How To Recognize When You've Been Injured At Work

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Workplace injuries are far more common than you think. The chances are you have been injured at work, and you don't even know it yet. A lot of people just carry on doing their jobs while suffering from injuries, not knowing that it's the work they're doing that's causing the injury and making it worse. 

The thing is, when you suffer from an injury at work, you are actually entitled to some form of compensation. Typically, there are two different ways you can get this money:

• Via worker's compensation insurance
• Through legal means

In both of these instances, you can go through the motions to get the money that covers any lost wages or medical bills following a workplace injury. Some people often wonder if they should go down the insurance route, or is it good to settle a workers' comp case? 9 times out of 10, settling the case in court is the best option to get the most money from it. This ensures you are financially covered for any losses you face. 

With that in mind, how do you recognize when you're been injured at work?

The injury happens in the workplace

This is an easy way to tell if you've been injured at work because it happens while you're working. For example, you are walking along the office when you trip over some wires and hurt yourself. The next day, your knee is swollen and you can't walk. Clearly, this happened as a result of the fall you had at work. So, you know that this is the reason behind your injury, and you can make a claim. 

The injury started after you began a new job

Another way to tell if your job may have caused an injury is if you had no prior problems before starting the job. You were absolutely fine, then you began your new job and within a few days or weeks started developing back pain. This happens to a lot of workers, and it can stem from your workplace not having a good ergonomic setup. In turn, this means you're constantly working under strain, which causes muscle issues in the back, neck, shoulders, hips; you name it! If you have never had complaints before starting work, you might have developed an injury because of the workplace conditions. 

The injury gets better when you're not working

Additionally, do you find that taking time off work makes the pain go away? Do you go home for a two-week holiday and feel close to back to yourself, then return to work and everything flares up again. Once more, this indicates there is an issue at work that is aggravating this injury and could be the cause of it. Therefore, it is technically a workplace injury as you sustained the injury while doing your job. 

The key thing is that you understand your rights when it comes to injuries at work. If you think you've been injured while at work, seek out the relevant ways of gaining compensation. Why should you suffer financially for something that wasn't your fault!?