They say that ‘hard work does not hurt anyone’, but in many cases, it does. For one of our clients, employed as a process worker, was required to operate machinery on a daily basis. The work was repetitive and heavy. As a result of the repetitive work over a prolonged period, he sustained significant injuries to both of his arms. Injuries from repetitive work are referred to as injuries due to the nature and conditions of employment.
The workers compensation insurer had no hesitation to accept his workers compensation claim for the injuries in which he sustained arising from his employment. The insurer contributed towards payments of his medical expenses, weekly compensation (lost wages) and agreed to a lump sum payment in relation to his impairment.
Though his impairment rating was not significantly high, the injury was a major contributor to his incapacity to work. For a manual worker without the proper functioning of the upper limbs, work is very difficult, and in some cases, not possible at all.
Being relatively young in his working life, our client developed fear and anxiety about the uncertainty of his future. Along with his inability to gain a role in the job market because of his restrictions, he developed a secondary psychiatric condition as well. This further impacted on his ability to return to work.
Although it is notably difficult to prove an employer was negligent in circumstances where the injury resulted from the nature and conditions of employment, we strongly believed that our client had more than a reasonable chance of success in a Work Injury Damages claim (Common Law negligent claim).
We started this process and eventually our client’s future had hinged on this claim as he was not entitled to ongoing weekly compensation payments and at the same time, he was not working as he had been unable to return to any suitable employment. He was not receiving any Centrelink payments either, so essentially, he had no income at all. In the negotiation process of the Work Injury Damages claim, the insurer had offered a very reasonable amount in damages (compensation) and accordingly his Work Injury Damages claim settled.
We had acted for our client from the commencement of his statutory workers compensation claim and ensured he received weekly compensation, as long as the provisions allowed. We also ensured he achieved a very good result for lump sum benefits in relation to his impairment.
In the claim generally, the insurer contributed an amount close to $1,000,000.00. This included, payments made for medical expenses, weekly compensation, lump sum benefits and damages for the Common Law claim. Payments towards his loss of earnings alone was just over $670,000.00.
If you are in the neighbourhood or living afar and have a similar story or want to ask a question about how we can help you in achieving maximum compensation, contact us.
