Wokplace Accidents Costly For Illegal Immigrants

Staff Writer

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The Charlotte Observer ran an article last week about the toll that worksite injuries take on illegal immigrants. Many often work without health insurance (a crisis that faces many American workers), can't communicate with bosses and coworkers, aren't covered by workers' compensation and don't get severance pay if they are hurt on the job and forced to quit.

One of the examples given in the story is an accident that occurred right here in South Carolina:

The failure to communicate may have been fatal for a 16-year-old Latino who fell from a construction project and hit his head in May 2004 in South Carolina. The construction boss told the crew chief to take the teen to a hospital right away. The boss later told federal officials that the crew leader usually understood English. But the leader took the youth to his home and gave him aspirin instead. The teen died that night.