The majority of Mississippi employees might recognize that they have a right to pursue a workers’ compensation claim for medical care and forfeited pay when they suffer an on-the-job injury. Although the process might seem straightforward, there are many procedural, evidentiary, and substantive complications that can disrupt, compromise, or completely derail a claim. While most people think of workplace injuries as involving the consequences of a sudden mishap like a motor vehicle collision, fall from a scaffolding, or malfunction of heavy equipment, many job-related injuries are not so immediate and clear. When a person suffers a broken arm in a fall, the cause of injury and the adverse health impacts are often apparent. However, injuries that occur over a protracted period of time pose a more significant challenge when pursuing a workers’ compensation claim.
While some people might discount the severity and debilitating nature of an RSI, these injuries can be extremely serious and lead to permanent disability. An RSI is caused by repetitive motion or exposure to heavy vibration in the workplace. If you are tasked by your employer with engaging in jobs involving a fixed posture or awkward motions for a prolonged period without adequate breaks, this can result in an RSI. Many workplace activities in a broad spectrum of industries promote repetitive motion injuries, including heavy computer work, assembly line jobs, food preparation, commercial drivers, heavy machinery use, road work employees, cleaning staff, carpentry work, and typists just to list a few examples.
A number of types of movements tend to result in an RSI like jobs that require employees to maintain an awkward posture. In other words, tasks that entail a body remaining in a different position from a natural posture, such as stooping, side-to-side movement or backward flexing of the wrist, twisting, reaching up above shoulder level, and bending. Further, employees who engage in continuous use of the same muscles promote fatigue, such as twisting one’s neck to view a poorly positioned computer monitor or constant standing in one spot.
The human body is not well suited to monotonous assembly line or desk related tasks. The muscles and joints of the body need varied movement to promote good health. Contorting the body in atypical positions or repeatedly performing the same movements can cause stress that accumulates over time causing debilitating injuries. The development of many jobs that require employees to remain in uncomfortable positions for most or all of the work day has spawned an increase in RSI claims. When workers are stooped over computers for eight hours a day, they often suffer from back problems, carpal tunnel syndrome, neck injuries, and other RSIs. Similarly, continuous repetitive motion in manufacturing plants can result in tendons and muscle issues that frequently cause chronic joint pain.
While you might have experienced an injury without any precise and obvious cause, such an injury is just as deserving of compensation as a broken bone suffered in a fall. Our Mississippi workers’ compensation lawyers have successfully represented many injured employees during our decades of representing clients. At Barrett Law, our Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Lawyer is here to help. Contact our firm today at 800-707-7577 to schedule your free consultation, so we can answer any questions you may have regarding filing your claim.