• 17
  • February
    2012

Indiana is an at-will employment state, meaning employers can terminate workers for almost any reason, or no reason at all. Most workers understand that if they suffer an injury in the course of employment, the worker should file a workers' compensation claim. What workers may not know, however, is that if an employee was injured as the result of negligence by a third party (meaning not the fault of the employer or the employee,) the injured party may have a third party claim in a court of law against the responsible third party. For example, if I work as a semi driver by transporting products to a grocery store and an employee of the grocery store injuries me with their forklift, I may have a claim against the grocery store and its forklift driver.

Many times, if a construction worker is injured due to third party negligence, the worker may be able to obtain compensation for his or her injuries over and beyond what workers' compensation will provide. Rarely does workers' compensation alone cover all an injured worker's expenses such as medical bills and lost wages.

Also, employees may be injured at work by a defective product.  For example, a punch press that had a "double strike" and injured a body part may be able to sue the product manufacturer, the company that maintained the product, or the company that entered the product into the "stream of commerce" or marketplace.  Indiana's law is very unique because of a "statute of repose" meaning that the product must be less than 10 years old to pursue the manufacturer of the product for monetary damages. 

Workers who wish to keep their jobs but are disabled during the course of employment should know that their employer is required to make an attempt to accommodate the disability. However, the person must still be able to perform the "essential functions" of the job, and employers are not required to create a new position for the disabled employee. If an employer terminates a person who was disabled on the job, the employer may have to pay Temporary Total Disability Payments. Any injured worker should see an attorney as soon as possible to understand his or her rights and to avoid missing deadlines for filing claims.

Doehrman Chamberlain - Indianapolis accident attorneys