When a worker gets hurt while performing the duties of their job, a New York business owner may worry about the types of legal challenges they will face. In many cases the worker will seek compensation for their period of recovery and often that compensation will come in the form of workers’ compensation. In order to obtain workers’ compensation benefits a worker must fulfill certain steps in the process and the failure to do so can provide employers with options for denying the employees’ claims.
In particular, a worker must tell their employer when they get hurt on the job, and that notice must be timely. Waiting days, weeks, or even months to tell an employer about a worksite injury can create major challenges for their employer when it comes to investigating the injury-causing event. Missing reporting deadlines can be a defense to a workers’ compensation claim.
Additionally, not all workers’ compensation claims may be based on qualifying injuries. For example, when a worker engages in boisterousness at work and suffers an injury while acting irresponsibly, their harm is not the result of their work-relate duties. As such, employers may properly deny workers’ compensation claims that are based on horseplay or non-work related injuries.
Dealing with employees and their injuries is part of the cost of doing business for a New York employer. However, small business owners may have options when it comes to compensating or not compensating employees whose harm occurred outside of standard business operations. Getting help with these and other workers’ compensation issues can be helpful for employers who are unsure of what rights they have to offer defenses to questionable claims.