Women & Work-Related Injuries: Speak Up!
By Jennifer D. Donnelley, Esq.
About 50% of my workers’ compensation clients are women. And of those women, I have noticed trends or commons aspects of their work-related injuries and workers’ compensation cases that other women should consider and learn from.
Advocate for yourself at work
Women are often overrepresented in certain industries like healthcare, hospitality, and retail. They may face unique occupational hazards such as lifting injuries, exposure to infectious diseases, or repetitive strain injuries from tasks like typing or standing for prolonged periods of time. While we are all willing to go the extra mile for customers, clients and patients, we often forget to do the same for ourselves, by asking for simple things that would protect our own health and well-being. Women in particular, may face challenges accessing properly fitting PPE, such as safety harnesses, gloves, or respiratory protection, which can increase their risk of injury in hazardous work environments. We also may have different ergonomic needs compared to men due to differences in body size and shape. Issues such as poorly designed workstations, improper lifting techniques, or inadequate seating may contribute to musculoskeletal injuries among female employees. Being your own advocate for a safe workplace is a leading way to avoid a workplace injury.
Report your injury
While we may all like to think of ourselves as “superwomen” and tend to downplay an injury or incident that occurred at work, doing so in most cases is detrimental to your potential workers’ compensation claim. Statistically, women are less likely to report workplace injuries due to fear of; retaliation, job loss, or cultural pressures to prioritize caregiving responsibilities over personal health and safety. I get it. We are all busy and everything is “fine.” I say it myself too many times a day. However, ensuring that your employer is, at the minimum, aware of the work-related accident and injury (even if only minor), and has documented it, is critical to ensuring you have options to protect yourself down the road if necessary. Late reporting of work-related accidents and injuries are a leading reason claims are denied and cases are litigated which could otherwise potentially be avoided if the employer and insurance company were aware of the injury in a timely manner. If you were injured on the job, complete an incident report with your supervisor and seek medical treatment specifically noting the injury occurred at work.
Pre-existing conditions and injuries are not a bar
I often hear from my female clients that they have a prior injury or condition (back pain, sciatica, etc.) from a variety of things we as women may commonly deal with and did not think they would have a case. Just because you may have a condition that pre-existed a workplace accident and injury is not a bar to a potential workers’ compensation claim if the work accident aggravated, accelerated or exacerbated a condition. However, these cases can be factually significant and for that reason, even if you had a prior injury or condition, which involves a body part injured on the job, you should speak with an attorney.
Consult with an attorney
I am a self-proclaimed “DIY-er” and like most women, find it easier to just do it myself rather than asking for help. However, when you are hurt at work, it is important to ask for help from an attorney that has experience with workers’ compensation cases and cares about the specifics of your case. An injury is stressful and dealing with medical treatment, being without wages potentially, as well as communicating with insurance companies and your employer tends to get overwhelming, fast. A consultation with me or another attorney at our firm is free, confidential and can be done over the phone, via Zoom or in person. For a free and confidential consultation contact 302-565-6123 or [email protected].
Kimmel Carter
Your Delaware Injury Lawyers
Call or Text (302) 565-6100
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Offices in Wilmington, Newark and Reboboth Beach
