An injured worker came to us recently and shared two awful things that happened to her when she got hurt at work. By way of background, she is a receptionist at a company that does heavy labor. So while her job is relatively light duty, it is a company that sees work injuries all of the time.

The company mailbox is outside and part of her job requires her to go get the mail. On the day she did this, it had snowed a lot, as it does in Chicago, and she unfortunately slipped on ice that had formed on the walkway.

This is a clearly compensable work related injury as she was doing her job duties when she got hurt. What happened next is gross.

The first thing that happened when she told her manager that she fell is they responded by stating that office workers are not eligible for Illinois work comp benefits. That is a flat out lie. EVERY employee is covered by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act. It was especially gross because when she reported it, she believed (correctly) that she had broken a bone in her wrist when she fell.

The second thing that happened is that her manager refused to fill out an incident report. This is something that happens all of the time at all sorts of companies. I have no idea why they do this. Maybe they think that if they do not fill out a report that no claim will happen and you will lose your rights under Illinois law. Whatever their motivation is, it’s a waste of time.

While an incident report does create a paper trail and can be helpful, you do not need one to have a work comp case. Here is what you need to do instead:

  • Document the injury by reporting it via email to your employer. It can go to HR, your boss or anyone in authority. Keep it simple, e.g. Just confirming that when I went to get the mail two days ago, I slipped on ice and hurt my wrist.
  • Go to the doctor. It can be a family doctor, the ER, urgent care, etc. Get there as soon as you can and tell them how you got hurt. You do not need health insurance for this. If it is a work related injury, work comp should pay for everything.
  • Hire an attorney so they can file an application for adjustment of claim for you. This is the official paperwork that puts your employer on notice that you are pursuing your rights and works similar to an incident report. It will also make them turn the claim in to their insurance company. From there, things usually go smoothly.

It is only the worst employers who do not care about their workers who do stuff like this. The good news is that they can not lie or delay their way out of giving you a right that every Illinois worker has.

If your employer will not fill out an incident report or you need help with any part of a case, please contact us any time. We would be thrilled to offer you a free consultation.