As we slowly ease ourselves out of the pandemic, we may find ourselves wondering about our futures. Will we go back to the office? How will my job change? And, as work injury lawyers like our friends at Rispoli & Borneo, P.C. can remind us: How will I pay off my medical bills?

Unfortunately, not everyone had the luxury of taking a few weeks off or working from home. While COVID-19 was at its worst, millions of Americans had to keep working at their offices, their hospitals, and everywhere else. The world may have looked like a ghost town, but there were people hard at work behind the scenes, and they weren’t able to telecommute.

This of course led to employees catching COVID. If you’re one of those employees, you should read up on whether or not you should get in touch with a lawyer – and if you’re on the fence about lawyering up, you should see what the right lawyer can do for you.

 

  • CDC Guidelines were meant to keep employees safe. During the pandemic, the CDC published several guidelines to ensure those who had to clock in at work were adequately protected from COVID-19. These guidelines were available to everyone, and if you had a responsible employer who was committed to your safety, you probably had to stick to the guidelines yourself.
  • People still got sick in the safest environments. It happened frequently. Even with the safest workplace, COVID still spread. However, if your employer followed CDC guidelines, you may not have grounds to sue them for negligence. Instead, you may be able to file a workers’ compensation claim. Workers’ comp can help you get some much-needed funds to cover the cost of your lost wages and medical bills, and a work injury lawyer can walk you through the process. 
  • Some employers were negligent. The CDC guidelines were widely-accepted to be helpful in slowing the spread of the coronavirus. Unfortunately, just because the guidelines existed doesn’t mean everyone followed them. If your employer was wilfully ignorant of COVID-19 safety protocols, you may have grounds for a lawsuit. 
  • Your employer is responsible for your safety on the job. This is an important point to remember. When you’re on the clock, whether you’re in the office or on a business trip or performing other work-related functions elsewhere, your employer is responsible for ensuring your health and safety. If your employer ignored CDC guidelines, they ignored their responsibility to keep you safe, and you should take legal action. 
  • You’ll need help with the financial fallout. A COVID-19 diagnosis is serious. It can lead to long term health effects, and during your illness chances are you were struggling to get by day by day. Aside from medical care you may have required, you weren’t able to clock in for work everyday like nothing happened. All this can turn into a stressful and overwhelming financial situation, but fortunately a work injury lawyer can help you fight for some much-needed compensation. 

Get in Touch with a Work Injury Lawyer Today

COVID-19 changed the way we work, but not everyone was lucky enough to work from home. If you caught covid in the workplace, don’t hesitate. Get in touch with a work injury lawyer to see how the right legal team can help.