I work for rent a center in southern nj. Not the worst job i have ever had but not the best either. A little back ground-- I am divorced with 2 kids and a devil of a ex wife. I have to go threw the courts every time to change the times i can see the kids if i need to. This is one of the reasons with i still work at rent a center. I joined them because when the gas prices went to 330 a gallon, i was driving to pa on way 1 hour 2o minutes and i was costing me to much, The rent a center job is 6 minutes away.

The manaer at the store theories he holds are, he is the manager and he manages ( no hands on) and on a 50 hour work week he may be at the store 25 hours. He also says calling out is not good since when he was sick, he had a IV in his arm at the store.

I was at a customers home ( were i got hurt) delivering a dryer in his basement that was very full of junk. i lost my footing and fell backwards and landed on my wrist. the other guy with me (dan) who also works at rent a center helped me up and asked if i was ok. I told him my wrist hurt and i was trying to shake it off.

when we got back to the store, i told the manager and the asst manger what had happened and at that time i did not want to file a accident report ( i knew it would hurt his bonus)

My job requires me lift big screen tvs up stairs and furniture up to 250 pounds. So i began to lift tvs anround the store again after talking to the manager and i began to hurt again.

I went back to the manager and told him i need a accident report done. He asked what i thought should happen and i told him a needed to see a dr and have xrays done.

when i heard him call the info in , i heard him say he saw no reason why i could not work the next day 2/28/06 tuesday and he did not think i was faking. i was told to go to this dr which workmans comp uses. NOT MY DR>

went to dr 245pm saw dr 445 pm xrays and back to dr 510pm

they said no breaks in arm but possible ligament rips and if pain continues mri is next.

went back to store and saw manager and asst manager. Dr note says off till thursday. after that limited work till monday. the manager does not understand this, the asst manager does not undersand this, they do not understand why i cannot do limited work on tuesday and wednesday, The manager begins to call the dr, then hangs up saying i guess we have to go by what the dr says. i leave and tell them i will call tuesday, i did not call.


the questions-- Is it a state or federal law for them to pay me the full day for monday- the day i got hurt.

I think i am going to play this up more, I am going to change my job ( look for a new one) in april or may anyway. my next dr apointment is 830am on monday. it is still hurting right now. i am thinking of getting the mri done.

do i get a lawyer and sue the home owners insurance since i was hurt on his property. a important question.
thanks for reading, keep in mind spelling mistakes or other grammer problems, my wrist hurts.

 

Well what do you want to sue for? Are you not getting covered for your hospital bills or are you so in need of money for your pain and suffering?

 

This is the reason why insurance costs are so high. Are you not being compensated by workers compensation? If you are going to sue you should be suing your employer for putting you in harms way. It would then be up to your employer to sue the home owner for taking you into a dangerous place. Sounds like a lot of paperwork for a sprained wrist if you ask me.

I tore up my elbow a couple of years ago at work. I never said a word. I just worked through the pain until it healed. I got a hurnea at work (I think) last year. I just go to work every day and deal with it. As long as I am careful it doesn't bother. I just have to make sure to hold myself when I cough so it doesn't pop out.

My point....if it aint broke get off your *** and get to work before you make my insurance premiums go up again.

 

To answer your question, workmans comp can vary from state to state, but generally workmans comp does not kick in for three days, although some employers may cover you from day one. On the other hand if the doctor puts restrictions on you, your employer is required by law to accommodate those restrictions and if they don't then you need to call your states labor enforcement agency. If they can't accomodate the restrictions, then they pay you workmans comp to sit at home.

It's doubtful you have any claim against the homeowner since you were on your employers clock, and even then what would sue for? You're own clumsiness?

As for the rest of the post, I would suggest you not post publically about trying to milk workmans comp, it doesn't sound like you're really injured and filing a fraudulent claim will pretty much guarantee you wash dishes for the rest of your life and give most of your wages to the people you tried to rip off.

That being said, anyone who get's injured on the job and doesn't report it is a fool. You may think you're being big and brave, but what happens when you're injury ends up getting worse, possibly leaving you with a disability? Kind of hard to go back and say I hurt my back at work a few years back and now I can't move, can you help me?

 

I just want to clear up a few things. We were moving in the dryer and the area was very tight and nothing ( of his junk) was moved . when i had to back up --my ankles hit there junk and i lost my balance and i fell on it.

