What are my rights if I injured my back at work but my bossrefuses tofile a claim?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What are my rights if I injured my back at work but my bossrefuses tofile a claim?
At the time I hurt my back I was on light duty due to a broke ankle. However my boss would still ask me to do heavy lifting. On this particular day I was moving a 50” plasma TV and I felt a pain in my back. I went to the restroom and had a burning sensation when I urinated; I thought it was just a kidney stone or infection. After a few hours of worsening pain my boss let me to go to the doctor. The doctor ruled out anything to do with my kidneys and told me I had pulled a muscle in my back. The next day I asked him if we needed to file a claim. He said that we would if it was not better in few days. Over those next few days he acted as if I had not hurt back at all. In fact he asked me to lift objects that weighed more than 50 pounds. I again told him my back was not getting any better and thought a claim should be filed; he still refused. I went back to the doctor she put me on light duty to try to prevent any more damage from being done. After my light duty time was up my boss had me back doing the same things. A day or so later I had to go back to the doctor. She X-rayed my back to find that I have a ruptured disk and that I need to go see a surgeon. I informed my boss of this and told him a claim had to be filed; he again refused.
Asked on July 17, 2011 under Employment Labor Law, Mississippi
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
You have a right to file a claim for Worker's Compensation regardless of whether your employer wants to or is willing to do so, as long as you were injured at work in a job covered by Worker's Compensation. (E.g. if you were an indendent contractor, you might not be covered.) If this wasn't the case, after all, employers could prevent any workers from ever filing for Worker's Compensation. You can try contacting the Mississippi Worker's Compensation Commission (MWCC), at the web address I will copy below; however, since applying for benefits like this can be technical, you would b best served to retain an attorney to help you--the lawyer can also look into whether there are another claims that you may be able to assert against your employer. Good luck, and here's the MWCC's web address: http://www.mwcc.state.ms.us/
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.