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Work-Related Injury Overview
At its most basic, a work-related injury is an injury that is connected either causally or temporally with a person’s work, but it is a bit more nuanced than that. There are certain rules in place to determine if an injury is technically considered a work-related injury.
What Makes an Injury Work-Related?
In order to be compensated, your injury must first be shown to be work-related. This means that it both:
- Arises out of employment, and
- Occurs during the course of employment
A good rule of thumb is that if you were doing something for your employer’s benefit, and you either suffered an injury or illness as a result, it can be classified as a work-related injury or illness and you’ll likely be eligible for compensation as long as you meet other basic workers’ compensation eligibility requirements.
While this rule for determining if your injury is work-related may seem pretty simple, it can actually get a bit tricky in some circumstances.
What Are Some Exceptions?
One major exception is that, usually, injuries that occur on an employee’s lunch break are not considered work-related. This is because, on your lunch break, you’re on your own time. However, if during your lunch break you were also required to pick up lunch for your boss, your injury might still be covered as work-related. If your injury occurred during your lunch break and was on the company’s premises, it would likely be covered, unless you were doing something on your break that either wasn’t allowed or fell under other exceptions.
Injuries that occur during company events are generally considered work-related, but some states may make exceptions if the activity was not required by the employers.
Workers’ Compensation
Workers who suffer from a work-related injury may be entitled to workers’ compensation. Workers’ compensation can offer wage replacement benefits, medical treatment, vocational rehabilitation, and more.
There are four basic eligibility requirements for workers’ compensation:
- You must be an employee
- Your employer must carry workers’ compensation insurance
- You must have a work-related injury or illness
- You must meet state deadlines for reporting the injury and filing a claim
If you were injured during travel to or from work, this generally isn’t covered by workers’ comp. There are exceptions to this rule as well: if you were in a company vehicle, if you were required to bring your own car for business use, if you were traveling on special errands for your employer, if you were on a business trip, or if you regularly travel for work and don’t have a regular worksite, you may still be covered under workers’ compensation.
An important thing to note is that if you were injured while doing something prohibited by your employer, such as breaking workplace safety rules, you may actually still be covered by workers’ comp. Of course, this depends on the rules of the particular state you live in, as well as your level of misconduct. There are exceptions to this rule as well—workers’ comp generally doesn’t cover injuries that occur because a worker was drunk or using illegal drugs.
In some states, workers’ comp coverage will also be denied if the worker was
- trying to hurt themselves or someone else
- committing a serious crime
- fooling around (horseplay), or
- purposely breaking a workplace rule
What is FELA?
The Federal Employer’s Liability Act (FELA) is similar to workers’ compensation in that it is a specific set of claims designed to compensate workers for injuries and illnesses that occur on the job. However, FELA claims apply specifically to injured railroad workers, who are required to show that their employer was negligent, directly leading to their injury.
If you believe you have suffered a work-related injury, you may be able to file a claim and pursue compensation.
