types of Workplace Injuries in Riverside, CA

Workers’ compensation insurance provides funding to employees injured on the job and their families to pay for medical bills, lost wages, disability, or funeral costs. Understanding who is entitled to workers’ compensation and why can be complex. Workers’ compensation injuries do not need to be sudden or severe to warrant financial compensation. If you’ve been injured on the job, discuss your case with a Riverside worker’s compensation lawyer.

Types of Workers Compensation Accidents

The types of accidents that warrant workers’ compensation vary greatly, from traumatic brain injuries to gradual onset ones, like cancer. Those in the medical industry face a new kind of worker’s compensation issue when it comes to COVID or caring for someone with this dangerous virus.

If you feel you might have been hurt on the job, it helps to understand some of the most common workplace accident types and what they entail.

Lifting and Back Injuries

Back spasms, sprains, herniated discs, and spinal injuries are just a few results of lifting heavy objects at work. Injuries from lifting can be traumatic in some cases. In others, repeated movements can cause an injury. Some people are even hurt without realizing it. If you didn’t feel a sudden pain or succumb to an injury immediately but suffer later on, it could be due to lifting at work. Compensation may be warranted.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

An extremely common injury eligible for workers’ compensation is carpal tunnel syndrome. This disorder can affect workers in myriad fields and creates significant problems for sufferers. Signs of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome include:

• Tingling or numbness in the hand and fingers
• Weakness of the hand
• Inability to grip or hold objects
• Numbness in the hands, fingers, or forearm

These symptoms often begin slowly and gradually get worse with repeated motion and time. Because hands and wrists are used frequently, most workers are at risk for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Common work activities that can cause Carpal Tunnel Syndrome include:

• Typing
• Assembly line work
• Painting
• Sewing
• Cashiering

Essentially, any job in which you are asked to make repetitive motions with your hands and arms puts you at risk. Luckily, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is recognized as a workplace injury. Filing a claim citing the damages your job has caused your health can often lead to appropriate compensation.

Slips and Falls

Falls are the most common type of workplace injury, making up one out of every four workers’ compensation claims. These slips or falls can be the result of several hazardous situations, such as:

• Missing or inadequate signs to warn of wet ground
• Ignored spills
• Uneven, cracked, or ill-maintained floor
• Broken or unsafe stairs
• Inadequate lighting
• Tripping hazards such as cords or wires

While incidents of falls are highest among occupations such as truck drivers, tree landscapers, and construction workers, these types of injuries are completely possible in any line of business and at any time of year.

Scaffolding Accidents

Scaffolding accidents are specific to construction sites and involve either a worker falling from a building’s framework or a piece of machinery or equipment falling from the building and on to an employee. The height at which these falls originate makes them incredibly dangerous, and the resulting injuries are almost always serious, if not fatal.

Heavy Equipment Accidents

Machinery or heavy equipment accidents can happen when another employee is acting negligently or is ill-trained to drive machinery in the workplace. However, the majority of machinery accidents happen either from machinery malfunction or lack of machinery upkeep. In both these situations, your employer is required by law to provide you with safe and inspected equipment. If they are not doing so and you are hurt as a result, you deserve to be compensated fairly.

Burns and Chemical Burns

Burns can occur for several reasons, depending on the type of work environment. Most on the job burn injuries are the result of an open flame, from electrical fires, or misuse of flammable materials. Many workplace injuries also occur due to chemical burns, in which you are exposed to concentrations of caustic substances. These substances may be as common as cleaning materials. However, in all cases of hazardous materials or concentrations, materials should be clearly labeled. Likewise, employees must be thoroughly trained and warned. If neither of these happened and you were exposed to chemicals that caused a burn, your situation may warrant workers’ comp.

Faulty Equipment

Your employer is required to provide safe and updated materials for you to use on the job. If you are given materials that are outdated or unsafe, you are at risk for injury. All equipment should be inspected regularly and maintained accordingly. Outdated equipment can cause injury no matter what its size. From meat processors to conveyor belts, all machinery without proper upkeep is a hazard. Accidents from neglected or broken equipment happen with great frequency and create a strong case for the worker to collect workers’ comp.

Amputation Accidents

If you have experienced an amputation as a result of a workplace injury, you should receive the appropriate compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and disability. A few of these payments may depend on whether the amputation has prevented you from doing your job. Most workplace injuries resulting in amputation are eligible for further compensation. Beyond normal reparations, you should also receive a sum of money correlating to the part of the body that has been amputated.

Other Issues to Consider During a Worker’s Comp Claim

When considering if you are eligible for compensation, it’s important to remember a few things about filing workers’ compensation claims:

• Workers’ compensation claims are no-fault, meaning that even if you believe the accident occurred because of something you did, you may still be eligible for payment.
• You do not need to be physically inside your place of work for an injury to qualify for workers’ compensation. If you are sent on a work errand, are working remotely, or are at a work-sanctioned event and are injured, you may still be eligible.
• Worker’s compensation claims are complicated, and companies will do anything in their power to underpay or avoid paying altogether. To be sure the claim is submitted on time and in the right manner, hire a qualified attorney to represent your case.

Discuss Your Case With a Riverside Workers Comp Attorney

When it comes to workers’ compensation cases in Riverside, California, no one has advocated for workers more successfully than the team of attorneys at Kampf, Schiavone & Associates. With $250 million in client payouts, we can help you successfully make a workers’ compensation claim and receive fair compensation for medical bills, lost time at work, and the mental anguish you’ve endured.