A new survey carried out by Fletchers Serious Injury has found that of 1,000 people asked, over 27% suffered a serious injury caused by a workplace accident.
Over 19% of respondents said they would not pursue a claim if they suffered a serious injury, and one in eight respondents said they would be worried about backlash from an employer and damaged career prospects if they tried to claim for a workplace injury.
When queried over motives for not pursuing a claim following a workplace accident, 41% said they would not know how to go about taking legal action. This raises concerns that employers may not be making employees aware of their legal rights and a failure to ensure correct documents are in place, such as health and safety manuals and employee handbooks.
The survey also found differences between serious injury rates in age and sex. Men were revealed to be more likely to be at risk, 33% having suffered a serious injury compared to 18% of women. Also of younger workers between 18-44, 36% had reported a serious workplace injury compared to 13% of workers aged 45 and over. Of course, there are other factors that will play a part in these findings from worker knowledge and experience, job roles, etc. that will impact on the risk of serious injury to an individual.
Chief Legal Officer at Fletchers Serious Injury, Adrian Denson, commented: ''When a person suffers a serious injury at work, coping with the direct physical and psychological consequences is extremely difficult indeed. And as they focus on each small step along the long road to recovery, it can be easy for the person to put their legal rights to one side. The very thought of bringing a legal claim can be daunting with many people not really knowing where they would start.''
''Even more concerning is the substantial number of people that may be suffering in silence out of fear that seeking the help they need will affect their career further down the line, as well as their employer’s bottom line. This is a false, and damaging misconception – particularly when a serious injury can lead to a person being unable to return to work for a long time and often, when they do return, can still limit their ability to carry out their work without pain or worry.''
