Massachusetts Workers Compensation Lawyers Blog
According to a recent news article from CBS, a restaurant worker was on the job in New York’s Greenwich Village neighborhood when he was slashed with a knife. Authorities report a homeless man entered the restaurant with a knife and attacked. The assailant fled before police arrived.
The police do not yet know why the attack occurred and whether it actually occurred in front of restaurant or inside. While they are not clear on the exact motive, there is always a question as to the mental state of the city’s many homeless individuals, since many of them suffer from serious mental health conditions, including schizophrenia with paranoid delusions. This is one of the many reasons they are living on the streets, according to many researchers looking at homelessness in areas like Boston and across the country.
After the worker was stabbed, first responders arrived on the scene and treated him for his injuries, which consisted of serious lacerations to the face. He was taken to a local level-one trauma center to be treated for his injuries, and, fortunately, he is expected to survive.
While workers’ compensation cases in Boston and across the country typically involve an injury caused by an on-the-job accident, injuries caused by an attack of third person are often covered by workers’ compensation insurance. It is generally only necessary to establish the victim was an employee and the employee was working within the scope of his or her employment in order to be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits.
In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, a worker is typically entitled to compensation for lost wages, past medical expenses, future medical expenses, and the cost of rehabilitation and occupational therapy. There is however, no provision for compensation for pain and suffering under workers’ compensation system. There is, however, special compensation allowed for special types of injuries that is paid above and beyond a standard workers’ compensation benefits award. In the case of a worker who was slashed with a knife, that worker may be entitled to special compensation for any permanent scarring.
Under the workers’ compensation law in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, a worker is entitled to special benefits as a one-time payment for any permanent scarring to the head, neck or hands. This money is available in many cases as a lump sum payment, and, if you were scarred in a workplace injury, you should discuss this issue with your experienced Boston workers’ compensation attorney to see if this provision of the law applies to the facts or your actual situation.
There are other types of special damages in Massachusetts that are available if an on-the-job accident results in an amputation to all or part of an arm, leg, hand, or foot. It should also be noted that the injured employee may have valid claim against the alleged assailant, but if that person is homeless, he or she does not likely have any assets to pay civil judgment.
If you or someone you love has been injured in a Boston work accident, call for a free and confidential appointment at (617) 777-7777.
Additional Resources:
Restaurant Worker Slashed In Face In Greenwich Village, February 17, 2016, CBS, By News Desk
More Blog Entries:
Elevator Mechanic Killed when Falling Down Shaft, Jan. 24, 2015, Boston Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Blog