Baltimore Correctional Officer Injury Attorney
Correctional officers are frequently injured on the job, and when they are, they have the ability to receive compensation under Maryland’s workers’ compensation laws. As a correctional officer, you are among half a million others who are employed in one of the most dangerous occupational fields that exist. Correctional officers have a nonfatal injury rate of 544 out of 10,000 full time workers, which is an even higher rate of injury than law enforcement officers have. If you were injured on the job, our Baltimore correctional officer injury attorneys at Berman | Sobin | Gross LLP are here to help you file a workers’ compensation claim.
Workers’ Compensation Benefits For Correctional Officers
- Wage replacement compensation;
- Medical coverage;
- Rehabilitation;
- Vocational training; and
- Death benefits for the correctional officer’s family if the injury results in death.
Qualifying Injuries For Workers’ Compensation Benefits
Any injury that happens on the job qualifies a correctional officer for workers’ compensation benefits. The only time an on-the-job injury does not qualify is if it happened while the employee was intoxicated, using drugs, or if they were engaged in an illegal activity. Common correctional officer workplace accidents and incidents include:
- Slip and falls and trip and falls;
- Injuries sustained while detaining or making contact with inmates;
- Injuries caused by inmate violence;
- Contracting infectious disease from inmates;
- Workplace illnesses such as heart disease;
- Traffic injuries caused while transporting inmates; and
- Repetitive strain injuries.
Common injuries include the following:
- Overexertion or bodily reaction injuries;
- Repetitive strain injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome;
- Lacerations;
- Contusions;
- Fractured bones;
- Traumatic brain injuries;
- Whiplash;
- Fractured vertebrae;
- Spinal cord injuries;
- Disc injuries; and
- Facial injuries.
How To Prove The Injury Happened On the Job
Traumatic injuries are usually easy to prove that they happened at work. Coworkers, eyewitnesses, security cameras, and hospital or medical records will provide an accurate account of when the injury occurred, and how it occurred. Repetitive strain injuries that are caused over time, such as a bulging disc, are more difficult to establish both in severity and in how they occurred. After all, many people develop chronic back pain or arthritis in their wrists from non-job-related activities. But if you are suffering from a repetitive strain injury, you can still qualify for workers’ compensation benefits; it will simply take more effort to prove that the injury happened on the job. Finally, establishing a work-caused illness can also be difficult, despite the overwhelming evidence that correctional officers face certain diseases (heart disease, diabetes, high cholesterol, and hypertension)at disproportionately high rates—higher than the general public and even other similar occupations, such as police officers, according to research by the National Institute of Justice.
Call Our Baltimore Correctional Officer Workers’ Compensation Attorneys Today
Baltimore correctional officer workers’ compensation claims are routinely denied for various reasons, or the injured worker is offered drastically reduced benefits instead. You deserve full workers’ compensation benefits, and our Baltimore correctional officer attorneys can help you accomplish this. Contact Berman | Sobin | Gross LLP today at 800-248-3352 to schedule a free consultation.
