Are You in a Dangerous Job?

While no job is without risk, there are some jobs that are simply more dangerous than others. These professions may not be the most deadly, but they lead to the most injuries each year—and some of the most worker’s compensation claims. According to the Department of Labor, there are more than 3 million non-fatal workplace injuries each year in the United States. These injuries occur in a variety of sectors, but the following professions endure some increased risk.

• Health Care Professionals—from hospitals to clinics, health care workers are exposed to risk every day in their jobs. Exposure to illnesses, toxic chemicals, hazardous waste, and workplace violence highlights the list of ways healthcare workers can be injured. In addition, heavy lifting and long-hours contribute to a variety of back and muscle strains and sprains. Nursing home workers have an average illness and injury rate of 8.3%, while hospital workers experience a 7% injury rate.
• Transportation Workers—Whether you drive a bus or a train or fly a plane, transportation workers experience significant risk on the job. In the trucking industry alone, there are nearly a half million accidents every year. Yet employees working in air transportation face even greater risk of injury—at a rate of 8.1%.
• Manufacturing Employees—heavy machinery and sharp equipment make manufacturing jobs inherently dangerous. In particular, those who were employed in the beverage and tobacco manufacturing trades faced the greatest risk of injury with a 6.4% injury rate. These injuries can be significant and require long-term disability benefits.
• Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting—Animal production workers experience a 5.2% injury rate in their jobs, which makes their job at a higher risk for injury than loggers and even fisherman. Yet loggers and fisherman are in the most deadly professions. When an accident occurs in a logging company, they are more severe and usually result in death.
• Entertainers—Few people would consider this an injury related field, but the entertainment industry incorporates sports players and performing artists. These artists and athletes are at an increased risk for muscle strains, sprains, ligament tears, broken bones, and head injuries.

No matter what your job is, if you are injured while on the job, then you have a right to receive worker’s compensation to pay for medical expenses, lost wages, and more. Yet even when you are clearly injured on the job, workers often experience difficulties obtaining this compensation. When this occurs, an experienced Seattle worker’s compensation lawyer may be needed to fight for your employee rights.

Contact Seattle Worker’s Compensation Attorneys

If you have been injured on the job and have questions regarding your worker’s compensation, an experienced Seattle worker’s compensation attorney at Phillips Law Firm can help. If you are interested in learning more about your legal options, call us at 1-800-708-6000. Our Seattle worker’s compensation attorneys are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee.

The workers’ compensation lawyers at Phillips Law Firm have successfully represented injured individuals and their families in Seattle, Tacoma, Vancouver, Bellevue, Everett, Kent, Auburn, Renton, Federal Way, Bellingham, Marysville, Lakewood, Redmond, Shoreline, and throughout the State of Washington.