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PLAINTIFF WAS INJURED WHEN AN UNPROTECTED TRENCH CAVED IN AND COLLAPSED; THE ABSENCE OF ANY SAFETY DEVICES, LIKE A SAFETY RAILING, VIOLATED LABOR LAW 240(1) AND 241(6) (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff was entitled to summary judgment on the Labor Law 240(1) and 241(6) causes of action. Plaintiff was directed to retrieve lumber which was near an unprotected trench. He was injured when the trench caved in and collapsed. The facts that the trench was 10 feet deep, unshored, and without planking, barricades or guardrails demonstrated plaintiff was not provided with an adequate safety device in violation of Labor Law 240(1). The same omissions violated 12 NYCRR 23-1.7(b)(1):

… [T]he plaintiff demonstrated, prima facie, that the defendants violated Labor Law § 240(1) by failing to provide the plaintiff with an adequate safety device and that this violation was a proximate cause of his injuries ….* * *

“To establish liability under Labor Law § 241(6), a plaintiff must demonstrate that his or her injuries were proximately caused by a violation of an Industrial Code provision that is applicable under the circumstances of the case” … . Here, the Labor Law § 241(6) cause of action was predicated, inter alia, on a violation of 12 NYCRR 23-1.7(b)(1), “which mandates that holes or hazardous openings at construction sites into which a person may step or fall be guarded by a substantial cover fastened in place or by the installation of a safety railing” … . O’Donnell v Rocklyn Ecclesiastical Corp., 2025 NY Slip Op 06714, Second Dept 12-3-25

Practice Point: If a worker is injured when an unprotected trench caves in, both Labor Law 240(1) and 241(6) have been violated.

 

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