Workers’ compensation claims are made to cover a wide variety of situations. Different occupations carry different job responsibilities that often require overworking certain body parts for those who are involved in manual labor. The result for many workers is that they suffer injuries due to repetitive motion from often using the back, legs, hands, and shoulders in constant motion while on duty. However, when it comes time to file for workers’ compensation, they do not have a specific workplace accident to use as support of the claim. This can assuredly complicate the matter, but luckily for Minnesota workers, claims can be filed directly with the Minnesota Workers’ Compensation Insurance Administration.
Establishing a repetitive stress injury
The first steps in filing for workers’ compensation due to a repetitive stress injury are establishing the employment relationship and providing medical proof of the injury. Typical repetitive stress injuries include carpal tunnel, bursitis, arthritis, shoulder separation, and some back injuries. The MWCIA will issue a workers’ compensation case number to open the claim.
Employer response
Once the claim is opened, the employer will be notified in writing if they have not been beforehand. Many employers are well aware of a potential workers’ compensation claim long before the filing, as some injury claims are actually opened by the employer when they agree it is work-related. Workers’ compensation insurance companies doing business in Minnesota will also have input in the case regarding the work relationship and connection between job responsibilities and the particular injury.
The concept that repetitive motion injuries can be definitively work-related is well-established. Many claimants think the claim is unwinnable, but the truth is that many injured workers have successfully filed claims with solid legal representation.