Epidemiology
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which blocks airflow to the lungs
- Kidney damage and related diseases caused by the body’s inability to filter silica dust
Silica dust exposure can also increase susceptibility to tuberculosis and other respiratory infections, particularly for workers who also develop silicosis.
Manufacturer Liability for Concrete Saws, Grinders, and Dust Collection Systems
Respirable crystalline silica has long been known to be a health hazard, and companies that manufacture saws and grinders that cut silica-containing material must account for these hazards. When they fail to do so, workers could hold them legally liable for occupational diseases they develop as a result.
A manufacturer may be liable if its equipment released dangerous amounts of silica dust, lacked effective dust controls, or failed to provide adequate safety instructions. Likewise, manufacturers of vacuums, shrouds, water-delivery systems, and other products designed to control silica dust may also be liable if their products are ineffective.
What Compensation Can Injured Concrete and Masonry Workers Seek in North Carolina?
You could be entitled to compensation if you have developed silicosis or another occupational illness after working with concrete, masonry, or silica-containing materials in North Carolina.
The state specifically recognizes silicosis as an occupational disease in its workers’ compensation laws. Depending on your circumstances, you may be entitled to workers’ comp benefits that cover your medical treatment, replace a portion of your lost wages, and compensate you for illness-related disabilities. However, in exchange for the no-fault benefits, you generally cannot sue your employer for silica exposure in NC.
Nevertheless, workers’ compensation may not be the only source for your financial recovery. If defective equipment or a company other than your employer contributed to your silica exposure, you may also have grounds for a separate personal injury claim against the third party. A third-party concrete or masonry worker silicosis claim in NC could provide you with compensation not available through workers’ compensation, including:
- The full value of your lost income
- Reduced earning potential
- Pain and suffering due to the discomfort of your illness
- Reduced quality of life if you are no longer able to engage in favorite activities
How Long Do Concrete and Masonry Workers Have to File a Silica Dust Claim in NC?
Different deadlines apply to different types of silica dust claims in North Carolina. First, you have two years from the date you were diagnosed with a silica dust-related illness to file your workers’ compensation claim.
Any separate third-party claim you may have against an equipment manufacturer is subject to North Carolina’s personal injury statute of limitations. Generally, you have three years from the last date of exposure, though North Carolina’s discovery rule extends the start date to when you became aware or reasonably should have become aware of your illness. However, you cannot bring a claim more than 12 years after the date of your last exposure, according to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-46.1.
How We Build Your Masonry Worker Silicosis Case
At Ward Black Law, we build silicosis cases with meticulous care. Our process starts with gathering evidence that connects your work history, silica exposure, and resulting illness. To that end, our NC silicosis attorneys may:
- Conduct worksite exposure audits to identify where silica dust was generated and what protections were or were not in place.
- Review employment and jobsite records to document where you worked, how long you worked there, and the types of masonry or concrete work you performed.
- Consult industrial hygienists to estimate the intensity and duration of your silica exposure based on the tasks you performed, the materials and equipment you worked with, and what abatement systems were in place, if any.
- Work with medical experts who can conduct or review tests to understand better the nature and extent of your illness and its likely cause.
- Calculate the overall costs of your illness, both on a financial and a personal level, to understand what fair compensation would be.
Armed with analysis and evidence, we can seek to prove how you were exposed, how the exposure affected your health and your overall life, which parties were to blame for the exposure, and who you can hold accountable.
Contact a North Carolina Concrete and Masonry Silica Exposure Attorney Today
Are you or someone you love struggling with the long-term consequences of being exposed to silica dust in the workplace? If so, you could be entitled to compensation. The legal team at Ward Black Law wants to help you seek it.
Contact us now at (336) 333-2244 or contact us online for your free consultation with a North Carolina silica dust exposure lawyer and find out how much your case could be worth.