A study conducted at a Harvard University graduate school has revealed that nursing facility employees injured on the job are commonly more prone to quit or be fired after only working about half a year following their injuries. This may not come as a surprise to many Oklahoma nursing facility workers who have also suffered a workplace injury.
The report discovered that employees injured on the job were twice as likely to lose their jobs shortly after they suffered a work-related injury, while coworkers who did not report workplace injuries continued working. This was especially true among employees who experienced multiple injuries. Although the report revealed these findings, the exact reasons why the injured workers were fired were unknown. Sometimes employers fire an injured employee because they feel that the employee may not be able to fulfill his or her work duties, while in other cases, the employer may think the employee will become hurt again.
In addition, the report found that those employed in new work environments generally suffer a workplace injury sometime during their first few months, and injured workers were 30 percent more likely to leave their jobs, whether involuntary or voluntary. These facts show that employers may not be consistently following occupational regulations at both the state and federal level.
Employers are responsible to make workplace safety a top priority, but even with all precautions, people are often injured on the job. Most employers are required to have workers’ compensation coverage, and an injured worker may choose to have the assistance of an attorney when preparing and filing a claim for benefits.
Source: Yahoo, “Injuries at work may increase risk of losing one’s job”, Madeline Kennedy, Feb. 5, 2016