While working at a place, many times we are not satisfied with the reaction of the company in a situation of yours. Legal claims are made to empower the employees to get what should. When a person works in a company or is hired by an employer, he gives his significant time of his day to the work. A legal claim comes into picture when the employee suffers because of his work. Claims in the workplace can be in the following cases:
- When a person has a medical bill and loses wages due to working condition
- When a person does not get proper workplace safety causing accident
- When a person experiences bullying in the workplace
- Harassment
It is not always clear how to lodge a claim when you get entangled in a situation. There are certain steps which you can follow and get the advantage that you should get.
Accident claims
When there is any miss happening occurred to you in the workplace, first of all, hunt for medical attention as it results in documentation of your accident. Give a report of the accident to your employer, manager and the company. Ensure that they register your accident report accurately in their accident book. Submit the evidences including photographs, medical reports, witness accounts etc. Later go through the procedures to claim for the benefits or seek legal advice from a lawyer. As per the seriousness and the nature of injury, a court of law is there to decide about the compensation amount.
Claims against workplace bullying
Public humiliation, disrespectful behavior, rudeness, work pressure, getting harassed e-mails, excessive criticism, unwarranted inspection and likewise many. In such cases, the person who suffers should get the help of a solicitor having experience of handling cases related to bullying compensation claims. The ultimate solution can be given by a legal advisor only. In Australia, there is NSW Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 which covers bullying too. In UK, Protection from Harassment Act 1997 is meant to tackle the cases related to bullying. Unfortunately, US has not passed the legislation against bullying in the workplace.
Claims against harassment
Harassment can be briefly defined as any unwanted physical or verbal comment on the subject of gender, religion, skin color, sex, sexual orientation, race, mental and physical disability. Always be familiarized with the harassment policy of your company. There is Employee Anti-Harassment Policy which is meant to be implemented in each company plus a copy of it must be circulated to the employees. If there is no such policy implemented in your organization, campaign yourself to make company to adopt some harassment policy.
The policy should define harassment clearly with examples. It should give the procedure how a person can report of complaints related to harassment. Your report must show the nature and seriousness of the activity and how it violated the company policy of Anti-harassment. Always go through the past complaints of similar kinds as those reports can guide you well.
Author Bio: Lorna Jackson works with the Steinpag business lawyers team and regularly contributes as a guest author to a variety of law and legal related blogs around the web offering tips, advice, and interesting trivia!