Understanding Workplace Injuries In North Carolina

Workplace injuries in North Carolina arise in different ways. Most individuals do not understand that many types of workplace injuries are not compensable pursuant to the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act. Every attorney at Cardinal Law Partners is board certified in North Carolina workers’ compensation law. This type of experience allows our attorneys to help any injured worker and better understand their workplace injuries and best determine whether it falls within the umbrellas of the Workers’ Compensation Act. Below are the three key types of workplace injuries in North Carolina:

• Injuries by accidents
• Specific traumatic incidents
• Occupational Diseases

What Is An Injury By Accident?

For the run-of-the-mill workplace accident to be compensable in North Carolina, there must be an accident. These accidents include any unlooked-for events and injuries that occured after routine working hours. Injuries that result from slips, trips, and falls are the most common workplace injuries. In some cases, injuries result from using a new equipment or when job duties change that make the work routine different. For most types of workplace injuries, the injured worker cannot be simply performing their typical job duties if they want their claims to be accepted by workers’ compensation carriers.

What Is A Specific Traumatic Incident?

For spinal injuries that include the neck and back, the requirement of an accident is relaxed pursuant to the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act. There is no need for an accident when a worker asserts a spinal claim. The injured worker only needs to point to a “specific traumatic incident.” This means that the injured worker only needs to identify and articulate the moment they felt a pop or fullness in their back or neck. Because no accident is required for spinal claims, neck and back claims are typically easier to prove before the North Carolina Industrial Commission.

What Is An Occupational Disease?

Some types of workplace injuries are the result of an occupational disease. The North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act allows for compensation if an injured worker suffers some types of occupational diseases. There is a statute specific to occupational diseases. If injured workers suffer a listed occupational disease, then they only need to show that the work activity was the cause of their diseases. Some of those listed diseases include tenosynovitis and bursitis.

If the disease is not listed in the statute, then the injured worker can still pursue compensation if his or her occupational disease was caused by work-related activities and the job increased the risk of developing said disease. Some common workplace injuries that result from non-listed occupational diseases include carpal tunnel syndrome and rotator cuff tears. For those types of injuries, the injured worker will need to show his or her symptoms are the result of an occupational disease related to work activity and that the job increased the risk of developing an occupational disease.

Call Cardinal Law Partners if you have questions about your workplace injury. We have years of experience handling all kinds of workplace injury workers’ compensation claims. We work hard to obtain all the benefits you deserve. Call us at (833) 444-4127.