If you are hurt at work, your priority should be your health and medical treatment.  Even if you feel as though you only suffered a minor injury, make sure you get checked out by medical personnel.  If they recommend going to the hospital in an ambulance, you should go. Your primary concern should always be your health and safety.

Once you have obtained the needed medical care, you should report your injury to your employer. If possible, you should take pictures of your injuries and the scene where you were injured.  If there were any witnesses, you should get their names and contact information.  If your employer or the police ask for a statement about the incident, you should cooperate but do not admit any fault for the incident – let the police and lawyers worry about that.

Why should I file a workers’ compensation claim?

You give up your time, and in many cases, your body to work for your employer and earn a pay check every week.  Your employer benefits from the services you provide.  When you are hurt on the job, they have a legal and ethical obligation to compensate you for your injury.  A little known, and very valuable, benefit to filing a workers’ compensation claim is the fact that you are also entitled (generally at little or no cost) to vocational training. If your injury prevents you from going back to your previous line of work, this program will help you with job training, job counseling and job placement.  You work hard for your pay check and when you are injured while at work you are entitled to workers’ compensation.

How long do I have to file a lawsuit?

Generally, you have one year from the date of injury to file your claim. If you do not file within this time frame, in most situations, you will lose your right to file the claim. There are, however, some very limited exceptions.  You should not assume that your injury falls within one of these limited exceptions. Two of these limited exceptions are repetitive trauma and occupational disease.  You should consult an attorney to determine the statute of limitations and whether any of these exceptions might apply to your case.

Vocational Rehabilitation Services – Success Story

I harp on and on about this program, and here is a story about how it works.  A young client, Raul, injured his back while working as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) and underwent spine surgery.  Raul was not able to return to his occupation because of permanent lifting restrictions.  We filed a workers’ compensation claim for Raul and told him about the vocational retraining program.

Raul signed up for the program and was enrolled in a component training program offered through Goodwin College.  He completed a 9 week course, consisting of 16 hours a week of one-on-one training, to obtain the skills needed to manage a medical or dental office.  He took courses on Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, basic documentation skills, and training in HIPPA compliance.  Upon completion of the 9 week course, he was enrolled in a 16 week program for 16 hours per week to continue his training for medical office management.

Raul says that the vocational workers “opened his eyes to what he could and could not do with his permanent back injury.”  Raul completed all the course work and quickly obtained a job as office manager in a chiropractic office.  The entire cost of his training (approximately $9,000.00) was picked up by the rehabilitation program.  Good luck to Raul – He took advantage of a great resource and is an example for all injured workers in Connecticut! Please visit http://wcc.state.ct.us/wcc/rehabemployee.htm for more information about the services offered to injured workers covered by workers’ compensation insurance.

Resources

State of Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Commission

Make sure your rights are protected!  If you or a loved one has been injured in a trucking accident call one of our personal injury lawyers at (860) 827-0880 for a free consultation. 

If you cannot leave your home or medical facility, we will come to you. Do not wait to contact one of our Connecticut injury lawyers.