Can Your Riverview Workers Compensation Attorney Help if You’re a Restaurant Worker?

Restaurant workers are at risk of getting hurt at work every day. Like construction workers, they are forced to work with a lot of dangerous equipment. Sadly, many of the restaurant employees that come to see our Riverview workers compensation attorneys are young. It’s a lot easier for insurance companies to take advantage of young workers.

Here, we’ll discuss why the restaurant industry is so dangerous, especially for younger workers. We’ll also explain how your workers comp lawyer in Riverview can help if you suffer a workplace injury.

Why Do So Many Restaurant Workers Get Hurt on the Job?

When you think about it, people who work in restaurants are exposed to knives, hot stoves, and a number of other dangerous tools. It doesn’t matter how skilled or well-trained a person is. There is always the chance that a worker could get cut or burned.

Many restaurant employees work long shifts. They also work in very crowded and high-traffic areas. It can be hard to think about safety when you have orders being barked at you throughout your entire shift.

This is one of the reasons why our Riverview workers compensation attorneys meet with so many young restaurant employees every year.

What Are Some of the More Common Injuries Suffered by Restaurant Employees?

It should come as no surprise that certain types of injuries are more common in the restaurant business. Whether you’re a chef or sous chef, you’ll be using sharp knives most of the day.

In addition, when you’re cooking on a hot stovetop or fryer, you’re bound to suffer burn injuries. Thankfully, most of these burns are minor. Unfortunately, if you suffer a serious burn injury, it can take a long time to heal.

Some of the other common injuries for restaurant workers injuries include the following:

  • Cuts and lacerations
  • Slip and fall accidents
  • Getting hit with heavy objects
  • Carrying heavy objects and suffering a sprain or strain
  • Fall on a wet floor
  • Repetitive motion injuries

Any of these can put you in the hospital. For the most part, these injuries won’t require surgery. However, there are times when your injuries are quite serious. If you’re going to be out of work for a while, you deserve workers compensation benefits.

Your Workers Comp Lawyer in Riverview Can Help File Your Claim

Before you do anything, it’s a good idea to contact our workers comp lawyers in Riverview. We can look at whatever information you have and let you know if you qualify for workers comp benefits.

When the insurance company sees that you’ve retained a Riverview workers compensation attorney, they’ll take your claim more seriously. They know they won’t be able to take advantage of you. They’ll also be more likely to approve your claim if they know you have an attorney.

working in a restaurant exposes you to various injury risks.

Restaurant Employees Are Eligible for Workers Compensation Benefits

While there are some categories of workers that aren’t eligible for workers compensation, restaurant workers aren’t one of them. Regardless of what position you hold, there’s a good chance you’ll be entitled to benefits.

In order to qualify for benefits, your Riverview workers compensation attorney must show that you meet certain criteria. When you first meet with your lawyer, they’ll look to see if there are any red flags that would disqualify you.

For example, if you were drunk or under the influence of drugs at the time of your workplace accident, your claim won’t be approved. The same is true if you were not acting within the scope of your employment at the time of your injury.

You Do Have to Meet Certain Criteria to Qualify for Benefits

In order to be approved for workers compensation benefits, your Riverview workers compensation attorney must demonstrate that you meet the basic criteria for benefits. Some of these requirements include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Your injury must have taken place on company property and on company time. Of course, if you’re a remote worker or travel for work, this won’t be the case. The same is true if you’re a salaried employee.
  • You must report your injury to management or Human Resources right away. Technically, you have thirty (30) days to report your injury under Florida law. However, it’s not a good idea to wait more than a day or two, at most.
  • You must have been acting within the scope of your normal employment when you got hurt. For example, if you’re a waitress, your injury may not be covered if you were unloading a delivery truck at the time of your injury.
  • You must agree to take a drug test. If you refuse the test, or it comes back positive for drugs, your claim will be denied.
  • You must be treated by a state-approved workers compensation doctor.

As long as you meet these basic criteria, your claim should be approved. However, as your workers’ comp lawyer in Riverview will explain, that doesn’t mean it will be approved. The insurance company may deny your claim for a litany of reasons.

Riverview Workers Compensation Attorneys Represent a Lot of Young Restaurant Workers

As briefly mentioned earlier in this article, a lot of people who work in the restaurant industry are young. According to OSHA, more people aged 16 to 19 work in the restaurant industry than in almost any other industry.

Young people are vulnerable to workplace injuries because they don’t have the same kind of training and experience as other workers. In 2017 alone, more than twenty young people died as a result of workplace accidents. An additional 27,000 young workers were seriously injured.

More Than 25,000 Young People Get Hurt Working in Restaurants Every Year

There is a reason we point out that so many young people work in restaurants. This is because these workers are more likely to be taken advantage of by the insurance company.

If your employer and their insurance carrier think they can get away with not paying your claim, they’ll take full advantage of that. This is why we recommend that you contact an experienced Riverview workers’ compensation attorney right away.

Call a Workers Comp Lawyer in Riverview Sooner Rather Than Later!

If you get hurt on the job, you should be able to count on your employer to do the right thing. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen. Our Riverview workers compensation lawyers have represented hundreds of restaurant workers whose claims have been denied.

If you’re afraid this may happen to you, contact our office right away. Getting a Riverview workers comp attorney on your side can make all the difference.

If you wait too long to file your claim, it will be denied. And if you wait too long to appeal it, you may lose your chance to do so.

Call today so you can schedule your free, initial consultation. You can do so over the phone, or you can schedule it yourself through our website.

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