Burn Injuries

Find the Help You Need Following a Burn Injury at Work

Burn injuries, depending upon their severity, can keep injured workers off the job for lengthy periods, as well as result in lifelong effects. The American Burn Association reports that there are roughly 30,000 burn injuries serious enough to require hospitalization each year. And if a burn injury is serious enough to require hospitalization, it likely is serious enough to require extensive rehabilitation. If you’ve suffered a work-related burn injury, a Long Island work injury lawyer can help you obtain the benefits to which you are entitled before you return to work.

The Three Types of Burns

All burns can be split into three different categories according to their severity, as well as the likelihood that they will necessitate a workers’ compensation claim:

• First-degree burns: These are the least severe types of burns, affecting only the outer layer of skin and causing mild to moderate pain. They typically don’t require extensive medical treatment or keep sufferers out of work. However, if the burn is on a sensitive or critical area — such as the hand — a workers’ comp claim may be necessary.
• Second-degree burns: These burns go deeper into the skin, penetrating the outer and underlying layers. They typically cause blisters, swelling, and significant pain. Since they almost always require medical attention and can prevent sufferers from working for several weeks, they often form the basis of workers’ compensation claims.
• Third-degree burns: These are the most serious types of burns, destroying all layers of skin and sometimes even extending into underlying fat and muscle. They may not be painful initially because they often destroy nerve endings. Third-degree burns require hospitalization and long-term medical care and almost always form the basis of workers’ compensation claims if they are work-related.

The degree of a work-related burn is not necessarily what entitles the sufferer to benefits — the question is whether the burn is serious enough to require time away from work. For help proving that your burn falls into that category, speak to a Long Island work injury lawyer.

Primary Causes of Burn Injuries

Workplace injuries involving burns can occur in many different contexts. Some of the most common causes of burn injuries in the workplace include:

• Contact with hot surfaces, liquid, or steam: Thermal burns are the most common work-related burn, primarily affecting employees who handle or work around hot equipment, boiling liquids, or pressurized steam. These types of burns are common in the restaurant and hospitality injuries.
• Electrical accidents: Electrical burns can occur when a worker comes into contact with a live wire, an overloaded circuit, or malfunctioning equipment. They are especially common among electricians and construction workers.
• Exposure to chemicals: Corrosive substances, including cement and industrial cleaners, can often result in chemical burns to the skin, eyes, or respiratory system. They are common among laboratory technicians, custodial staff, and sanitation workers.
• Fires and explosions: Fires can break out in any workplace, while explosions often result from gas leaks or unsafe storage of chemicals. However, they are especially common among firefighters, as well as in the utility and construction industries.
• Cold burns and frostbite: While most burns are caused by heat, the opposite can also occur — workers exposed to freezing temperatures or cryogenic materials, including utility repair crews and farmers, risk cold burns.

Eligibility of Burn Injuries for Workers’ Compensation

As we mentioned above, the type of burn a worker suffers is not the most relevant question for workers’ compensation eligibility purposes. Rather, the key inquiry is whether the injury was work-related — i.e., whether it was incurred in the course of the worker’s duties. For example, a lab technician who is splashed with a corrosive chemical is likely eligible to file a workers’ compensation claim. However, a worker injured in a car fire while commuting to work likely would not. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rules, which is why you should speak to a Long Island work injury lawyer if there’s even a possibility that your injury could be considered work-related.

How to Begin a Workers’ Compensation Claim After a Burn Injury

To begin a workers’ compensation claim after a burn injury, the first step is to seek medical attention. You should do this even if the burn injury does not seem that serious initially. If there is even a chance that it could keep you out of work, the medical records from your initial visit can be highly useful for your eventual workers’ compensation claim. Next, notify your employer of the accident. Under New York law, you have 30 days to do this; ideally, you should do so as soon as possible. The third step (at least during this initial phase) is to file your Employee Claim Form with the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board within two years.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Workers with Burn Injuries

Injured workers in New York are entitled to three different varieties of workers’ compensation benefits — medical benefits, cash benefits, and death benefits. Medical benefits cover the full cost of all medical care that is necessary to get you back on the job, including emergency room visits, surgery, prescription medications, physical and occupational therapy, and medical devices. Cash benefits are designed to replace some — but not all — of your wages during your convalescence. They are equal to two-thirds of your average weekly wage multiplied by the percentage of your disability. So, for example, assume that an injured worker’s average weekly wage is $1,100 and she is 60% disabled from her accident. Her weekly cash benefit would be roughly $440. Death benefits are equal to two-thirds of the deceased worker’s average weekly wage payable to the worker’s surviving spouse and/or minor children, as well as funeral expenses up to $12,500.

Ease Your Recovery with Help from a Long Island Work Injury Lawyer

If you have suffered a burn injury that is keeping you out of work, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. To learn more, please contact a Long Island work injury lawyer at Turley, Redmond & Rosasco by using our online form or calling 516-745-5666 (Garden City), 631-582-3700 (Ronkonkoma).