What To Do If You Get Injured At Work

Whether you work in construction or an office environment, it’s the responsibility of your employer to create a safe working environment for all employees. While you should ensure that you adhere to all health & safety protocols, you must also be aware of the steps you should take when things go wrong, and you get injured in the workplace – especially if this was not your fault. 

Stop what you are doing immediately. While this may seem obvious, you’d be surprised about the number of adults who try to continue with business as usual following an accident or injury. In any case, you should immediately stop what you are doing and seek out help on-site. While you may need to contact healthcare professionals or seek medical treatment, there should also be first-aid professionals within your team who can provide you with assistance. 

Write down what happened. Following an accident, employers are required to put together some kind of incident report. This report can be used to protect them financially and legally should you try to sue, meaning that you should also make a note of your own experiences/what happened to protect yourself. While your employer cannot lie about what happened, if you don’t speak up for yourself, this could work to their advantage. If CCTV cameras are present, you might want to request a copy of the footage, too. 

Make a personal injury claim. Making a personal injury claim is essential following a workplace accident, especially if you will have to take time off to aid your recovery, as this could result in financial troubles further down the line. However, as the legal world can be a little hard to wrap your head around, you should enlist the support of a lawyer or attorney as early as possible. This is because they will be able to guide you through every step of the process and work towards the best outcome for you. To find out more, contact Aston Knight Solicitors. 

Give yourself time to recover. Its perfectly normal to want to bounce back from an injury as quickly as possible. However, its important that you don’t stand in the way of your long-term recovery in doing so, as getting back to work and your regular routine before you ae ready could make your injury worsen. Speak with a doctor, physiotherapist or medical professional ahead of time, as they will be able to give you a time-frame for your recovery. However, its equally important that you trust their judgement and follow their advice closely, as opposed to viewing it as a suggestion. For example, if they say that you need to take a month of work, you have to take a month of work. Use this time to catch up on any life admin, or even find a way to earn money from home. While it can be tempting to downplay your injuries, its important that you are honest about how you are feeling and the level of pain you are experiencing. 

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