'We settled for 5 times my yearly salary': Lawyer secures pest-control technician a legal payout of $300k, after manager forces him to use damaged ladder, causing him to fall 25 feet

Author image for Emma Saven
Emma Saven
Sep 10, 2025 7:00 PM EDT

Imagine working for a company that willingly puts you in the face of danger…This pest-control technician was very wary about doing a job that required him to use a pretty rough-looking ladder…He even sent pictures over to management to express his concerns, but instead of providing him with new equipment or postponing the job, they told him, to put it nicely, to either get over his fear of heights or start looking on LinkedIn for some new job openings…Well, I guess karma came to play, because the faulty ladder caused him to fall and sustain some serious injuries…and after informing his lawyers about his conversation with management about his concerns before the fall, he was able to get the company to settle in a law agreement that exceeded 5 times his yearly salary! 

Most Americans spend their whole lives strategizing the 'perfect sue'...we're kidding. Kinda. But the aches were definitely bettered by nature's medicine…also known as a huge, lump sum of cash! Suddenly, he was feeling a little bit better and starting to think about all the ways he could start over, even considering what it might be like to go back to studying at the ripe age of 30-something. To be fair, we genuinely think what's a better way to spend his hefty compensation than to better his education! Hats off to you.

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  • This company may rethink ignoring warnings regarding some faulty equipment, because we certainly know the price of purchasing a new ladder would’ve cost a lot less than a $300k payout (plus medical bills). It would also have saved their employee a lot of harm. This company should strive to have a business that gets people out of danger, instead of putting them at the face of it! Always remember, your safety is more important than addressing any power-driven, intimidating manager! 

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    Injured man talking to his lawyer
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    Injured on the job. Settled for 5 times my yearly salary.

    I was working as a pest-control technician and fell about 25 feet after a weathered ladder broke.
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    The ladder was rated for 300lbs but in perfect condition those ladders can handle much more weight.
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    This ladder was far from perfect condition and I weigh 322lbs at 6 feet. I usually don't get on ladders
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    as a termite technician but our company had multiple call-offs that day. My boss sent me out in someone else's truck
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    as mine was only equipped for termites. The job was to install a one-way door for bat exclusion on a 4 story
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    multi-unit residential building. Something I've never done before but is pretty straightforward. As I unloaded the ladder I noticed that
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    it looked pretty rough so I took pictures and sent them to my manager saying that I didn't feel safe getting
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    on a busted up ladder, especially one that wasn't rated for my bodyweight. He called me and told me he used
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    that ladder to repair his roof a month ago and it worked perfectly fine. I called the owner of the company
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    Worker climbing a ladder
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    and tried to tell him the same thing but the manager had already convinced him that the ladder was fine and I
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    was either being lazy or I was afraid of heights. The owner threatened to let me go if I was too afraid
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    of heights to do the job so I reluctantly set up the ladder and began to climb. I reached about halfway before the ladder
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    failed. One of the foot anchors had snapped off and I fell, breaking my left leg and foot. While in the hospital the owner
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    and his wife visited me and offered to pay the medical expenses and keep me on the payroll with a bonus of 25k.
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    was too high on pain medication to realize what was happening so I agreed and signed their contract agreeing not to sue.
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    After getting home I realized that they screwed me and contacted a lawyer who told me that the contract wasn't binding because
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    they knew I was heavily medicated at the time I signed. After my lawyer had the owner served with papers they offered to settle
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    for 100k plus medical and legal fees, which was pretty much what they already offered me but one lump sum.
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    Eventually we settled for nearly triple that. I know I could've gotten more but even with unemployment and short term disability
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    Business man making a financial transfer online
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    my bills were quickly falling behind. I think I'll take some of this money and go back to school to get a job
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    that doesn't require me to risk getting hurt or poisoned. I just worry that going back to school in my late 30s will be too difficult.
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    and too late.
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    Malleus Maior Never too late to go back to school. Some of my favorite classmates in undergrad were late career or retirees.
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    psychstudent_101 As someone who teaches post secondary, students in their 30s (or older) are often some of the best students! They are there to learn, they aren't as afraid to ask questions, and their brains and just all around more developed and on task than the 18yos. I'm always happy to have an older student or two in my classroom.
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    Lactating-almonds This is the new American dream. Being injured enough to sue for a large amount of money but not so injured that it's permanent.
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    LosWafflos Get that money invested right and you'll never have to work again. With plenty to spare.
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told-me-to fell down ladder medical-fees hospital work complaints on-job settle demanded Lawyers payout complied faulty workplace Horrible Bosses ignored injured money large-amount
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