Study Shows Common Workplace Injuries
Workers in the retail industry miss 24 days of work each year on average due to injuries, according to a claims data analysis performed by insurance holding company Amtrust Financial Services. The company looked at workers’ compensation claims from more than 20,000 incidents that occurred between 2016 and 2018. Injured workers in Arizona may be entitled to funds from the state’s workers’ compensation system. The AmTrust Retail Risk Report identified the types of injuries that were most likely to result in lost time at work.
The highest average payouts were associated with slips and falls from scaffolding or ladders, for which employees received $21,000 on average. The next highest payouts were for repetitive motion injuries and motor vehicle crashes, for which the injured workers received an average of $14,000 and $13,900, respectively. The average payment for injuries was higher for men, $11,641, than it was for women, $7,030. Nearly a quarter of payments made for claims in the top ten injury categories were linked to employee lifting activities.
The study also found a correlation between the age of the injured worker and the amount of the payout. The older the worker was at the time of his or her injury, the higher the average payout for injuries. The most dangerous classes of work, according to the study, were fish, poultry or meat retail, hardware, auto parts and accessories and beauty parlors, barbershops or styling salons.
An Arizona lawyer might be able to help injured workers makes claims for recovery. The Arizona workers’ comp system is designed to help workers receive payments without requiring them to turn to the courts. A lawyer might gather evidence and put together a claim for submission to the relevant agencies. The lawyer might also communicate with workers’ compensation officials on behalf of the client or file an appeal in cases where a claim has been previously denied.