Disability and Work Injuries

The Disability Discrimination Act was passed 25 years ago this year, and with it came a new set of rights for disabled people across the UK. It has since evolved into the Equality Act, but many of the same fundamentals apply. Yet there is still a link between accidents at work, disability and work injuries.

The Act works to protect people with disabilities from discrimination. It was made in 1995, and was replaced with The Equality Act in 2010.

Yet there are still obstacles that disabled people face in the workplace. These obstacles can include employer negligence, which can lead to accidents at work.

Disability and Accidents at Work

The main issue involving disability and work injuries is accidents at work. There are many different accidents that a person can have at work.  Your employer has a duty of care to make sure that you are safe and do not have any accidents that cause injury whilst at work. If they fail in their duty of care, then you may be able to claim compensation. An example of this is if an employer fails to make sure you have all the help you need to lift something safely. In this case, you may be able to make a claim.

Employers have even more of a duty of care to disabled employees to ensure they are kept safe at work, especially if the disabled employee is a vulnerable person.  So, if an accident occurs which causes injury, then there may be even more grounds to make a claim.

Accidents at Work that Can Cause Disability

There are some kinds of accident at work that can leave the employee with a disability. These types of accident are prevalent in the construction and manufacturing industry, where there is a lot of working at height.

Falling from height is one of the most common causes of accidents that lead to disability at work. The further a person is working from the ground, the more they are at risk. This means that their working conditions are also more dangerous. Employers must follow the rules set out in the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and must ensure that they carry out regular risk assessments of the job the employees are doing, and the equipment they are using.

Other types of accidents at work that can cause disability include construction site accidents, factory accidents, defective machinery accidents, and chemical burns. There is a risk of accidents at work leaving someone with a disability in any industry, but these are more common ones.

How we Can Help

Here at The Compensation Experts, we work with solicitors who have years of experience dealing with compensation claims. This includes accidents at work and work-related stress claims. If you have experienced either of these in the last three years, then contact us today by filling in our contact form, or by calling us on 01614138765 to speak to one of our friendly, knowledgeable advisors.