According to CNN, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration published a report on injuries and fatalities in the workplace. The report revealed there were 10,338 severe injuries resulting from workplace conditions over the course of 2015. Among the injuries that were sustained by workers included nearly 3,000 amputations, as well as cases in which workers had their eyes gouged out. When an amputation or the loss of an eye occurs, the victims of the workplace injury receive benefits based on the location of the amputation. There is a schedule of benefits which determines what a worker is entitled to receive. This payment is in addition to other types of workers’ compensation benefits such as payment of medical bills. An experienced New York workers’ compensation law firm can help workers understand what they are entitled to receive and can provide assistance to those who have been injured in pursuing a case for workers’ compensation benefits.
Workers’ Compensation and Amputations
OSHA collected data from 26 different states with higher safety standards than the federal government in order to determine the number of workers injured and the extent of injuries. Based on OSHA data, there were a total of 2,644 amputations which occurred over the course of a single year. The highest proportion of accidents was in the field of manufacturing, and 26 percent of all workers who had to be hospitalized were in the manufacturing industry. Manufacturing workers also experienced 57 percent of amputations. Amputations can permanently end your productive working career or reduce your working potential. You should be entitled to benefits through workers’ compensation when an amputation happens. There are standard state guidelines for determining compensation for permanent impairment or loss of wage earning capacity. These guidelines entitle a worker to a certain number of weeks of compensation, based on the percentage of the loss of use of a particular body part. This is true both when an amputation causes a loss of use, as well as when other injuries on the worksite cause loss of use. According to the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board, the “determination of residual impairment and functional loss depends on the level of amputation.” For example, the loss of the fingers at the proximal phalanges translates to a 100 percent loss of use of the hand, while amputation at the wrist is considered to be 100 percent loss of use of the hand and 80 percent loss of use of the arm. Amputation at the elbow or above, on the other hand, is considered to be 100 percent loss of use of the arm. Similar guidelines are in place for loss of use of the toes and legs or for loss of the vision field. A worker who has a 100 percent loss of use of an arm would be entitled to 312 weeks, while the 100 percent loss of use of a hand would entitle a worker to 244 weeks. Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff can offer invaluable assistance in proving the extent of your loss of use so you can get the full benefits you deserve. Contact an attorney for help as soon as possible when amputation occurs.
