Reporting an Injury at Work - What You Need to Know
According to the law, the work place is supposed to be a safe environment for each and every employee. Sometimes, however, injuries at work do occur and many workers are injured during the course of their work. Injuries at work are no longer headline-grabbing incidents unless it's on a large scale. If you have suffered a personal injury at work, you may well protect your rights by following these simple guidelines.
Proving your injury was work related
To ensure that you have the highest chance of attesting that you were a victim of injury at work, there are some crucial factors to observe. Firstly, you need to report the incident to your employer as early as possible and confirm that this is recorded, or somebody else, possibly a colleague or partner follows this up.
In case there were any witnesses, make sure you record their evidence and ensure they provide enough details. Additionally, if similar events have occurred previously, records will reflect these, thus making your claim even stronger.
Visit a medical expert who will assess the degree of your injury and if necessary, they can also support your case in a court of law. Also be sure to get a solicitor who is skilled and experienced in handling cases of injuries at work. It is also your duty to find competent people to advise you on the requirements of safety and health legislation and the steps to be followed.
Employers Liability
The general law is that every employer has an implied contractual responsibility to take reasonable care for the safety, health and welfare of every employee. This is normally accomplished by providing a safe scheme of work where any possible risks are evaluated and minimized as much as is practically possible.
It is entirely the employer's responsibility to provide his or her employees with the necessary training to avoid injuries at work place. If there employer does not abide by any of the common safety and health regulations, and consequently an injury happens at the work place, the employer may be responsible to pay compensation for injury, damage and loss.
The employer is also required to ensure that associate employees are skilled to minimize the possibility of human error leading to accidents at workplace, whether due to negligence, ignorance or malice. Even if a member of staff acting in the line of their work causes you to incur an injury, your employer may be responsible for their actions.
Compensation for injuries at work
If you have experienced an injury at your place of work, by law you're empowered to seek compensation. Employees' compensation is a greatly regulated section and the failure to follow the obligatory processes can limit access to the benefits.
Just like any other indemnity, the event of the injury at the workplace will be investigated in detail in order to establish the cause. For you to get compensation for injury at work, it is very important to prove that the liability lies completely with the employer.
Your compensation will depend on your individual case, since there are different forms of compensation that reflect particular circumstances. For instance, you can be compensated for common damages, personal damages or even damages hindering your performance at work.
If you have experienced an injury at work, it is vital that you be careful when collecting all the evidence required. Be sure to address the case immediately, and get support from a well-informed injury lawyer in order to receive the compensation you deserve.
David Marocchi specializes in compensation law and personal injury law. His company, Paramount Lawyers based in Australia can help you deal with unpleasant issues that can come out of car accidents and other injury related events.