The private industries in Alabama reported in 2016 over 35,000 non-fatal injuries and illnesses that were entitled to workers’ compensation. Unfortunately, close to 20,000 of them were severe. They required job restrictions, job transfers, or days off from work. The BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) showed that over 94% of cases were basically workplace injuries. The rest of them were illnesses that were still work-related, like skin disorders, poisoning, and hearing loss.
To better understand what can happen at the workplace, let’s take a look at the most common workplace accidents, those that often warrant working with an Alabama injury lawyer to obtain workers’ compensation benefits.
Construction Accidents
Construction-related medical conditions and injuries can appear due to countless reasons. This includes slip and falls, trips, vehicle accidents, straining while lifting, falling from a height, loud equipment, and handling vibrating equipment. While most construction accidents are minor, some can be catastrophic, like falling from heights, which can easily lead to death.
Motor Vehicle Accidents At The Workplace
We tend to believe that motor vehicle accidents only happen in the transportation sector. This is incorrect. There are numerous industries that deal with vehicle transportation every single day. Various modes of transportation can end up colliding with objects, people, and other vehicles. This includes commercial trucks, trucks, cars, large construction equipment, industrial equipment, trains, and delivery vans.
In Alabama motor vehicle collisions, workers can easily end up being hurt. Contacting an experienced work accident attorney is vital whenever injured in any type of vehicle collision as you are doing your work.
Dangerous Machinery Accidents
In many sectors, we see the use of intricate and large machinery. Such machines are obviously helpful and efficient. However, they are also very dangerous. So many of them will put workers at a high risk of entanglement, lacerations, traumatic amputations, electrocution, crushed limbs, and degloving. The severity of the dangerous machinery accident can vary from minor to death.
Farm Accidents
The US economy still relies on farming to a pretty large degree. And we do not naturally think of farming as something that is dangerous. In reality, numerous accidents can happen and the profession is quite high-risk. This is because farmers have to deal with several dangers, including equipment and working in very harsh conditions. Such situations can lead to some pretty serious accidents.
The big problem is that most farmhands and farmers do not have coverage under workers’ compensation. This is why you should quickly get in touch with a work injury lawyer whenever injured as you do work on a farm. There are still options available for you and you could still obtain financial compensation.
Final Thoughts
The common workplace accidents we mentioned are just a fraction of what happens every single month in Alabama. We naturally tend to believe that we are safe when we are at work but in reality, accidents can happen at any point in time. Knowing what the risks of your job are can be considered pivotal for protecting yourself. And knowing when to contact an attorney is also very important.