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Mental health protections in the workplace help keep the environment positive for everyone. There are a few ways you can help keep moral up around the office or on the job. For example, using inclusive language is a good way to help people speak out about their concerns, worries, joys and other feelings. It’s a good idea to foster an environment in which employees can talk about post-traumatic stress, work stress, anxiety and other issues. A great workplace has plenty of time for a good work/life balance. That means that employees work a full-time shift that still gives them enough time to rest, recuperate and recover. Large workloads might help get the job done faster, but it’s strenuous to have a single employee do all of that work. Workplaces that consider using more employees on the same task tend to reduce stress across the board. Another good idea in workplaces is to foster recognition and engagement with one another. Employees should want to see each other succeed and know they have the same access to opportunities as others. They should be celebrated when they are safe or complete tasks, just as they should be appreciated after a normal day of work. As far as benefits go, a healthy workplace should offer employee assistance programs or help for those who struggle with mental health issues or stress from work. Health insurance is typically provided by many employers, and this can also help reduce the stress employees face, since they know they can go to a doctor and seek care when necessary. If employees do suffer from mental health illnesses due to the stress at work, they should be entitled to workers’ compensation to get treatment for those illnesses. With the right support, they can recover and return healthier to the job. Source: WorkersCompensation.com, “9 Steps to Foster a Mentally Healthy Workplace,” Feb. 16, 2017

There are a number of reasons why people get hurt on the job. Sometimes, people take shortcuts and skip over safety protocols to get a job done. Taking shortcuts leads to accidents that could be life-threatening or deadly. Other times, people don’t keep up on cleanliness in the workplace. Items aren’t put away correctly, safety equipment isn’t available and the general maintenance of the building isn’t maintained. Although it can be a hassle to follow all the steps for putting away machinery or cleaning up a facility, it’s worth it to avoid the injuries not doing so could cause. Overconfidence can be a problem in workplaces with long-term employees or even new employees fresh out of a training program. Those who think they know what to do without following instructions or listening to others put themselves and others in danger. It’s never good to think that accidents can’t happen to you. They can, and they can be serious. Always take the time to review the proper procedures for cleaning machinery, running it or working with it, so you don’t make mistakes that could have been avoided. Some workplace injuries are a result of defects. For example, if a new piece of machinery has loose screws, it could come apart and cause injuries. It’s important to file a claim against any manufacturer that has produced a defective product, so any employees injured can receive the correct compensation. There are many reasons for workplace accidents, and these are just a few. With some safety steps in place and good training, workplaces can be safe. Source: Safety Partners, LTD, “7 Most Common Causes of Workplace Accidents,” accessed Feb. 16, 2017

Many people aren’t sure if they’re covered by workers’ compensation, especially if they’ve never had to use it in the past. When you are an employee and get hurt at work, there should not be a question over whether your employer has to cover you with workers’ compensation. However, one catch is that any injury you want to claim for has to occur while you’re on the job. The purpose of workers’ compensation isn’t just to support your financial needs when you go to a hospital or need medical treatments. Workers’ compensation benefits also cover lost wages after a certain number of days have passed. This benefit system provides you with a portion of your missing income. When you return to work, you may no longer receive these benefits, unless you can show that you’re still losing wages due to your injury. For instance, if you can only return as a part-time employee instead of returning as a full-time worker, then you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits on top of your paycheck. You don’t necessarily have to be hurt at work to claim workers’ compensation, but you do need to have been working within the course of your employment. If you were on a business trip, for instance, you may still be covered. Your attorney can help you look into the specifics in your case if you are told you are unable to file a claim even though you feel you were working or in the course of employment when you were hurt. Our website has more on what workers’ compensation can do for you.

