Wounded Workers: American Workplace More Dangerous Than You Might Think
Posted by
Nick AvgerinosJuly 17, 2008 12:04 PM
Since June is National Safety Month , FindLaw.com decided to pinpoint the prevalence of injuries in the American workplace. What was found might surprise you; a full 28% of American adults have been injured on the job. The news is even worse for men, of whom 36% have suffered from work-related injuries. That means nearly 4 in 10 American men have been wounded at work. When you consider the number of white-collar workers out there, that figure is pretty high.
We prize efficiency in our society. Our downfall is that sometimes quality gets sacrificed for quantity. And sometimes the quality is sacrificed not just in the product, but also in the process. Unfortunately, one area that often gets skimped on is safety training . But more danger leads to more injuries, which leads to fewer employees at the workplace.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported over 4 million nonfatal on-the-job injuries in 2006. If time is money, employers better rethink their strategy of trimming the training schedule. Of those injured on the job, 43% missed more than a week of work as the result of a workplace injury. And a whopping 31% missed more than a month!
So, how many of those people filed a worker’s compensation claim? You might be surprised to learn that only 53% of those injured filed such a claim with their employers. For those of you asking, “ What’s worker’s compensation ?” it’s a state-mandated insurance program that provides compensation to employees injured on the job. Why didn’t more of the employees surveyed file? Well, it was probably for a myriad of different reasons, contingent upon their personal circumstances. But for some, the failure to file is likely attributable to the fact that the filing and processing of workers’ compensation claims is a complicated matter.
What should you do if you find yourself in the position of having been injured on the job? FindLaw.com suggests some tips if you are injured.