Getting hurt at work

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About a month ago i was in a car wreck at work. I was stopped so i was in no way at fault. I felt fine after and i haven't worked this job very long so i wanted to make it as little a deal as possible. Well ever since ny neck and head has hurt every day. Last week the employer let me go for a pretty ridiculous reason first time I've ever been fired. So now im sitting here still pretty sore and wondering is their anything i can do now to get it covered by workers comp or has that ship already sailed? O do not want to line my pockets i just don't want to have a permanent issue from it.
 
My dad is a retired attorney. You should seek an attorney and not listen to anyone who is not an attorney. You shouldn't be discussing this any further with anyone until you see an attorney.

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Did you notify your employer when you got hurt at work or fill out a WC claim paperwork ?

Thats what I needed to do when I got hurt while working in a supermarket.
 
Originally Posted By: ram_man
About a month ago i was in a car wreck at work. I was stopped so i was in no way at fault. I felt fine after and i haven't worked this job very long so i wanted to make it as little a deal as possible. Well ever since ny neck and head has hurt every day. Last week the employer let me go for a pretty ridiculous reason first time I've ever been fired. So now im sitting here still pretty sore and wondering is their anything i can do now to get it covered by workers comp or has that ship already sailed? O do not want to line my pockets i just don't want to have a permanent issue from it.


So a month ago you were in a work-related car accident. Immediately after the accident you felt fine, but "ever since" you have had neck and head pain, correct?

If "ever since" the accident you have had neck and head pain, why didn't you notify your employer a day or two, or even a week after the accident? You've had around a month to bring up the issue with your employer and file the correct paperwork, but you somehow manage to get fired, and now want to bring up the issue? With nothing said or done about the pain in the month since the accident?

Missouri has a 2 year statute of limitations from the date of the injury, but the fact that you were fired and then immediately "discovered" your injury raises some significant red flags. Your best bet would be to contact an attorney who is competent in personal/workplace injury law and discuss the issue with the attorney.
 
Being in a wreck, there's a police report, and you are therefore identified as having been in an accident, and time and location would therefore identify you being on the books.

Use those facts, and a lawyer for your workers comp, whether you notified the employer (their car ???) or not.

Your dismissal is irrelevant if there's an accident time, date, location, and relevance to your employment.
 
I know here in Ohio there is a 24 hour window to report a worker's comp injury-but a lawyer would be a good idea to steer you in the right direction, I don't know anything about Missouri's laws.
 
Definitely not an attorney, but ALWAYS report any injury, or even potential one, to your supervisor. If you don't the only thing you're doing is putting yourself in jeopardy. Even if you were still employed, you might be on the hook for the medical bills if you didn't report it. Varies from state to state so as skyactiv said, consult an attorney ASAP. At my employer an accident never counted against an employee's safety performance evaluation, unless it occurred to blatantly not following procedure,but not reporting one if it happened did result in a hit in the evaluation.
 
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As long as you reported to your employee/supervisor before you were fired that your neck hurt at some point, you're looking pretty good. If the pain came on after you were fired, that could still be covered by WC as Shannow has suggested as the source of the root cause is likely the accident. Get some legal advice. I know in my state they would cover you unless you went out of your way to be totally negligent in reporting this. Even if you reported the pain to some co-workers while you were still employed, that's a foot in the door.

If you had pain in your neck within hours or days after the accident why didn't your report it? Well, that happened to me at work around 20 years ago. I stumbled while washing down some equipment and banged my back against a vertical pipe. While I was a bit sore on one spot, it seemed like nothing to me. Done stuff like that before a number of times in my life. And having never been treated for a work related injury in my up to them 15 yr career, I just toughed it out like always "knowing" it would go away shortly. But after a week it was worse and started to concern me as it wasn't going away. Reporting it a week later didn't make my employer very happy. Had I done that, some simple non-prescription pain/inflammation products early on could have handled it...instead of it blowing up into an OSHA recordable accident.
 
I mentioned it to them several times they pretty much told me that is normal and I'll be ok. But a month later the pain is still there and id like to get it checked out. Granted i probably should have done it sooner i didnt want to stir up anything during my probation period with the company.
 
as someone that has 90% more knowledge than most on this site re WC, get an attorney that deals with this in your state.
Each state manages things differently.
 
Originally Posted By: ram_man
I mentioned it to them several times they pretty much told me that is normal and I'll be ok. But a month later the pain is still there and id like to get it checked out. Granted i probably should have done it sooner i didnt want to stir up anything during my probation period with the company.


While you're memory is still fresh, write down all the dates and times you mentioned something to your supervisor, management, and co-workers, before you forget. Then contact an attorney/workman's comp.
 
My wife is a Lawyer seek a Lawyer that specializes in your type of case.. DO it now!
I don't know your State Laws but a good local Attorney should. Also check into you being fired>> Is your State an at will state? If so you can be fired for pretty much any reason but there are exceptions to almost every rule.
 
If this was in FL I'd get in touch with my lawyer sister that does WC and labor law, then ask what steps to take. Neck and back pain is not always immediate after a car wreck.

Get a copy of the police report and contact a lawyer in your city.
 
Don't discuss anything online. Talk to an attorney. My old employer has hired a private detective on some workman's compensation claims. They scour social media, talk to neighbors, follow you around to see if claims are legit
 
I think this has run its course. The advice is what it is. It's a private matter that OP should take the advice given and leave it at that.
 
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