The accident at work will have far-reaching consequences, right from the painful and disabling injuries to higher financial losses and an inability to pursue your favorite hobbies. It is a scary thought & many workers may take the right precautions to be safe at work. Sadly, that isn’t always enough. At times accidents at work generally happen due to the colleague’s mistake or management didn’t put the right protective measures.
If you’re injured in an accident at work, possibly you might have a lot of questions on what are your rights or how to ensure your rights are well-protected, there is a solution. There are many legal acts, which are introduced over years to protect work injury rights in accidents at work. The law covers complete details of the employers’ legal duties regarding the workers’ safety.
Know your rights
The workers’ compensation laws differ widely from one state to another. These rights afforded the injured employee differ widely, like different legal procedures, which ensure such rights. Normally speaking, there are many legal rights, which are quite common over most of the states:
- You have the right to see the doctor or pursue the medical treatment
- You can protect your right of your injury or illness claim in court or state court
- In case you cannot return to work due to your injury and illness, permanently or temporarily, you have some kind of the disability compensation
- If you come to work by the physician, then you have the right to come to your job
- You have the right to get represented by the lawyer throughout this process.
- To understand your rights, being an employee it’s important to know your right and refuse some requests and offers. For instance, if you’re injured and the employer encourages you to use your health insurance for paying the medical treatment, you will have a right of saying, “no.”
- Suppose you disagree with the decision by the employer, employer’s insurance firm, or workers’ compensation court, generally you have a right to appeal this decision,
Work Accident Employees Rights
Suppose you are ever involved in any work accident and are injured, you have to report it to the employer as early as possible. Whenever you do this, you have to make sure they record it in an accident report book. Suppose your employer doesn’t have the accident report book and log, or they neglect to record the incident, pen down every incident’s details that will lead to the injury and illness. You must make two copies, and send one to the employer & retain the other copy with you. Suppose you are very ill and badly injured or are not able to record an accident yourself, you can ask somebody whom you trust for doing it for you. You need to ask them for recording this. This can open the door towards the work injury claim.
Even though your injury doesn’t appear serious at a time, still you must see the doctor. This can include a visit to the hospital, the paramedic inspection, or consultation with the GP. Medical practitioners and doctors may record medical details of the accident. Then this will strengthen the case later in case you do want to claim the compensation from the employer, or you want to claim for other benefits as the consequence.
Does It Impact My Job When I Make the Claim?
You must not worry about losing the job in case you plan to claim compensation. Our law is quite clear and it’s illegal for the employer to sack the worker on basis of them going ahead in filing the claim following the work accident. Also, the employer must have the right procedures for the accidents at work & insurance to cover worker injuries, thus your fight is with the employer’s insurance firm & not with the employer directly.
Never get surprised if an insurance firm approaches you giving you compensation for the injuries before you ask. So, what you need to know is they aren’t doing it from goodness. They’re just doing it to guard themselves to make the larger payout in the future. Doesn’t matter how generous this settlement appears, don’t take it.
