On The Job Injury Lawyer
If you’re one of those 54% of Americans who wanted to continue working from home after the pandemic, you should know that you’re still entitled to workers’ compensation in case you’re somehow injured on company time. As an on the job injury lawyer people trust, like our friends at Polsky, Shouldice & Rosen, P.C. can explain, even if you’re working from home you can still qualify for workers’ comp.
Unfortunately, getting workers’ comp for a work-from-home injury isn’t as easy as it sounds. It takes plenty of knowledge about what counts and what doesn’t count as a workplace injury, and it takes a qualified legal professional to help you with your claim. Read on to learn more about workers’ comp for stay-at-home employees, and see what does and doesn’t qualify for a workers’ compensation claim as a remote worker.
You Need to Satisfy Certain Requirements for a Claim
Workers’ comp isn’t free money, and it’s certainly not an easy task to cash in on a claim – even if you’re hurt at the physical workplace. When it comes to a home office injury, you’ll have to prove that you were injured while performing work related activities, and you’ll have to prove that you were hurt when you were clocked in. It can be difficult to satisfy these requirements, but a lawyer can help.
Understand the Coming and Going Rule
When it comes to workers’ compensation claims, you need to be aware of something called the “coming and going” rule. Essentially, it boils down to this: You can only file a workers’ compensation claim if you’re on company time, performing company tasks, and in a company location. You can’t qualify for workers’ comp if you were hurt coming to work, or going home afterwards.
However, now that many Americans are working from home, home does count as a secondary workplace. If you’re injured on your way home from a visit to your physical workplace, you could qualify for workers’ compensation assuming it is acknowledged that your home is a secondary workplace.
Know What Counts as a Workplace Accident
Unfortunately, you can’t just claim any accident you experienced at home was a workplace accident. You need to understand that certain accidents are plausibly linked to your work, and some accidents are completely unrelated. If you’re playing with your dog outside and you sprain your wrist, unfortunately that doesn’t count as a workplace accident. However, if you trip and fall over your dog while walking to your printer, or you experience carpal tunnel syndrome from repetitive stress, you may have a claim on your hands.
Get in Touch With a Lawyer Today
It may sound a little strange to be able to file a workers’ compensation claim while working from home, but employment has changed. Before the pandemic, only 20% of Americans worked from home. Now, the number is much, much higher – and as an employee, you should still be entitled to protection on the job.
If you’ve been hurt while working from home, get in touch with a workers’ compensation lawyer to see how you can get the compensation you deserve.