Firefighters have one of the most dangerous jobs in America. They work directly with hazards that they expect to see in the workplace every day. They aim to save lives and to reduce damage to structures; they perform tasks of all types, from home inspections for fire safety to rescuing families from burning homes. A July 2013 release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that around 31 firefighters were killed each year between 2009 and 2013. Another 14,700 suffered from injuries and illnesses each year, all caused by their jobs. Firefighting is incredibly dangerous, and special precautions have to be taken to protect the workers. Many different dangers and hazards exist on the job, from intense flames to chemical exposure. In 2011, it was reported that the fatal injury rate was 2.5 workers per 100,000 firefighters. Nonfatal injuries were marked as 475.2 per 10,000 full-time workers, while other occupations saw only 117.3 out of 10,000. Most firefighters who were injured were men. In 2011, women accounted for around 8 percent of the nonfatal cases, despite making up only 4.5 percent of employed firefighters. This over-representation of female employees was not directly explained. The most common causes of fatalities included fires and transportation incidents. In half of said fire-related incidents, the building had collapsed or had parts of the structure collapse inside. Most injuries, comparatively, were related to overexertion and bodily reactions, at 45 percent, while falls, slips and trips made up 14 percent. Firefighters face more than just hazards on the job. Exhaustion and other issues can build up, making it hard to work. Workers’ compensation can make it possible to get the medical care needed if you’re suffering from mental stress or physical overexertion. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities,” accessed Jan. 31, 2017

Stress affects everyone from time to time, but when it becomes an everyday occurrence and affects your work, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation. If the stress has resulted in permanent impairment, like post-traumatic stress disorder, then you may be able to seek out the compensation you need to support yourself. You’ll need to show that the stress you suffered from was primarily related to work. Most people face some stress in their lives. What you should be able to show is a single trauma or ongoing concern that has led to your injuries. Another thing to consider is if the amount of stress you faced was unusual for the position. For example, it’s normal for a construction worker to face physical stress each day, but emotional stress from harassment or threats would be exceptional. Stress-related injuries have a higher standard of proof. Each person handles stress differently, and although stress is a natural reaction, excessive stress can be damaging to the body. Mental stress can result in emotional breakdowns and the physical manifestation of symptoms. Worse yet, it’s hard to show the severity of mental stress because of the variance among people. This is why you should seek out a medical doctor to provide you with treatment options and a record of your mental health issues. If they stem from a specific traumatic event at work, then this should also be documented. Your attorney can collect this information and help you apply for workers’ compensation or help you appeal your case if you’ve been denied benefits you believe you deserve. Our website has more on how work-related health injuries can be compensated for.

If you’ve ever worked in the mining industry, you know that it can be dangerous. Collapses, while uncommon, still cause serious injuries to those in mines, and they could even lose their lives if they can’t get help. Fortunately, some new data has been released in 2017. It reports that the number of U.S. mining deaths dropped in 2016, bringing it to an all-time low. Preliminary data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s division of Mine Safety and Health Administration reports that 26 people were killed in work-related accidents in 2016, down from 29 in 2015. Deaths in this industry aren’t just attributed to those that take place in the mines themselves. Some were a result of accidents with machinery. Both metal and nonmetal mines reported injuries and deaths. A total of 17 deaths were reported in Washington, Virginia, Utah, Iowa, North Carolina and other states. In North Carolina, only one death was reported. That death did not occur underground. It’s good news that overall death rates are dropping in the mining industry. With new technology and better ways to stabilize the mines, it’s easier to make sure workers stay safe. Stringent safety standards help make sure work places, even those underground, are as safe as possible. For those who did suffer injuries, workers’ compensation can help cover medical expenses and lost wages depending on how much time was missed from work. For those who lost a loved one in an accident, this same workers’ compensation can provide death benefits that can help you cover medical expenses and funeral costs for your loved one. Source: Floyd County Times, “US mining deaths drop to another new low in 2016,” accessed Jan. 20, 2017

