It did not seem like much of a problem at first. You had fallen off the bottom step of the ladder at work when the bottom rung broke. Upon closer inspection you realized that the ladder had actually been broken before, and had been hastily repaired. Unfortunately, that repair did not hold and as a result caused you to fall. The swollen right ankle just appeared to be a small problem that would correct itself with a little ice and a little rest. When that same right ankle, however, was still causing you pain three weeks later an x-ray actually revealed a small fracture. Luckily, workers compensation law required your employer to file the initial accident report and then pay for the resulting x-ray, boot, crutches and rehabilitation.
Workers compensation law guidelines are in place so that a worker is protected in the event that he or she is injured at work. Without these guidelines, employers could unfairly terminate the employment of a worker who could no longer complete required tasks at work, even if the job site was the cause of the injury.
Although European countries were the first to compensate workers for injuries that occurred on the job, by 1911 the first comprehensive workers compensation law was finally passed in America. Since that time the attempt to compensate workers for personal injuries that occur at work has grown into a complicated system that is regulated by the government, and administered by entire departments at large companies.
In the year 2013 just over three million workplace injuries were reported. Slips, trips, and falls, sometimes off ladders, accounted for 229,190 of theses 2013 workplace injuries. Of the three million reported, an estimated 917,100 work-related injuries in 2013 necessitated at least some time off work.
If you have been injured at work and need to seek medical attention, or need to take time off of work for recovery, make sure that you are in constant contact with the human resources and workers compensation personnel at your office. Even if you feel that you are being treated fairly, it might be necessary to seek outside legal advice to make sure that all of your needs are met and that you are fairly compensated.
