What to do if you are injured on the job

First: Report the injury or illness to your employer immediately. Report the injury to your supervisor, manager or another person in authority at your place of work.

If your injury is of the type that develops gradually, such as an injury resulting from repetitive motion or continual loud noise or exposure to toxins, report it to your employer as soon as you think, believe or know that the injury is a result of your job or job environment.

If you report your injury promptly, it will be less likely that your benefits will be delayed, including receiving the medical care you need. If you fail to report your injury to your employer within 30 days of your injury could result in a total loss of your right to obtain benefits under the Workers’ Compensation system.

If your injury is of the type that you need emergency treatment, call 911 or, if you are able, go to a hospital emergency room immediately. It is your employers responsibility to make sure that you get emergency treatment immediately, if needed. Your employer may direct you to a health care provider for emergency treatment.

Whether you go to a hospital emergency room or other health care provider, be sure to tell the admitting person or receptionist who takes your admitting paperwork that your injury is job related.

Second: Within one working day after notifying your employer of your injury, your employer is required by law to give (or mail) you a Workers’ Compensation Claim Form
(DWC 1).

This is the form that starts the paperwork rolling on your case and notifies the Workers’ Compensation system of your claim and requests your benefits under the system.
If your employer does not give you a claim form, you can obtain one online HERE or by mail from the State Information and Assistance officer. HERE

Read the instructions and all of the information that comes with the claim form. Fill out and sign the “employee” portion of the form. Describe your injury completely and be sure to mention every part of your body affected by the injury. After completing the form, make a copy for yourself and give the original to your employer. If you are unsure how to complete the form, you should probably contact a workers’ compensation attorney to assist. Many attorneys will assist you with this for no charge.

Once you have given the completed form to your employer, you have “filed” your claim for Workers’ Compensation benefits.

Caution: What you put on the DWC 1 claim form is extremely important to your case. If you fail to state the nature of your injuries clearly or in depth or fail to mention all the body parts affected, this could prejudice your claim for benefits later in the process. Also, if you misrepresent the nature or extent of your injuries, you could be found to have committed workers’ compensation fraud. Filing a false or fraudulent workers’ compensation claim is a felony subject to up to 5 years in prison or fine of up to $50,000 or double the value of the fraud, whichever is greater, or by both imprisonment & fine.

If you are unsure how to state your injuries and want assistance, you can contact a workers’ compensation attorney for advice or contact the State Information and Assistance Officer.

Disclaimer: The information contained on this page and the other pages on this web site are solely for the purpose of information and are not intended to be legal advice in general nor intended to address your particular situation or set of facts. This site does not contain all of the information concerning any area of the law. You should not rely on this or any other web site to determine your legal rights. You should contact an attorney for legal advice. Information and statements on this web site shall not be deemed to be a solicitation and shall not serve to create an attorney – client relationship. The information may not be deemed to be up to date nor accurate nor applicable to your particular situation. You may contact our office for updated information.