What Are Your Legal Rights After a Workplace Injury?

Being entitled to workers compensation is not the only legal right you have after suffering a workplace injury.

No one is ever prepared for an on-the-job injury, which is why an array of questions arises immediately after a worker sustains injuries in the workplace: “Do I need an attorney?” “How to file a workers compensation claim?” “What’s the value of my claim?” “Will I ever recover from this?”…

But one of the questions that are often left unanswered is: “What are your legal rights as an employee who has been injured at work?” And today, our Los Angeles on-the-job injury attorney is going to review what are your rights and how you can protect them.

How to protect your rights?

After sustaining an on-the-job injury, one of the best ways to protect your legal rights and be entitled to workers compensation is to act quickly and report your injury to your employer.

However, it’s not advised to report your injury to your boss without consulting a job injury attorney first. The thing is: if your employer failed to full the duty to provide a safe work environment, he or she will not be thrilled to hear that you were injured and that he/she will be held responsible for your trauma, medical bills, lost wages, and other damages.

That’s why contacting a Los Angeles workers compensation attorney should be the second step after seeking the medical attention of a doctor. Another thing to keep in mind is that under California workers compensation laws, you need to give your employer written notice of the on-the-job injury within 30 days of the date you’re injured.

If your injury developed gradually, this may not be possible. In that case, it is vital to seek the legal advice of an experienced attorney at the Law Offices of Kropach & Kropach.

Another best way to protect your rights as an injured worker is to file a claim with the workers compensation court in California. This step is vital in order to provide your employer, your employer’s insurance company, and the court with formal notice of your workplace injury.

What are your rights?

Now that we’ve established that you an indisputable right to file a workplace injury claim with the workers compensation court, other legal rights will apply in your case:

• You have the right to seek medical attention and start medical treatment, documenting your medical expenses to get compensated for your medical bills later on;
• You have the right to return to work if you were released from the hospital and your doctor allowed you to get back to work;
• You have the right to collect workers compensation benefits or disability compensation if you cannot return to work after your job injury and require compensation for lost wages and loss of earning capacity;
• You have the right to appeal a decision by your employer, his/her insurance company and/or the court;
• You have the right to be represented by a job injury lawyer during the court process;
• You have the right to refuse to accept your employer’s offer that persuades you against filing a workers compensation claim in exchange for certain benefits;
• You have the right to refuse requests or offers made by your employer’s insurance company if you don’t agree with the value of the proposed settlement or compensation amount;
• You have the right to take legal action and pursue a workers comp claim in Los Angeles without fear of retaliation or harassment from your employer and/or his lawyers and insurance company.

Seek advice if your legal rights have been violated or neglected, and hire a job injury lawyer at Law Offices of Kropach & Kropach to assess the full value of your claim, file a workers comp claim, and fight for every dollar available in your particular case.

Contact our attorneys to get a free consultation. Call our Los Angeles offices at 818-609-7005 or complete this contact form for a free case evaluation.