Whether they’re your fault or not, workplace injuries are a sting in the tail of even the happiest teams. By their very nature, they breed mistrust and open the doors for legal repercussions you probably never imagined you might face.
That’s a harsh reality, and it’s something that could see you trying to rush through or ignore minor injuries when they arise. In truth, though, ignorance is by no means bliss in this instance. Instead, there is a better way to support your employees and protect your legal interests, and it lies in avoiding the following fatal post-accident mistakes.
# 1 – Withholding Medical Treatment
Perhaps it’s a busy shift, or maybe you just freeze in the face of an injury. Either way, your employee is left on the shop floor for a little too long after an accident, and the situation gets a whole lot worse as a result. This is something you’re going to want to avoid at all costs. Remember – a failure to provide speedy medical attention is one of the worst things you can do from a legal standpoint.
Instead, you should quickly remove any injured employee from the workplace to a safe space where they’re looked over by a first aider. Where necessary, you can then call the emergency services and let them do their thing. Then, your legal standing and conscience will remain clear, and you could even turn a potentially team-ruining tragedy into a chance to yet again prove your management prowess.
# 2 – Failing to File the Right Paperwork
It might seem like a waste of time to file paperwork about that fall Sheila had in aisle two, but you know what? It’s the best thing you’ll ever waste your time doing. The simple fact is that filing accident reports for all injuries (minor or not) is an essential standard of care.
Ensuring the timely filing of incident and medical reports is your best chance at a legal cushion if, say, Sheila’s cut knee becomes infected. You’ll be able to show what you did and when you did it, which is information that both medical teams and lawyers will undeniably want to see.
# 3 – Retaliating to Legal Action
You might like to think that your employees won’t seek legal advice post-accident, but they’re fully within their rights to go home and start researching everything from whether they have a case to how does no win no fee work. It’s then their decision whether they take things further.
The last thing you want to do in this situation is retaliate or start treating that employee differently. Instead, you should make sure that you fully inform them of their legal rights and comply with every request their lawyer makes. At work, though, she’s still just Sheila, and you should do whatever you can to carry on as you were before.
Workplace injuries can be vipers in your team nest if you let them, but avoiding these mistakes could keep you all functioning as one happy workplace family!
