254 Pa. 375 | Pa. | 1916
Opinion by
This was an action by an employee against his employer to recover damages for personal injuries received during his employment. The court below directed a compulsory nonsuit, which it subsequently refused to take off. The facts shown by the testimony are as follows: Plaintiff, a carpenter, was employed by defendant, a contractor and builder, who had a contract for the alteration of a building occupied by the Lancaster Trust Company in the City of Lancaster. In the course of his employment plaintiff was directed by the foreman to make certain alterations in a window frame, the bottoin of which was about thirty feet above the floor, and the top some fifteen feet higher. To comply with the directions of the foreman plaintiff secured the tools necessary to be used in the work, and, carrying them in one hand and using the other for support, proceeded to ascend the ladder leading to the window. Upon reaching a point about thirty-five feet above the floor, one of the rungs of the ladder gave way, causing him to fall to the floor below and receive the injuries for which this action to recover compensation was brought. The ladder consisted of three sections made by other employees engaged on the building, the first two being each sixteen feet in
It is undoubtedly the rule that a master is bound to furnish his servant with a reasonably safe place in which to work and also with proper tools and appliances. This duty is an absolute one from which nothing but performance can relieve him and a person to whom the duty may be delegated becomes a vice-principal whose negligence is that of the employer. Biit where an employee" institutes proceedings for damages based on negligence upon the part of his employer, it is not sufficient to entitle him to recover merely to prove the fact of the accident and consequent injury. There must be affirmative proof of a negligent act either of omission or commission on the part of the employer, which was the cause of the accident. Where the alleged negligence is due to
The judgment of the court below is affirmed.