Advice for an employer - how to handle injuries at work

hrdummy

Hi there. I am hoping that other employers and managers could give me an idea on how injuries at work are handled in your company.

To me there are two kinds of accident:
1. Arises from some cause the company could have controlled/ i.e. company could have prevented the accident - e.g. insufficient training, poor equipment, poor PPE, something broke, etc. Company's negligence is evident

2. Accident that has no cause but just happens at work - could just as easily have happened anywhere.

To date we have always paid medical bills and wages for anyone injured at work even if no fault could be attributed to the company. Recently our insurance company is indicating that we should not be in a rush to assume liability (and paying bills could be viewed as assuming liability)

We all know that, as employers, we have to provide a safe workplace but it can be the safest ever with everything done correctly - and there could still be accidents.

We also have to protect the company from malingerers and people who take advantage of the system, and i suspect we now have 2 employees who could become problematic.

Here are my last 4 accidents (not saying these employees are a problem but just to show how frustrating this is?)

1.Our employees were painting a wall. Instead of climbing down the ladder, moving the ladder, climbing back up and painting, an employee tried to reach an area too far away by overstretching and as a result he pulled a muscle in his back - off for 4 weeks

2. An employee was driving in excess of the speed limits on a motorway when the tyre burst. Although certified for high speeds the tyres are primarily intended for off road so the fear is that the tyres contributed to the accident, but so did the speed?

3. An employee stepped off the last rung of a ladder and pulled a muscle in his back - he didnt even slip, freaky accident.

4. employee coming down stairs - normal stairs you'd find anywhere - had her hand on the railing, tripped and fell.

Are we wrong to expect there to be some evidence that the company is at fault before we agree to pay wages/medical bills or are we automatically responsibile just because its a work site?

We want to be fair about this but its getting out of hand and its hard on a small company. I suspect or would like to believe that we're not alone in this and that there are other companies who struggle to handle this effectively and fairly as well?

Would love to hear any advice or even your experiences?

Thanks

cuana

I say some legal advice here purely to protect your own interests paying people while out of work is costly business and it should be a case by case basis some things will be beyond your control & I wouldn't be so quick to pay for it. Your obligated to make sure that people work in a safe environment but there is personal responsibility for employees to make sure that they behave in a safe manner also



in reference to 1: the employee over reached they were not taking care of there own personal safety in work thus resulted in an accident (I assume relevant training as being provided & from experience through training part of this would be to ''never over reach'' etc)

2: the employee contributed again to the accident so if proven that tires were not for use then some responsibility on your part

3: I wouldn't class this as a work place accident they didn't fall/trip if there were no hazards however lots of questions were they carrying goods how heavy etc was the ladder on a firm surface fit for its purpose etc

4: this seems to be a simple accident again through no fault of your own it happens consider stuff like was it a slippery surface, was there sufficient lighting etc

Your really need to seek legal advice here

mm_surf

The bad news:
-All would be considered occupational accidents

The worse news:
-None would be worth defending in court, even those where the employee was at least partly responsible. You might win on "moral" grounds by reducing the payout, but it will cost you in time, money, solicitors & barristers. Besides, your insurance company wouldn't let it get that far anyway.

My advice would be to pay all employees who have an accident for their time off - but have the injury confirmed by an occupational doctor (note: this is a specialist training, not all GPs are occupational doctors)

This is how it could be argued in court (devil's advocate here, but believe me, this is a typical approach by a barrister):

hrdummy wrote: »

1.Our employees were painting a wall. Instead of climbing down the ladder, moving the ladder, climbing back up and painting, an employee tried to reach an area too far away by overstretching and as a result he pulled a muscle in his back - off for 4 weeks.

Ladder was not the proper equipment if it had to be moved. Should have used a MEWP. Employee not trained or supervised correctly. Expected employee to do the job too quickly, employee felt rushed.

hrdummy wrote: »

2. An employee was driving in excess of the speed limits on a motorway when the tyre burst. Although certified for high speeds the tyres are primarily intended for off road so the fear is that the tyres contributed to the accident, but so did the speed?.

Employee given wrong equipment - should not have been using an off-road tyre. Employee not trained on the dangers. No risk assessment done. Employee was speeding due to work pressures.

hrdummy wrote: »

3. An employee stepped off the last rung of a ladder and pulled a muscle in his back - he didnt even slip, freaky accident.

Employee unassisted. Ladder unsafe, otherwise employee would not have stumbled. PPE (work shoes/boots) unsafe. Employee not trained. Stepping off ladders is dangerous, should have had other equipment.

hrdummy wrote: »

4. employee coming down stairs - normal stairs you'd find anywhere - had her hand on the railing, tripped and fell.

Stairs unsafe, otherwise would not have tripped. Footwear not suitable.


You can't win, unfortunately. Things are changing slowly (very slowly) in the courts in relation to occupational injuries. The problem is that it can cost you more to defend a case than it does to pay out an award (for a typical "small" injury it might cost €5K to defend a €3K award) - so your insurance company will generally just pay out to keep costs down.

Get a good company occupational doctor. Worth their weight in gold. Learn from the mistakes that cause accidents, and at least stop them from recurring. There is a wealth of info on the HSA website for small businesses. Putting the effort into H&S can really pay off.

Even if you can't afford a full-time H&S officer, get a recent graduate in for a 6 month period to get all your ducks in a row. It'll pay for itself in no time.

M.
(if you have any specific queries, you can PM me)

mm_surf

cuana wrote: »

I say some legal advice here purely to protect your own interests paying people while out of work is costly business and it should be a case by case basis some things will be beyond your control & I wouldn't be so quick to pay for it.

Nothing will goad an employee to sue faster than not being paid when injured!

If it's a legitimate accident, you'll be liable anyway.
Paying is not an admission of liability.

Use an occupational doctor to make the assessment. Independent and impartial, and their report can be used in court.

To put the costs in perspective:
-paying wages for an employee on €40K pa for a lost day: €200 approx.
-Average PIAB payout €22K (IIRC)
-Typical cost to a business for an accident (in ireland) approx €40K-80K if employee sues
-Occupational Doctors' report €100-200
-Typical cost for an insurance company to open a case file €500-€1000

I know it hurts to pay for a day off if you suspect "lead swinging". Problem is, it costs you significantly more if you mishandle it.

M.

Mrs OBumble

Folks .. I think we might stop this one here. I know the OP asked for experiences .. but it's getting remarkable close to legal advice.

I don't like cuttng off conversations, but there are some pretty big risks to boards.ie if professional advice is given here and later argued about. The safest way is just to suggest to the OP to get legal advice.

Sorry.