Warehouse injuries remain one of the most commonly listed reasons for an employee seeking workers’ compensation benefits. With accidents involving dangerous machinery that can lead to crushed limbs, hands or fingers and even amputation, broken bones, lacerations, electrical burns, and wrongful death, these employees need all the protection they can get.
If you are employed by a McLane Warehouse and have been hurt at work, let Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys assist you in the workers’ compensation process.
About McLane Warehouses
McLane Company, Inc. is one of the largest supply chain services in the United States, providing grocery and foodservice solutions for a number of stores and chain restaurants. McLane operates more than 80 distribution centers and buys, sells and delivers more than 50,000 consumer products to nearly 110,000 locations across the U.S. Further, McLane employs over 20,000 employees.
McLane also provides its employees with a number of benefits including Life and Disability coverage with company paid life insurance, short-term and long-term disability benefits.
What Makes Warehouses So Dangerous Compared to Other Work-Settings?
From the long-hours worked, to the nature of the physical work environment, warehouses remain one of the most dangerous work environments, despite safety recommendations and regulations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Some of the most common reasons why these industries are more susceptible to workplace injury include the following.
Lack of Personal Protective Equipment
It is estimated that every year, 300,000 Americans visit the emergency room due to a workplace eye injury with many of these injuries resulting from working in manufacturing, construction and mining. While some eye injuries may heal overtime, others can result in permanent blindness, impacting your ability to work in the current capacity you do.
Lack of personal protective equipment is often to blame for these accidents.
Health Issues Because of Airborne Particles
Many of us forget that workers’ compensation isn’t just for physical injuries in a one-off event. It is also applicable to workplace illness that results from years of exposure to toxins, and even airborne particles. Oftentimes, employees may report irritation to eyes, nose, and throat. In serious instances, it can go into the lungs.
In those cases, exposure to dangerous toxins can lead to serious respiratory conditions, renal disease, chemical burns, and mesothelioma.
Repetitive Motion Injuries
Whether you are working on an assembly line or operating a piece of equipment, it is likely that you repeat the same motions or actions multiple times throughout the day, possibly for long periods of time.
This can result in repetitive motion injuries that later on, can cause permanent disability.
Common Warehouse Injuries
According to an employee review from Glassdoor, workplace injuries seem common enough in some sectors of McLane’s business. The review states, “Hard work, long hours, laborious, and injury prone…Injuries, long hours, getting used to 14 to 17 hour days.”
While physical injuries can happen to anyone, when you add in fatigue from long hours, it is even more likely to occur.
Common warehouse injuries to be mindful of include:
- Hearing loss
- Back And neck injuries
- Toxic exposure
- Injuries from falling items
- Slips and Falls
How Can I File a Workers’ Comp Claim as a McLane Employee?
To begin the workers’ compensation claim process as a McLane Warehouse employee, you first need to file an accident report with your employer. At this point, you will have likely received medical attention for your illness and/or injuries, so be sure to keep a record of all that occurred the day of the injury, as well as any medical treatment that you received.
In Pennsylvania, you will likely need to utilize your company’s approved medical provider, even after you sought medical attention from your own provider. Then after 90 days, you can pick your own physician to take over your care.
You must also abide by your state’s filing deadlines as failure to comply will result in denial of your right to claim benefits.
If you are struggling with the workers’ comp claim process, a Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys warehouse workers’ comp attorney can help.
What Injuries Are Likely to Qualify For Workers’ Comp?
While the nature and severity of your injuries will play a role in your workers’ compensation eligibility, no injury that leaves you in pain or unable to work as you once had should be ignored. Common injuries that have qualified for workers’ compensation include:
- Traumatic brain injury
- Concussions
- Head and neck injuries
- Burns and electrical injuries
- Hearing loss
- Vision loss
- Fractures
- Amputation
- Knee, shoulder, and elbow injuries
- Back injuries
- Wrongful death
What Am I Entitled To With Workers’ Comp Benefits?
If you qualify for workers’ compensation benefits, you may be eligible to collect payments for:
- Lost wages
- Medical expenses
- Rehabilitation
- Death
Sometimes, your injury need not leave you unable to work and instead, may have resulted in permanent scarring and disfigurement. In those cases, you may be entitled to specific loss payments.
How much compensation you receive will depend on the facts of your case and the severity of your injuries which impact your ability to work. To maintain the integrity of your claim, keep a log of any and all health-related expenses to ensure you receive the compensation you need in the long-term.
How Can Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys Help Me With a Workers’ Compensation Claim?
While you are never required to hire a workers’ compensation lawyer to help you through the process, you may find it beneficial to do so. If you have already successfully filed and began receiving workers’ comp benefits, you will not need a lawyer. But, if you are struggling, a Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys attorney can help you by:
- Helping you during the claims process.
- Proving the accident occured at work.
- Fighting for your rights in the case of permanent disability.
- Ensuring your employer and the insurance companies move forward with the process in a timely manner as to not impact your benefits.
- Helping you petition the claim if it is denied.
Were You Injured At a McLane Warehouse? Call Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys.
Workplace injuries happen all the time, but it doesn’t mean you should suffer with the consequences. At Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys, our attorneys are well-versed in warehouse and heavy machinery accidents, so if you suffered minor injuries or serious injuries, our team of attorneys and medical professionals can help you and your loved one seek the compensation needed to help you recover and get back to work. And, in the case of death, we will work to protect your family and ensure they get the benefits they need to pay for burial costs, and any expenses related to the injury.
If your workplace injury was a result of negligence by a third party, our attorneys can represent you against manufacturers as we have done for many others, securing millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts. Or, if you are in need of legal representation following a denial of workers’ compensation benefits, or want legal representation by your side the moment you file, at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys, we can help you from start to finish. Remember, no injury is too minor to pursue compensation.
For a no-obligation, free consultation, contact the workers’ compensation attorneys of Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys today by calling 570-209-5514 or by contacting us online.
