Amtrak workers who are injured on the job are protected and can seek compensation under the Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA). Under this law, the Amtrak employee has the right to file a claim against his employer in a state or federal court and has an absolute right to a trial by jury.

Congress passed the FELA because of the extreme danger railroaders face in their daily job. The railroad business was exceptionally hazardous at the dawn of the twentieth century. As the United States Supreme Court has stated: “the physical dangers of railroading… resulted in the death or maiming of thousands of workers every year,” including 281,645 injuries in the year 1908 alone. That same year, the United States Congress enacted the Federal Employers' Liability Act (“FELA”) to protect the rights of railroad employers and their families in the event of injury or death of a railroader.

The railroad employee involved in an injury case is entitled to an award according to the type of injury sustained and the extent of the injury whether it is temporary or permanent. He is entitled to an award for any disability or disfigurement, aggravation of a pre-existing condition, and the pain and suffering experienced from the injury. Additionally, the injured worker is entitled to an award for reasonable medical expenses incurred as a result of the injury. The injured railroader is entitled to any lost wages from time off or, in the event of a permanent injury, any wages from the time of the injury up to and including such time as he would have retired from the railroad. In the event of the death of a railroad employee, the wife and children of the employee are entitled to an award for the pain and suffering experienced prior to the spouse's/parent's death and an award for all reasonable medical care, treatment, and services received prior to death. The wife and children of the employee are also entitled to an award for the loss of support resulting from the death of the railroad worker.

If you feel you have a FELA claim, our attorneys would like to talk to you. You may be entitled to compensation. Please contact the experienced railroad law attorneys at Ponder Legal Group at 888-201-0305.