Each year, about seven million people are injured on the job. Even with workplace safety being a prioritized component, it’s still possible to be involved in a work-related accident.
When you are injured at work, knowing what to do to ensure you are taken care of, both physically and monetarily, can be overwhelming.
If you’re wondering what to do after a workplace injury, read on to determine the steps you should take.
Seek Treatment for Your Injury First
If you get injured at work, the first thing you should do is evaluate your injuries. Do you need immediate medical treatment? If so, call 911 so a professional can treat you promptly.
If your injuries are less severe, you’ll still want to get them checked out by a doctor. Find out from your employer if you should use a certain doctor specified by the company or if you can see your own doctor instead.
If possible, take a picture or two of your injury, so you have documentation of it.
If your place of work doesn’t already have quality first aid supplies, firstaidsuppliesonline.com is a great place to find them.
Tell Your Employer You’re Injured
Once you’ve visited a doctor or determined that your injuries don’t need immediate attention, the next thing you should do right away is inform your employer of your injury.
It’s best to do this in writing (and some states may require this), so you have some documentation to refer back to.
Once you tell your employer that you suffered a workplace injury, they should file a workers’ compensation claim. This insurance claim will hopefully help you with the cost of any necessary medical treatment and other related benefits.
Ensure a Workers’ Compensation Claim Is Filed
Follow up with your employer to make sure they filed the workers’ comp claim promptly. It’s a good idea to ask for a copy of it for your own files.
Even if your injuries aren’t severe (or the accident didn’t result in damages), you should still make sure your employer files a workers’ comp claim.
This way, if symptoms of an injury show up weeks later, it’ll already be handled. Plus, employers must know about the accidents that are happening in their workplace so they can try to make the environment safer for everyone involved.
If you were drinking or using drugs while on the job, it’s likely that insurance won’t cover your injuries.
Injured on the Job? Here’s What You Do
If you get injured on the job, it can be stressful to figure out how the process of filing a workers’ compensation claim works while also treating your injuries. As long as you inform your employer of your injury and its details as soon as you’re able to, they should take care of the claim for you.
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