Attorney Scott Goldstein of Ankin Law recently represented an overhead crane operator who injured his knee and hip while at work. When the worker was not getting fair treatment from his employer, he turned to Scott to get him the compensation he deserved. In the end, an arbitrator ruled in the injured crane operator’s favor.
He will receive:
1. $611.00 for medical bills incurred
2. Hip Surgery
3. Temporary Total Disability of $988.27/week for 45 2/7 weeks; and
4. Prospective Medical Care for his left hip surgery and ongoing treatment for his left knee injury.
[Read the Full Arbitrator Decision Here]
On the day of the accident February 23, 2025, the crane operator slipped on hydraulic fluid while walking through the plant. His left leg twisted outward and then inward, causing immediate pain that radiated from his left knee up to his left hip and groin. Emergency medical personnel were called to the scene, though he declined transport at the time.
In the days following the accident, the worker checked in by phone with an on-site medical provider, then had an in-person evaluation a week later, where he was diagnosed with left hip pain radiating to the left knee and referred out for specialist care.
An orthopedic specialist evaluated him shortly after, treating both the hip and knee injuries and administering a knee injection. An MRI arthrogram of the left hip that June revealed osteoarthritic changes, cartilage loss, chondral fissures, and labral fraying. Based on those results, the worker was diagnosed with a labral tear and hip impingement and referred to a hip specialist. He also completed a course of physical therapy for both the hip and knee that summer.
Treatment for the knee continued through the rest of the year. A knee MRI that September showed meniscus degeneration, though the treating specialist believed most of the worker’s pain was originating from the hip rather than the knee, and administered a knee injection.
A hip specialist first evaluated the injured crane operator in September 2025, confirming a diagnosis of a labral tear and femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) after reviewing imaging. The worker received hip injections in September and November 2025, with some relief reported after the second. A lumbar spine evaluation that November ruled out the spine as a source of symptoms, redirecting focus back to the hip. In December 2025, the hip specialist recommended surgery to address the ongoing hip pain, FAI, and labral tear.
At the time of trial, the worker had not yet undergone the recommended hip surgery but testified he wanted it to resolve his ongoing pain, which he rated 5–6 out of 10 and described as constant since the accident. He testified he had no prior history of injury to either his left hip or left knee, and that both were symptom-free before the February 23, 2025 accident.
The injured man remained off work from June 16, 2025 to the present, a period of 45 2/7 weeks. The company laid him off effective June 30, 2025. Although his treating specialist issued a full-duty work release in March 2026 (which the worker said he requested out of financial necessity), the company declined to return him to work, citing the need for medical clearance on the hip. That clearance was never issued.
