This week two workmen captured the city’s attention when they had to be rescued after dangling from a damaged scaffold 44 stories above West 57th Street.
Too bad the state’s actual Scaffold Law doesn’t get nearly the same attention. Because it allows politicians and the plaintiffs bar to profit off bad law at the expense of the public. In short, it’s an excellent illustration of why the real corruption in this state is legal.
All states have laws on worker safety. What makes New York different is the way it assesses damages. It’s called “absolute liability,” and it means the owner or subcontractor is liable for all damages when a worker is injured in any gravity-related accident. Even if he was, say, intoxicated or violating safety procedures.
This law is wrong on so many levels. On the moral level, it’s wrong to punish people for something not their fault. On the business level, it makes everything New York builds more expensive. If you think that affects only big companies, think again: On Long Island, for example, it adds an estimated $7,000 to the cost of a new home.
There is another level: corruption. Ask yourself this: Does this law remain by accident, or might it be because so many of our state politicians belong to law firms that profit off these lawsuits?
In their last few days in session the pols have a chance to prove us wrong, by passing Assemblyman Joe Morelle’s measure to reform the law by bringing New York liability in line with most other states.
But don’t bet on it.