In 2015, there were over 74,000 nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in North Carolina’s private industry. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that was 2.6 workers per 100 full-time workers, a relatively high rate, though lower than the national rate of 3 per 100. Workplace injuries can typically be avoided with good safety procedures, but they still take place throughout the state.The sectors of industry with the most injuries and illnesses were trade, transportation, manufacturing and utilities. Interestingly, out of the 74,100 cases, a little over half were severe or severe enough to cause missed days from work, transfers to different jobs or positions or restrictions. A total of 38,300 cases were considered to be of severe natures. How many of these cases were illnesses? In all, 96.4 percent of all illnesses and injuries were actually injuries, with workplace illnesses accounting for only 2,700 cases. There were three categories that stood out. These included respiratory conditions, skin disorders and hearing loss. They made up 37 percent of all the occupational illnesses in the state, whereas they made up 36 percent nationally. With these conditions, the workers could be suffering from things like asthma, mesothelioma, hearing loss from exposure to loud noises or machinery or skin disorders from exposure to the sun or chemicals. There are many different conditions covered by these umbrella terms. Workers who suffer on-the-job illnesses have a right to seek out workers’ compensation and appropriate medical care. Like an injury, an illness can have a significant impact on a person’s life and should be treated fairly by the person’s employer and insurance coverage. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employer-Reported Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in North Carolina – 2015,” accessed Jan. 10, 2017

There are many kinds of workplace accidents that take place in various situations, so it’s important that you’re always looking for ways to maintain your safety in your work environment. Some of the most common injuries that take place include repetitive motion injuries, machine entanglements and motor vehicle accidents. With repetitive motion injuries, people suffer injuries because of doing the same thing over and over again. For example, if you work in a factory on a conveyor line, you may have to perform the same movement 50 to 100 times per minute. This rapid, identical movement can wear down your joints, tendons and other parts of your body, leading to an injury from the strain the motion puts on your body. With machine entanglement injuries, a person is caught in, pulled into, crushed by or otherwise involved in an accident with a piece of machinery. This sometimes leads to amputations, crushing injuries or other severe, life-threatening injuries. Most machine-related injuries can be prevented by using machinery guards, a safety requirement in most workplaces. If your employer foregoes the safety guards to save time or money, it is an important safety violation. Finally, motor vehicle accidents can be a workplace accident. If you are driving for the purpose of work, then getting into an accident can be considered compensable through workers’ compensation. For instance, if you’re a truck driver who is struck by another driver and injured, you should be able to receive compensation for the injuries you suffered while performing your duties. Our website has information on workers’ compensation claims and what you can do if you were hurt at work.

Willful workplace violations. Those are words that no family wants to hear after the death of a loved one. They mean that the employer knew that there were violations of safety regulations and did nothing about them. These violations could be as simple as not guarding machinery to not providing safety gear to workers at a construction site. With so many businesses in the United States, it’s not surprising that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration doesn’t have enough agents to go to every business to check that it is following safety regulations. What it is doing is finding the businesses that are violating its regulations most often and taking a stand against them. The federal safety agency and its state counterparts have 1,850 or fewer inspectors who have to monitor 8 million workplaces. It is simply impossible for the officials to inspect every job site. That’s why the agency requests that you report any safety violations that take place in the workplace. Right now, OSHA only goes to severe violator workplaces or to workplaces where deaths or severe injuries have taken place. There simply isn’t the manpower to do more. Even adding more inspectors wouldn’t help; the job is overwhelming. Despite this, its job is necessary and enforcement is required. Companies that violate safety precautions can be put into severe violator program that takes years to get out of. While this is a good start, it isn’t enough to hold all companies accountable for their actions. If your loved one was hurt or killed, it must be reported. Then OSHA will investigate the incident. An attorney can help you file a workers’ compensation claim or a death benefits claim. Source: Iowa Watch, “OSHA’s Wall of Shame: With Limited Staff, Agency Targets ‘Severe Violators’,” Paul Feldman and Stuart Silverstein, Dec. 23, 2016

