NY Workers Compensation Lawyer

After an employee injury occurs at work, it begins a complicated series of events that can last for several weeks or even months. The worker may have had to see a doctor that same day, completed paperwork to file for a worker’s compensation claim, and now has to nurse themselves back to health with financial assistance from their employer. It is important for injured employees to take the right steps with a NY workers compensation lawyer from Polsky, Shouldice & Rosen, P.C. when handling a workplace accident, to ensure they get what they need to recover. 

Q: How do I know whether I should see a doctor right away?

A: Regardless of the extent of your injuries at the time of the accident, it can help to be seen by a doctor anyway. The best outcome could be that your health is clear and maybe only sustained a minor scrape and bruise. Other outcomes could be that you have a serious injury that doesn’t have any symptoms present yet, but since you went to the doctor the same day these issues were found and treated immediately.

Q: What is one way I can ensure I am handling my workplace injury responsibly?

A: Report the injury accident to your employer without hesitation. If you wait, this could cause issues in the future in getting your injuries taken care of. For example, if you wait too long to notify your employer, he or she may become doubtful as to whether the injury was actually sustained while on the company clock, and decline your request to file a report because it is past the required timeframe.

Most employees hope that their employer would respond compassionately to a serious workplace injury. Sadly, many employees may not get the response they imagined, especially for a really severe injury. The reason an employer may react less than supportively, is because they may have to pay a significant amount of money in medical bills and lost wages due to the accident.

Q: What can I do to protect myself as my workplace injury is being processed?

A: If an employee feels like their employer isn’t helping take care of their injury in the way they should, they may not know where to seek assistance. Tensions may build, and then the employee may be concerned about being wrongfully terminated or retaliated against for using workers compensation benefits. One of the best things an injured employee can do for themselves, is to get legal representation before the worker’s compensation dispute can get worse.

Q: In what ways may my employer retaliate against me?

A: An employer who is disgruntled about an employee getting injured on the job and using worker’s compensation benefits, may obviously or subliminally retaliate. Examples of ways an employer may treat the employee wrongfully after the workplace accident include:

• Transferring to another department
• Firing the employee with a false reason or none at all
• Taking away job duties in an attempt to demote
• Verbal harassment or threats
• Creating a hostile work environment
• Getting in the way of the employee’s promotional opportunities
• Refusing to pay for the employee’s medical bills
• Otherwise targeting the employee intentionally as revenge