Court seizes company funds to compensate paralyzed worker

Putuo District People's Court has seized 980,000 yuan ($160,100) from a demolition company's bank account to pay a paralyzed worker his court-ordered compensation, the court said Monday.

The court awarded the money to the worker, surnamed Mao, in July 2011 after he won a lawsuit against the company for injuries he suffered on the job, according to a court press release. The company, however, refused to pay.

Mao suffered the injuries while working on a construction site at the end of 2009. He was picking up construction waste when a crane's steel line snapped above his head, dumping concrete rubble on top of him.

He suffered multiple fractures in his legs and spine and has been bedridden since.

After the accident, the general contractor company continued paying Mao's salary and covered all of his medical expenses. It also applied for a 340,000 yuan disability claim on his behalf.

However, the money wasn't enough to cover all of the family's expenses during Mao's stay in the hospital, which included the rent for an apartment his six-member family got near the hospital in Hongkou district.

When Mao's family asked for additional compensation, the general contractor refused, arguing that the demolition company it hired as a subcontractor was responsible for cleaning up the work site.

The demolition company also tried passing the buck. It claimed the general contractor, as Mao's employer, was the responsible party.

The court sided with Mao and ordered the subcontractor to pay him the additional compensation.

It has sent Mao a check for the money.