An employer could argue that a slip-and-fall accident shouldn’t be something he should be held liable for if the employee was behaving negligently or if there was no negligence on the part of the employer. For example, if you trip and fall over your own two feet, is that the business owner’s fault simply because you were at work? In most workers’ compensation situations, if you slip, trip or fall, you can seek medical treatment and know that the Workers’ Compensation Commission will approve your claim so long as it took place at work. However, there are times when your claim could be denied even though there is no precedent to do so. In the past, there was one case where a woman tripped and fell over a carpet at work. She was treated for neck and shoulder pain, but the commission denied her claim. It stated that she could have been hurt anywhere, and there was nothing specific at work that could have contributed to her fall any more than anywhere else. That decision was later reversed, because even though that fall wasn’t a result of a hazard, she was working when she fell. Overall, the courts in the state decided that if you are working or are performing tasks in the course of employment at the time when you are injured, you will be entitled to workers’ compensation and can’t be denied compensation simply because the same injury could have happened elsewhere or was not specifically caused by a hazard in the workplace. If your claim is denied even though you are an employee and were hurt at work, you can appeal with your attorney’s assistance. Source: Safety News Alert, “Are trip-and-fall injuries eligible for workers’ comp?,” accessed Dec. 20, 2016

Workplace injuries cost employers money and cause employees to suffer. Fortunately, some injuries can be reduced or eliminated with the use of ergonomics in the workplace. Americans spend around 2,000 hours a year at work, so workplaces need to be a safe, ergonomic location. The hours spent at computers or on a factory line add up, and those repetitive motions take a toll on your back, arms, neck and eyes. What are the signs and symptoms of workplace injuries caused by repetitive motions? While not all repetitive-motion injuries cause long-term pain or injury, sitting incorrectly for long periods of time can cause neck and back strain, headaches and other related illnesses. Repetitive motion injuries can wear away at tendons and ligaments, inflaming joints and causing pain. The goal of ergonomics is to reduce the limitations of the body by making the joints, bones, tendons and muscles work in the best possible positions. These positions work to reduce the potential for strain by aligning the body properly. When a person isn’t working in the right position, it leads to reduced efficiency, a loss of income due to injury, increased medical claims and potentially permanent disability. Musculoskeletal disorders occur when muscles, tendons and nerves are aggravated by repeated movements in awkward positions or when exposed to high forces, vibrations or exposure to cold. Irritating the nerves can cause inflammation that is painful and restricting; tendons can tear, and joints can become stiff. Employers need to make sure that employees get enough breaks and have ergonomic work conditions. Without them, more injuries take place, and you may need to apply for workers’ compensation. Source: AIHA, “An Ergonomics Approach to Avoiding Office Workplace Injuries and Illnesses,” accessed Dec. 13, 2016

Construction workers are exposed to hazards almost every day. They often perform tasks that are dangerous, such as building bridges at a height or wading into cool or frigid waters to do repairs. When safety protocols are followed, there should be no accidents. If a loved one is hurt because someone fails to do so, then that’s a major concern. Workers and their families can generally seek workers’ compensation after an accident results in injuries or a death. The benefits help cover expenses that were unexpected, and it’s something this person’s family might consider. A construction worker in Fayetteville passed away after an accident in which the machinery he was working on tipped over, forcing him into a nearby creek. The man’s body was discovered around 2:00 p.m., on Nov. 29, according to local news sources. The man had worked for Fayetteville Public Works Commission for 13 years before this accident. He was working in Stewart Creek when the accident took place. He had been fixing a bridge that had sustained damage during Hurricane Matthew. Following the machine tipping, the man was lost in the creek. The investigators from the North Carolina Department of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health Department have indicated that an investigation has begun into the incident. It took several hours for emergency responders to find the man. Divers had to come in to search the bed of the creek. It isn’t clear exactly how he passed away, but there will likely be more updates about the accident in the upcoming days as the investigation takes place in North Carolina. Source: CBS WNCN, “Fayetteville construction worker dies after machinery flips,” Nov. 29, 2016