No one expects anything bad to happen when they go into the office, but workplace accidents are surprisingly common. Around 2.3 million people worldwide have work-related accidents each year.. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a doctor, a marketing executive, or a medical malpractice attorney. However secure you may feel at work, there is always something that could go wrong. You could trip down the stairs, scald yourself on boiling coffee, or electrocute yourself on a faulty outlet. No one is ever completely safe from harm.
If you have injured yourself at work, it is understandable that you may feel you have been let down by your employer. It is their responsibility to keep their staff safe and happy at work, and if you end up in the hospital then it’s clear that they haven’t fulfilled their duties.
You might be asking yourself whether you should sue your employer for financial compensation. Although this will help you with your hospital bills and in some way make up for the distress caused, you may be reluctant to cause trouble and burn your bridges with your colleagues.
If you are undecided about taking legal action, here are the pros and cons of suing your employer.
The Pros
You will receive rightful compensation
Depending on the severity of your injury, you may have had to fork out for medical bills or pain medication. At the very least it will have disrupted your normal life in some way. Taking legal action against your employer will give you the compensation that you are rightfully owed.
Your employer was negligent
In many cases, a workplace injury is the result of a freak accident that no one could have foreseen. But on the other hand, it may have been a completely avoidable consequence of employer negligence. If you feel that your manager or company were at fault and have wronged you, you are well within your right to take action.
It may prevent future accidents
If you have been injured, what’s to stop the same thing from happening to other people in future? If you do nothing, then further incidents may occur. Suing your employer will spur them into action to prevent this happening ever again.
The Cons
Your employer may not be at fault
If you tripped on a step because you had your head in your phone, or you spilled your hot coffee on your arm because you had wet hands then this accident was not the fault of your employer. Yet many people successfully sue all the time for similar reasons. Although you might be tempted by the financial windfall, you shouldn’t take legal action against someone who is effectively innocent.
You could damage your reputation
Although you can’t legally be fired for suing an employer, it may damage your reputation within your industry and potentially burn bridges with your employer. If your priority is to maintain a good relationship with your company and build your career within the industry then you may want to think twice.