As an eligible employee in Kentucky, you have a right to recover workers’ compensation benefits for injuries from workplace accidents. Additionally, you have the right to pursue workers’ comp for injuries caused by job-related wear and tear. But because these injuries don’t arise from a single traumatic incident, you might have trouble proving a connection between your work and these wear and tear injuries. If you’ve suffered an injury due to wear and tear at work, you need an experienced workers’ comp lawyer from Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer to help you recover the benefits you are owed.
Our attorneys have a proven track record of getting hardworking individuals the financial benefits they need after work injuries in Kentucky. You can reach us anytime you need us. Also, you will get to speak with an attorney early on in your case. Contact us for a free case review to speak with a workers’ compensation lawyer at our Lexington office and learn more about your legal options.
How to Prove a Wear and Tear Is Work-Related
You can take several steps to protect your rights as a worker and prove that your cumulative trauma injury occurred due to overexertion, repetitive stress, or other issues at work. These actions include:
- Gathering your medical records – Your medical records might help you prove that your cumulative trauma injury occurred due to your work. For example, if you go to the hospital or doctor’s office after experiencing pain at work, your medical records will reflect that you sought care. When diagnosing your injury, your doctor will ask you questions about when you began experiencing symptoms. If your doctor suspects your work might have caused your injury, they might also ask questions about your work duties and activities. If your answers reflect that your wear and tear injury could be from your work, your doctor can document this valuable information in your medical records.
- Reviewing your employment records – You should also gather your employment contract, employee handbook, pay stubs, and other documentation related to your employment. Contracts and employer policies can help you understand the process for filing a workers’ compensation claim. Your pay stubs can also help you calculate the wage replacement benefits you could receive from workers’ comp if you need to take time off work or temporarily transfer to a part-time or light-duty position that pays you less.
- Documenting the causes of your cumulative trauma injury – You can help show a connection between your cumulative trauma injury and your work by creating a written timeline of your condition, including when you began to experience symptoms and what kinds of activities aggravate those symptoms. Document your work duties and what types of actions or movements you perform at work. Finally, note your work hours and the breaks you get during a standard shift.
- Adhering to filing requirements – File your workers’ compensation claim promptly. If your employer denies that your cumulative trauma injury occurred due to your work or refuses to submit the claim to their workers’ comp insurer, you might need to file a formal claim with the Department of Workers’ Claims. A missed filing deadline could easily derail your claim and cost you money.
What Are the Risk Factors Contributing to Wear and Tear Injuries?
A cumulative trauma injury occurs due to excessive wear and tear on nerves and other soft tissues over an extended period. Various risk factors can contribute to cumulative trauma injuries at work, including:
- Improper or non-ergonomic body positioning during work activities
- Maintaining an awkward or static posture during work
- Overexertion or completing two-person jobs alone
- Repetitive motions over an extended period without adequate breaks
- Routine exposure to strong vibrations from tools or equipment
- Improper lifting methods, such as lifting with the back rather than the legs
- Not taking breaks or sufficient recovery time after strains or injuries
- Mental stress, which can lead workers to forget essential safety precautions
Common Types of Wear and Tear Injuries
Some of the most frequent kinds of wear and year injuries from work activities include:
- Tendonitis – A condition involving inflammation of the tendons, the pieces of tissue that connect muscles to bones. Tendonitis frequently occurs in the hands, legs, and feet.
- Carpal tunnel syndrome – A condition caused by tissue inflammation that constricts the nerves running through the carpal tunnel in the arm and wrist
- DeQuervain’s disease – An inflammatory disease that affects tendons in the thumb and forearm, causing pain that runs from the lower arm to the base of the thumb
- Radial tunnel syndrome – A condition caused by repetitive compression of the nerves running through the radial tunnel, often resulting in elbow pain
- Raynaud’s disease – A nerve disorder that results in restricted blood supply to the extremities. Cold temperatures can cause affected body parts to feel chilly and numb
- Trigger finger – A condition that causes the thumb and forefinger to snap and lock in place, preventing a person from bending those fingers
Challenges Involved in Getting Workers’ Compensation for Wear and Tear
Because wear and tear injuries don’t occur after a single accident, workers often face challenges getting workers’ comp benefits for them. Common obstacles to obtaining workers’ comp for cumulative trauma injuries include:
- Employers arguing that a worker’s cumulative trauma injury occurred due to an accident or activities outside of work
- Workers’ compensation insurers demanding that workers undergo multiple medical evaluations to determine the nature of the injury and the extent of disability that it causes
- A lack of witnesses to any workplace accident that contributed to the cumulative trauma injury
- A lack of documentation establishing the timeline of the worker’s injury, including when the worker first recognized their injury and realized that their work activities could have caused it
- Inconsistencies between the worker’s medical records and the accident report or workers’ compensation claim form
- Workers being terminated because they can no longer perform their duties due to a cumulative trauma injury
These potential challenges make hiring an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer even more important.
Contact an Experienced Workers’ Compensation Lawyer in Lexington, KY to Help with Your Case
If you’ve suffered a wear-and-tear or cumulative trauma injury at work, contact Mogan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer today for a free, no-obligation consultation. Let our Lexington workers’ comp lawyers help you demand the benefits you need for a full recovery. We are available 24/7.
