Appeals court finds in favor of woman injured on the job

While many workers in Arizona may know about workers’ compensation, most people are trusting enough to believe that, should they ever need it, the system is almost automatic and guaranteed. Unfortunately, this is often far from the case. A woman who was injured on the job in another state had to fight to receive her benefits because her employer had rejected her workers’ compensation claim.

In September 2014, the 21-year-old airport employee was at her job at the international airport when her mother brought her some food. As the employee was driving a luggage tug to get her meal from her mother, the tug flipped. As a result of the crash, the woman lost her lower leg.

The woman’s employer, Starr Aviation, argued that the injury was not work-related, as at the time the accident occurred, the employee was driving to meet her mother and not engaged in work duties. They rejected her workers’ compensation claim. A workers’ compensation board disagreed with the arguments, however, and granted the employee full disability benefits, and an appeals court declared that the aviation company had been in the wrong to reject the woman’s workers’ compensation claim in the first place.

Any Arizona workers who have been injured on the job may find themselves in similar predicaments, denied the full benefits to which they are entitled. A Maricopa County attorney with experience in workers’ compensation will be familiar with the complex legalities of the system and will fight on behalf of his or her clients. With an lawyer’s guidance, the injured worker will increase his or her chances of successfully filing a claim and receiving much-needed benefits.

Source: usnews.com, “Airport Worker Loses Leg, Firm Ordered to Pay Workers’ Comp“, March 8, 2017

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