Can You Sue the Employer for Back Injury?

Employers in all the states are required to give their employees a safe and a healthy work environment. Sometimes, the employers are not able to fulfill their duties and as a result, the employees suffer injury. Occasionally, the employees may still get injured while being on the job even though the employers make every effort to make the workplace a safe one. These injuries include everything like broken bones, occupational illness, aggravation of the already existing conditions, and psychological injuries.

Every state has a kind of system that can help the employees with work-related injuries.

Although, you cannot sue your employer for a back injury, you can certainly claim for receiving benefits for being injured at the work. In Pennsylvania, an injured worker cannot sue his employer for the damages caused due to a work-related injury. All the employers have to carry the workers’ compensation insurance and therefore, when the workers get these benefits, an employer is exempted from the civil lawsuit. However, the employers who do not carry the workers’ compensation insurance may face criminal prosecution may result in jail time and in fines.

The Workman’s Compensation Act protects the employees along with their families from any financial burden followed from the work-related accident, illness, or injury. The workers’ compensation offers protection to the employers from an expensive litigation. Unlike the other injury cases, an employee receives benefits irrespective of who is at fault for the back injury; it is known as the strict liability. As the workers do not need to prove any fault, accessing this insurance is comparatively straightforward that makes it easier for the employees to get relief.

The Workers’ compensation laws offer different kinds of benefits to an injured worker like the following:

• Payments for any Lost Wages: If an employee cannot work or is disabled or partially disabled or working less than he would have actually worked if not suffered from the injury then he will be entitled to any wage-loss benefit.
• Medical Care Expenses: If an illness or an injury needs surgery or medical services then an employee can get these benefits. The coverage extends to supplies, medicines, medical treatments, and transportation costs.
• Special Loss Benefits: These benefits are offered to those workers who have gone through permanent and significant loss or disfigurement.
• Death Benefits: In the case of death, the family members are entitled to the death benefits.

Most of the work-related injuries are qualified under the workers’ compensation laws. It extends to the occupational diseases and the work-related trauma. Workers’ compensation covers just the economic damages that are related to an injury. The non-economic damages such as suffering and pain are not covered.

To apply for the workers’ compensation, you may not require an attorney. A lawyer for the workers’ compensation is usually helpful when the claim gets denied wrongfully or when the insurer or the employer disputes this claim. When the employer disputes the injury, a workmens compensation lawyer can help an employee via alternative dispute resolution or with the appeal process in the Commonwealth Court or the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board. The workers’ compensation laws of Pennsylvania are complicated and therefore getting an experienced legal practitioner may be critical for the outcome of the workers’ compensation claim.

The workers’ compensation law has benefits to an employer. However, the employees get several benefits too who have suffered injuries such as back injury. If you have to sue the employer, you may need to wait for many years to get adequate compensation. The workers’ compensation law offers the employees compensation much quickly so that the employees can make payment of the medical bills and the day-to-day expenses. This is really important as you may remain out of work for a long time period. Rather than waiting for many years for a trial, the compensation law helps you to get compensation for paying medical bills, rent, and the daily expenses. This law prevents the employer in stopping you to obtain compensation as you may not have any fund for paying the medical bills. The workers’ compensation insurance pays for the medical expenses and the lost wages of an injured employee.

If you want to take advantage of the benefits, you can make injury claims through the workers’ compensation claim rather than a lawsuit against your employer. With the legal dispute, you should consult an attorney for workers’ compensation who can ensure you to get full benefits. Earlier, if an employee suffered an injury at a workplace, he had just one thing to do that was to sue the employer. However, as the lawsuit takes many years, the alternative recourse was to settle through the workers’ compensation laws. In the USA, the employees can claim compensation via the claims. This law proved to be beneficial for both the employer and the employee.

References:

Also Read:

• Preventing Back Injury from Lifting