Tripped & Fell On My Way to Be Laid-Off

[Aim9000]

What is the name of your state? My state is California

I was just laid-off this afternoon. My boss called and asked me to come into her office. I started to head out of my cubicle, where I tripped on ... not sure, the leg of my chair or possibly the cord of my fan.

Anyway, my knee and neck are really starting to hurt. I hit pretty hard and I'm not young (55). But I fell right before I was told I was laid off. So I'm not sure how to proceed. Would I still be eligible for Workers Comp? I did fall at work. And I know the timing is really bad, but there are cameras all over the place. I'm sure one of them picked it up.

Thanks for your help.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state? My state is California

I was just laid-off this afternoon. My boss called and asked me to come into her office. I started to head out of my cubicle, where I tripped on ... not sure, the leg of my chair or possibly the cord of my fan.

Anyway, my knee and neck are really starting to hurt. I hit pretty hard and I'm not young (55). But I fell right before I was told I was laid off. So I'm not sure how to proceed. Would I still be eligible for Workers Comp? I did fall at work. And I know the timing is really bad, but there are cameras all over the place. I'm sure one of them picked it up.

Thanks for your help.

Did you report the injury to your employer?

 

[Aim9000]

No.

Once I got to my boss's office I was told today would be my last day. I was in shock. Didn't know what to do. I work in an office, I wear a business suit to work.

I have never had an injury at work and had no idea what to do. With all the lectures upper management gives on proper procedures, not one was about what to do if you are injured at work.

 

[quincy]

No.

Once I got to my boss's office I was told today would be my last day. I was in shock. Didn't know what to do. I work in an office, I wear a business suit to work.

I have never had an injury at work and had no idea what to do. With all the lectures upper management gives on proper procedures, not one was about what to do if you are injured at work.

So you left work without reporting your injury to your employer?

Did you appear injured when you went to his office to be laid off - or did you leave work early because of your injury?

Does your employer know now that you were injured?

 

[Aim9000]

Yes, I left work without reporting my injury because I had absolutely NO IDEA what to do if I was injured at work. I'm just now reading about it all.

I don't work in a factory, there's no union, nobody has ever told any of us what to do. It's a proper office, I'm a manager.

I fell -- it was embarrassing -- I was then told I was laid-off. This all happened in about ten minutes.

I was limping, but nobody asked. I was laid-off at 5:00 pm (I work from 8-5).

When I got out of my car (at home), I realized I could hardly put weight on my left leg (knee). And my neck is killing me.

 

[Just Blue]

Yes, I left work without reporting my injury because I had absolutely NO IDEA what to do if I was injured at work. I'm just now reading about it all.

I fell -- it was embarrassing -- I was then told I was laid-off. This all happened in about ten minutes.

I was limping, but nobody asked. I was laid-off at 5:00 pm (I work from 8-5).

When I got out of my car (at home), I realized I could hardly put weight on my left leg (knee). And my neck is killing me.

Have you gone to the doctor or ER?

 

[quincy]

Yes, I left work without reporting my injury because I had absolutely NO IDEA what to do if I was injured at work. I'm just now reading about it all.

I don't work in a factory, there's no union, nobody has ever told any of us what to do. It's a proper office, I'm a manager.

I fell -- it was embarrassing -- I was then told I was laid-off. This all happened in about ten minutes.

I was limping, but nobody asked. I was laid-off at 5:00 pm (I work from 8-5).

When I got out of my car (at home), I realized I could hardly put weight on my left leg (knee). And my neck is killing me.

Any claim you make at this point is likely to be denied.

 

[Aim9000]

No, not yet. I don't have medical insurance, and now I definitely can't afford a trip to the ER. So ...

I just don't know what to do.

 

[quincy]

No, not yet.

Your employer needed to be told of the injury. And you needed to be examined by a doctor.

 

[Aim9000]

It has been about three hours. Is there a window??

Who is responsible for telling employees what to do if they are injured at work? I'm just curious.

 

[quincy]

It has been about three hours. Is there a window??

Who is responsible for telling employees what to do if they are injured at work? I'm just curious.

I'm sorry. I see now that you were just injured at around 5 this afternoon.

You should contact your employer as soon as possible to inform him of your injury and to let him know you will be filing a worker's compensation claim. You will want to see a doctor, tomorrow if possible, so you have a medical record of the injury.

If anyone in your office witnessed your fall, you eventually will want their eye-witness report in writing.

As I said earlier, your initial claim is likely to be denied. The claim is likely to be regarded as suspicious, coming as it will after your lay-off. You should be prepared to appeal. But, if your injury is severe enough, it is worth going to the trouble of filing the claim.

Here is a link to California's Labor Code Section 3600. See 3600(a)(10) to see why you may have difficulty with a claim:
https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/labor-code/lab-sect-3600.html
Your employer should have given all employees information, when they were hired, on workers compensation and how to report injuries. There should be a poster on reporting injuries posted somewhere in the workplace.

 

[Aim9000]

Thank you very much.

I really appreciate your help.

 

[quincy]

Thank you very much.

I really appreciate your help.

You're welcome, Aim9000. I appreciate the thanks.

I am sorry about the very bad day you had today. I am sorry about the lay-off. I hope you have a complete and rapid recovery from your injury.

Good luck.

 

[commentator]

You need to file a claim for unemployment insurance at once. However, you must realize that if you are not "able, available and actively seeking other employment" having been released by your doctor to do at least some type of work, you won't be able to draw this claim right now, though you still need to file it and get it set up. These two in tandem, worker's comp (off work due to work related injury or illness, not able and available) and unemployment insurance (off work through no fault of your own, able and available for equivalent work) are pretty much mutually exclusive and must be very carefully dealt with. If you are going to file a claim for worker's comp, you need to, as they've told you here already, get 'er done. The same applies to filing for unemployment insurance.

Though you have a clean lack of work lay off, unemployment insurance usually takes three to six weeks to begin happening, for you to start getting weekly payments, making weekly certifications for benefits. With the added complication of a worker's comp case filed at the time you received your separation notice, it will take a bit longer. If and when you begin receiving unemployment benefits, any worker's comp will have to be reported and adjudicated very carefully.

 

[quincy]

Here is a link to California's Unemployment Insurance Code section 1252, Eligibility and Disqualifications:

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=UIC&sectionNum=1252