Asbestos Exposure & Work History Investigation

Quick answer

Includes a full timeline of employers, job sites, unions, and equipment worked with or near, going back as far as the person can recall
Takes about 2-4 weeks for an initial picture, faster if pay stubs, union cards, or old photos are on hand
Costs nothing upfront — the investigation is done on contingency, paid only if a claim or trust fund payout succeeds
Takes site records, union hall archives, VA and Social Security work history, and family recollections as source material
Book by phone at (724) 442-9757 or a home visit — we come to the kitchen table, no downtown office trip required

Most families start with one clear memory: dad worked at Alcoa, or he did sheet metal work along the Stevenson Boulevard corridor, or he spent thirty years in a Lower New Kensington plant near the river flats. That single memory is the starting thread. The investigation pulls on it — checking union records, old employer names (many mills changed hands or names over the decades), and matching job descriptions to known asbestos-containing materials like pipe insulation, gasket material, or furnace lining. We also ask about second jobs and side work, because a lot of exposure in this area came from short stints — a summer at a foundry, a few years doing insulation repair — that never show up on a resume but absolutely count.

The reason this step matters so much is that mesothelioma cases don't rest on one company. They rest on identifying **every** company whose product or worksite put asbestos fibers into a person's lungs, because each of those companies — or the trust fund that replaced it after bankruptcy — may owe compensation separately. A worker who spent time at the Alcoa works and later did contract work near the Fifth Avenue business district may have two, three, or more responsible parties, not one. Skipping this step is the single biggest reason families leave money unclaimed: they file against the company they remember best and never learn about the others.

This differs from simply signing a lawsuit intake form. A national call-center firm often takes the first company name given and moves straight to paperwork. A full work history investigation goes slower on purpose — union hall visits, old city directories, sometimes even Westmoreland County Community College's Advanced Technology Center records if training or apprenticeship history is relevant, and conversations with former coworkers when they can be found. The trade-off is time: a thorough history takes longer to build than a quick intake form, but it is what separates a claim against one company from a fuller picture that can include several lawsuits and several trust funds at once.

For families near Tenth Street Bridge, the river flats, or anywhere in New Kensington-Arnold School District's home area, this step can usually be done without a single office visit. We bring the questions to the hospital room or the living room, because a person mid-treatment shouldn't have to travel to answer them.

Call (724) 442-9757

Asbestos Exposure & Work History Investigation pricing in New Kensington

Initial work history intake and timeline build	No cost — covered as part of contingency case work
Full investigation with records requests and union/employer verification	No upfront cost — fee taken only from a successful settlement or trust payout
Standalone consultation with no obligation to proceed	$0

Exact price confirmed free on-site before any work.

Asbestos Exposure & Work History Investigation — questions, answered

How far back does a work history investigation go for a New Kensington mesothelioma case?

It goes back as far as necessary, often 40-50 years, since mesothelioma can take decades to appear after the original exposure. For many New Kensington families that means tracing work at the former Alcoa site or area mills back to the 1960s or 1970s.

What if my father doesn't remember every job he had in New Kensington?

Partial memory is normal and enough to start. We fill gaps using Social Security earnings records, union records, and family recollections from coworkers or neighbors in Parnassus or Fair Oaks who worked alongside him.

Does the investigation cost anything if we live in Lower New Kensington near the river flats?

No. The investigation is done on contingency, meaning there's no fee unless a claim or trust fund payout succeeds, and no cost for a home visit anywhere in the New Kensington area.

Can this investigation find companies I've never heard of?

Yes, that's the main point. Many mills and suppliers near the Stevenson Boulevard corridor or the Fifth Avenue business district changed names, merged, or went bankrupt, and the investigation identifies the trust funds that replaced them.

Do I need to come to an office in New Kensington to start this?

No. We meet at a kitchen table, a hospital room, or anywhere that works for the family — no trip to a downtown law office is required to begin the work history review.