Workplace Injuries Caused By Violence

When most people think about workplace injuries in Maryland, they imagine accidents that result in traumatic injuries like broken bones or traumatic brain injuries, or exposure-related or repetitive-use injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome or hearing loss. Yet workplace injuries can also result from acts of violence — violence committed by other employees at the workplace, by clients or customers, and by other parties on the workplace premises. While some people mistakenly assume that workers’ compensation benefits are only for accidental injuries, or those resulting from some type of negligence or repeated exposure, workers’ compensation can also provide workers with the money and care they need after a violence-related injury in the workplace. Our Maryland workers’ compensation lawyers can tell you more.

Understanding Violence in the Workplace 

Acts of violence can occur in almost any workplace in Maryland, but certain industries or specific jobs come with higher risks of violence-related injuries for employees. In 2022 alone, the National Safety Council (NSC) reported more than 500 violence-related workplace fatalities in the United States and more than 57,000 violence-related injuries involving assaults. In general, according to the NSC, acts of workplace violence are classified in one of four categories: 1) criminal intent, 2) customer/client, 3) worker-on-worker, and 4) personal relationship. The last category, according to the NSC, “overwhelmingly targets women.”

In terms of the first three categories, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) identifies the following five occupational groups as those with the highest rates of violence-related workplace deaths and nonfatal injuries, in descending order:

• Sales;
• Transportation;
• Management;
• Construction; and
• Production.

In addition to these categories, health care workers — especially those who work closely with patients, such as nurses — also sustain high rates of violence-related workplace injuries, typically involving patients. This is particularly true in nursing home settings and in facilities where health care providers attend to patients with cognitive impairments.

Seeking Compensation After a Violence-Related Injury in the Workplace 

To be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits for an injury arising out of an act of violence in the workplace, the injured worker will need to take the same steps they would need to take in order to seek compensation for any other type of injury that arose out of and occurred in the course of employment.

While Maryland workers’ compensation law requires an injury be “accidental” in order for it to be compensable, the definition of “accidental” is broad and does include unexpected acts of violence that harm employees in the course of their employment.

In addition to workers’ compensation benefits, it also may be possible to file a lawsuit against the party who committed an intentional act of violence. Third-party lawsuits are not especially common in workplace injury cases, but they do occur more frequently in cases involving workplace violence.

Contact a Maryland Workers’ Compensation Lawyer 

If you were injured while you were at work in an act of workplace violence, you should get in touch with an experienced Maryland workers’ compensation attorney at the Law Offices of Steinhardt, Siskind and Lieberman, LLC as soon as possible to find out about your options for seeking compensation. Contact us today to discuss your case.

Sources:

nsc.org/workplace/safety-topics/workplace-violence

bls.gov/opub/ted/2022/workplace-violence-homicides-and-nonfatal-intentional-injuries-by-another-person-in-2020.htm

wcc.state.md.us/Gen_Info/WCC_Benefits.html