Posts Tagged ‘workplace injuries’
Why Are So Many Employees Injured in Passenger Air Travel?
There are some jobs in New Jersey and the United States as a whole that appear inherently more dangerous than others. For example, the use of heavy machinery and heavy lifting in construction makes it an obvious workplace for employees injured by equipment, electric shocks, improper use of tools, and manual lifting or pushing.
Similarly, the dangers of working in a restaurant or other hospitality setting are readily apparent. There are slick floors, spilled beverages, and a lot of time standing. The longer a waitress or waiter is on a shift, the greater increase there is in employees injured by slips and falls. Finally, we can look to firefighters and police officers as brave individuals taking on a job with evident dangers. These first responders are thrown into chaotic and dangerous situations as part of their job description.
These Surprising Jobs Have a High Number of Injured Employees
On the other hand, there are some professions in New Jersey where the number of employees injured at work seems inconsistent with the job description. You may not think of nursing and in-home care as particularly dangerous careers, but in fact, healthcare professionals have one of the highest rates of injury in the United States according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Another career that is high on the list of employees injured each year is taxi drivers and chauffeurs. These professional drivers don’t have some of the typical risks found in an office space of manufacturing facility …
Read MoreSweater Weather: What Are Common Cold Weather Workplace Injuries?
The seasons are shifting in New Jersey, and for now, the state is buzzing with autumn activities and pumpkin spice. But anyone familiar with the New Jersey fall knows that there are colder temperatures not far behind and so are the hazards of certain workplace injuries. What is now sweater weather and scary movies will soon turn to frosty mornings and cold temperatures.
In most parts of your life, it is wholly acceptable to ignore the approaching winter and cold weather, but not when it comes to preparation and planning for workplace injuries. There are entirely new hazards and concerns for the winter months, and the time to address these workplace risks is right now.
Whether you are an employee or employer this is the best time to start preparing for cold weather workplace injuries in New Jersey. Here are five of the common cold weather injuries and accidents you can take steps to avoid.
#1: Slips, Trips and Falls Increase Drastically
One common sign that winter is coming to the workplace is a gigantic leap in the number of slip and fall accidents that are reported to workers’ compensation insurance during the winter months. The cause of many slip and fall workplace injuries is probably obvious – frost, ice, and inclement weather – but these hazards are still overlooked by too many employers.
First, many employers put off their winter weather procedures, such as buying salt and bringing shovels out of storage, until the initial winter weather hits their …
Read MoreHow to Handle Minor Injuries in the New Jersey Workplace
As a New Jersey workers’ compensation lawyer, the serious and severe workplace injuries receive the majority of time and attention in this blog. We discuss how to handle the medical costs associated with a workplace injury and what happens when your employer refuses to cover an expensive claim. However, minor injuries shouldn’t fly under the radar.
It’s important for workers in New Jersey to understand how to handle minor injuries. These injuries are subject to the same rule and regulations as a very serious injury and also entitled to the same recovery from New Jersey workers’ compensation insurance. Here are a few tips for handling a minor injury in the workplace.
Report All Workplace Injuries to Your Employer
Did you know that nearly half of all workplace injuries go unreported in the United States? The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) estimates that nearly half of all serious injuries are unreported and very few workers inform their employers of minor injuries. Even in industries where the number of workplace injuries is high, a substantial number of minor injuries go unreported.
Not telling your employer about a minor injury is problematic. First, you must inform an employer of an injury to initiate the insurance and healthcare process. Whether you visit the emergency room or later require additional care for an injury, you can’t recover the medical costs without telling your employer about the injury.
Second, you are required to inform your employer of an injury within a specified amount of …
Read MoreNicer Weather, More New Jersey Workplace Injuries: How Are Employees Injured Working Outdoors?
We are quickly approaching summertime in the Garden State. It’s the season of trips to the Shore, backyard BBQ, family vacations, and simply, being outdoors. It’s also the season with the highest number of workplace injuries in New Jersey and throughout the United States.
The United State Bureau of Labor Statistics performed a detailed survey on the seasonality of workplace injuries and events. The nationwide data confirms that at the start of the summer, the overall number of New Jersey workplace injuries rises. In September, the number of New Jersey workplace injuries starts to fall, with a bigger drop in the rate of injury in November. Throughout the winter, specifically in January, there is the fewest number of workplace injuries in the United States.
