Has Heavy Lifting at Work Hurt Your Back?
Every seven seconds a worker is injured at work, leading to about 99,000,000 lost production days because of work-related injuries in the United States each year. According to the National Safety Council, the leading cause of these injuries and lost time from work is overexertion—which includes lifting heavy materials.
How Heavy Lifting Causes Injury
Back sprains, strains, and herniated disks can all result from heavy lifting. These types of back injuries may be:
- Acute back injuries. These are immediate injuries that occur from lifting one or more items that are too heavy to be lifted safely.
- Chronic back injuries. These injuries occur because of the repeated stress of lifting over time.
Both types of back injuries may also occur if a worker doesn’t use the correct posture while lifting materials. Currently, there are no federal regulations in place to regulate workplace lifting. However, employers should take reasonable precautions to prevent lifting injuries.
Acute and chronic back injuries can be debilitating, they can be painful, and they can lead to lost time from work.
What to Do If You’ve Been Hurt
If you’ve suffered a back injury from the heavy lifting you do at work, then there are three things that you should do as soon as possible:
- First, you should get medical help. It is important to see a doctor who can treat your injury and who complies with your employer’s workers’ compensation rules.
- Second, you should report your injury to your employer. You may tell your employer about your injury, but it is important to follow up in writing or with an email so that there is a written record of your report.
- Third, you should find out more about your rights so that you can protect your recovery. You can do that by browsing the extensive free resources on this website or calling Steve Lee directly.
Surgery and other treatments for back injuries are expensive. You deserve to know whether you may be eligible for workers’ compensation or other compensation so that you don’t suffer financially while you suffer physically. Please contact the law office of Steve M. Lee, P.C., via this website or by phone for your free initial case evaluation today.