Many who are working remotely during the pandemic may wonder if they are covered under workers’ compensation if they are injured while working at home. Generally speaking, employees are covered for work related injuries that occur in the regular workplace or another workplace – it really boils down to whether an injury is work related.
Many who work remotely can attest to the many distractions and interruptions that occur when working from home. From demanding kids to a revolving door of maintenance workers and all the stuff in between, many who work at home do so in sometimes short and extended spurts – logging in work hours when the time is right to do the best job. To determine if your injury is indeed work related and compensable under workers’ comp someone working from home might ask, “Was my employer benefiting from my actions when the injury occurred?”
This is pretty clear cut if you develop a condition such as carpel tunnel for example, while working on your computer at home…performing the same duties at home and work resulting in a debilitating condition is likely to result in a workers’ compensation award. But what if you are working from home and take a break to grab a bite to eat and fall down and are injured in the process? This may also be a compensable injury because even though you were away from your desk, you are benefiting your employer by taking lunch close to your work station just as you would if you went to the break room in your office – saving time and remaining accessible is beneficial to your employer whether you are at home or in the office. Keep in mind, however, that just because you are working from home does not make every injury work related – discuss your situation with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney.
Injured While Working from Home
Contact Our Davenport Workers’ compensation Attorneys Help
For the foreseeable future, many employees will continue to work from home due to the pandemic and employers must continue to provide basic protections to workers through workers’ compensation. If you are injured in your workplace – whether it be at home or at your regular office or worksite – and are denied workers’ compensation benefits, contact the Davenport Iowa workers’ compensation attorneys of McDonald, Woodward & Carlson PC for assistance at 563-355-6478.