I am looking to just be given what is due to me pain and suffering. nothing else.


i am not a clutz i have a good sence of balance.

i have been working for over 22 years and have been in management for over 17 years. i go to work hurt one way or another every day. i did not want to file the work mans comp until i could not do the job anymore

 

Pain and suffering for a sprained wrist which happened while your were on the job.

I doubt that you'd even find an ambulance chaser to take that one on without a serious retainer.

You were injured on the job, make the workmans comp claim, get healed, get back to work and quit trying to be one of those people that employers point to when they claim the system is being abused.

 

you have to be out of work to get workmans comp for 5 days before it kicks in

it takes 6 to 8 weeks to get your first paycheck from the workmans comp

you only get 60 percent of what your paycheck is normally

i did not ask to get hurt i did not want to get hurt. i am not trying to beat the system, but i do not want to be on a loosing end either.

i hope the people who have been negative so far do not get hurt like myself and wait for 6 to 8 weeks for the next check

 

possible torn legaments in the wrist also. the mri will show this to be so or not. do not forget that also.

 

Like I said, good luck finding a lawyer to take your case. After all your legal expenses, you might get lucky and only owe a few thousand, that's if you win, if you lose, you might end up paying two lawyers, yours and the lawyer of the guy you're trying to make a buck off.

 

What kretinus said.

WC entitles you to receive medical care. They sent you to their doctor, you went. In most states you are entitled to ask for a second opinion, usually to their doctor too. (I am in Georgia, we have to post a Panel of Physicians. If I have posted it, and you know it's there, you have to go to one of those Drs to facilitate the process). Dr. gave you 2 days off for sprained wrist? That is pretty liberal. Go to the Dr. when you are supposed to, take the medication, do the therapy, return to work when you are supposed to.

Wrist still hurts too much to work? Tell boss (in person), talk to WC & get another Dr./appointment. Keep appointments. Keep records. Keep a diary (though unlikely you will need it).

Boss has two worries: 1) WC claim reflects to some degree on him. 2) OSHA recordable. Days away from work count worse than days of "restricted duty". I am surprised Doc didn't give you RD for a wrist. I would have had you making copies, counting bolts or something similar. Of course, I would have gone with you to the doc, which is legal and practical.

We had a guy tear cartilage in his knee, got lawyer, had surgery (would have had surgery w/o lawyer - maybe quicker) He was out of work 127 days, cost us/ins $27,000. WC paid medical and pay for however many weeks 127/7 is; got an extra $6000 for "Max Medical Improvement" and "future problems". Child services got $3000 (back child support), lawyer got $1500, schmuck got $1500.

 

MIGHTYFUR huh? Crying over a sprained wrist Photog, you really should have reported that hernia injury, although it may not seem like much now, it will become a problem in the future. My brother had a hernia injury and didnt see a doctor for 5 years when it ruptured, he is going on his third surgery now. Back in the day, if you were hurt, your employer would be goodhearted about it and help you out. Nowadays with everyone being so damn sue happy (see original post) they want to cover their azzes, if you do have problems later cause of that injury, which happened at work, than it will be your medical that will be paying for any medical care, which WC should be paying, not to mention it will be a problem that should have been nicked in the bud right when it happened.

 

I don't know what your regulations are for reporting injuries sustained on the job, but take serious note. If you are injured at work, report it and fill out a claim, or worker's compensation form. (Don't worry about what your boss may say. It's legally his responsibility to report it also and he can take NO action of any sort against you.) That way, if anything comes of the injury in the future, like 15 years down the road you develop arthritis at the injury site, you WILL be eligible for DISABILITY pension. If you don't report it, you suck the big one for the rest of your life.

 

If I'm moving something heavy and I see Junk in the way that might cause me to injur myself; I get the homeowner to move the junk

 

I dont beleive you can sue for pain and suffering for a work related injury unless it was due to your companies neglegence or you were some how permanently dissabled.


I also think you would have a hard time suing the home owner since you were there under a "contractual basis"


If a roofer is working on your house and falls off the roof, he cant sue the home owner. An electrician wiring an outlet that accidently electrocutes himself cant sue the home owner.

It was a risk of the job.

How much do you expect to get for a sprained wrist any ways???

Your attorney fees will probably be more then the settlement.

 

This is what I was thinking.

Why sue the homeowner....that's nuts.

If you saw it was junked up and unsafe you should have asked him to clear the area or you wouldn't proceed.

Take your workers comp but even thinking about suing the homeowner just ticks me off. THere are no free lunches.