Receiving a call that your spouse was injured at work is scary, but it might not be the scariest thing you have to deal with regarding the situation. In some cases, employees are reluctant to seek medical care for the on-the-job injury, and they may not want to file for workers’ compensation.
There are a variety of reasons why an employee may not want to seek medical treatment or file for workers’ compensation, but most of those reasons are based on misinformation. Understanding how to help them may be beneficial.
Fear of retaliation
One of the major fears of a person who’s been injured at work is that they will face negative employment actions if they report it or file for workers’ compensation. They shouldn’t worry about that because retaliation is illegal when it’s due to a protected activity, and a work-related injury and filing for workers’ compensation are both protected.
Concern about being able to work
Some people may be concerned about being able to return to work after the injury. If they don’t report the injury, they may believe they can continue to work as usual. However, this can be unsafe and may lead to them suffering more than they have to.
Ultimately, being there to support your spouse is what’s important. Some may not respond well to being pushed into reporting the injury or filing for workers’ compensation. With that in mind, it might be best to simply remind them that they only have 30 days to report the injury and that they shouldn’t face retaliation for the report. It may be beneficial for them to work with someone familiar with these matters so they can learn their options and determine how to proceed.