What can explain this increase in New Jersey workplace injuries occurring from June through September? While we can’t directly blame the warmer, nicer weather of the summer months, the rise in temperatures and seasonal work does have a lot to do with these trends.
An Increase in Construction Work
From June to September there is a noticeable increase in the number of construction projects in New Jersey. Whether it’s roadwork, new homes, or renovations of an old building you’ll soon be hearing hammers and seeing construction boots in or around your neighborhood. This increase in construction work has a corresponding impact on the number of New Jersey workplace injuries.
Construction sites are a leading location for employee and worker injuries. Per population, more construction workers …
Read MoreTop Tips for a Remote Employee After a New Jersey Work Injury
The New Jersey law on workers’ compensation is purposefully broad. The state legislature wanted to be certain that employers and insurance companies covered the workplace injuries of each and every employee without loopholes or technicalities disqualifying an eligible worker. However, these laws were also designed for traditional places of work, and today’s employment landscape is far from traditional.
The digital age is changing how we connect, interact, and work. More people are requesting and accepting remote employment. This includes people that work from home, set up shop in a co-working or shared space, telecommute, and even live as digital nomads. In fact, the number of Americans working in a remote or telecommuting position now tops 40%.
We addressed how and when the workers’ compensation laws applied to a New Jersey work injury that occurred in these work setups in an earlier blog post. Now, we want to address the top tips a remote employee should take to ensure he or she receives workers’ compensation.
Tip #1: Make the Cause of Your New Jersey Work Injury Clear
Remote employees enjoy a lot of freedom. For some people, this is the freedom to work anywhere, while others appreciate the freedom of flexible work hours. This flexibility and decreased structure can present some problems if a remote employee suffers a New Jersey work injury while on a break or engaged in a non-work activity.
Just because you are hurt between the hours of 9:00 am and 5:00 pm doesn’t make you …
Read More5 Careers with a Surprising Number of Workplace Injuries
It comes as no surprise that certain professions have a high number of workplace injuries. For example, construction sites, nursing, and warehouse work all require a great deal of manual labor and manipulation of heavy objects. It follows that back, neck, and shoulder injuries happen on a regular basis in these jobs.
Other jobs involve the use of heavy equipment. Likewise, these careers are prone to a high number of injuries on the job. For example, working on an assembly line or in factory production is more likely to result in an injury than accounting in an office.
Lastly, there is an entire subset of professions and workplaces that people are always surprised to hear have a high number of employee injuries. We will cover five careers with a surprising number of workplace injuries, and discuss why these jobs are prone to accident.
#1: Hairdressers and Beauticians
Working as a beautician or hairdresser is surprisingly dangerous. Last year working as a beautician was named one of the most accident-prone jobs in the entire United Kingdom, and here in New Jersey, a shocking number of hairdressers are hurt each year. What is more surprising than the number of hairdressers hurt every year? Injuries to hairdressers and beauticians happen for a wide variety of reasons.
Of course, the most common workplace injury for a hairdresser is a cut or snip from scissors or a razor. These tools are used daily in the profession, and while handled with skill, sudden movements by …
Read More4 Common Workplace Injuries in the Office and Tips to Avoid Them
Offices are generally safe and secure places to work in New Jersey. Unlike construction sites and industrial warehouses, you don’t usually encounter heavy machinery or the need for strenuous manual labor, and unlike nursing or other medical professions there is limited lifting, pushing and pulling. Yet, the U.S. Bureau for Labor Statistics estimated that in the finance and insurance industries, professions that typically operate out of traditional office space, one in every 100 employees were injured at work last year.
These workplace injuries spanned a surprising range of type and severity. Yet, just as nursing is particularly prone to neck and back injuries, and falls are common to working in construction – certain workplace injuries are more common than others in offices. Office managers, human resources, and upper management can save considerable costs and improve the working environment by proactively addressing the most frequent office injuries.
#1: Slips, Trips & Falls
Across industries, slips, trips and falls account for more workplace injuries than any other cause. These unfortunate accidents require employees to take significant time off work and are a major source of workers’ compensation claims in New Jersey. This includes claims that come from office workers, who are actually 2.5 more likely to slip or trip at work than workers in any other environment or industry.
Unsuspecting office employees are victims of hidden and overlooked trip and fall hazards every day. For instance, a huge number of office employees trip on cords, cables and wiring that are stretched across …
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