Whole Foods Workers’ Compensation Attorney

As a Whole Foods grocery store employee, you could face a potential injury due to improper hazard signage, outdated equipment, or poorly maintained store grounds. If you were injured on a morning, mid-day, or overnight shift, you are entitled to receive workers’ compensation benefits.

You may be wondering, what are the next steps if I get injured at work? Who is responsible for paying my medical bills? How much time do I have not to work but still get paid? What are my deadlines for filing a workers’ compensation claim?

We hear these questions often at the Todd J. Leonard Law Firm, and we have the answers for you. Workers’ compensation is a complex area of law, and an injured Whole Foods worker must meet many deadlines. Contact us today, and we will explain your legal rights at 973-920-7900.

Whole Foods Work Accidents Mean Lost Wages and New Medical Bills

Under New Jersey law, employers not covered by federal programs must have workers’ compensation coverage or be self-insured.

If work-related injuries or death occurs on the job, the employer and other company officials can be held liable for medical costs, temporary and permanent disability, or dependency benefits.

There are civil penalties in New Jersey for officers of a company and the employer when they do not maintain workers’ compensation insurance for their employees. Awards or penalties from a workers’ compensation claim can become liens against the uninsured employer and company officers.

Why You Need to Hire a New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Today

Hiring a New Jersey workers’ compensation lawyer increases your chances of obtaining the full range of benefits you are entitled to for your work-related injury. Filing a workers’ compensation claim on your own can be problematic due to the complex field of forms and other requirements needed to file. You may face issues with your employer trying to get you back to work before you can manage it physically, or they may deny benefits if they do not feel a specific medical treatment is necessary.

At the Todd J. Leonard Law Firm, our experienced workers’ compensation attorneys investigate your workplace accident and gather the necessary evidence to support your claim. We also ensure paperwork is submitted correctly and on time, avoiding common mistakes that may lead to your application being denied.

It is essential to be aware that insurance companies use the workers’ compensation system to exploit and shortchange injured workers. They may question the severity of your injuries or suggest the injuries were not work-related. Your Todd J. Leonard Law Firm workers’ compensation lawyer will fight for your rights against those insurers. We ensure you get the benefits you are entitled to receive.

Typical Work Tasks Whole Foods Workers Are Expected to Perform

Whole Foods cashiers, floor associates, overnight stockers, and supervisors are expected to perform various activities. Any worker could be involved in an in-store accident, even doing what may seem to be mundane tasks. Some of the in-store tasks workers perform include:

• Maintaining clean aisles, walkways, and bathrooms.
• Keeping shelves and display clean, visually appealing, and well-stocked.
• Removing out-of-date products, rotating them, and checking codes.
• Keeping all department signage up-to-date.
• Keeping back stock in good order.
• Operating all grocery equipment appropriately and safely.

Many jobs involve working with and lifting heavy items. This includes stocking shelves, using dangerous equipment to move store items, building and maintaining displays, and being familiar with the equipment used to do their jobs.

Even if a task seems mundane, like washing the floors, it can result in someone slipping, tripping, and falling. Opening boxes to unload stock can result in dangerous cuts. Working in the meat department can mean tripping over racks in the cold room. Operating a forklift requires training, and many employees are, unfortunately, injured in forklift accidents each year.

Risks Whole Foods Clerks and Store Associates May Face Daily

Whole Foods headquarters are in Austin, Texas, operating under the name of Whole Foods Market. More than 500 stores in the US and globally employ approximately 87,000 people. Whole Foods workers face numerous risks while on the job. Those include, but are not limited to:

• Slips and Falls
• Repetitive Motion Injuries
• Neck, Back and Spinal Cord Injuries
• Burns and Electrocution
• Rotator Cuff / Shoulder Injuries
• Knee, Ankle, Foot Injuries
• Eye Injuries
• Broken & Fractured Bones
• Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI)
• Lacerations, Punctured Wounds
• Strained, Sprained, or Torn Muscles

Do You Need a Physician’s Approval to Return to Work?

Yes, a doctor should approve your return to work. Your primary physician should determine whether you have fully recovered. If it is safe for you to resume work, they need to decide whether it is part-time or full-time. If your doctor cleared you to return to work, you must do so. If you do not, you could lose your right to receive benefits. The same holds true when the doctor decides you can return to work with light-duty restrictions. It is common for the insurance company’s doctor to push you to return to work to stop paying you temporary disability benefits.

What To Do If You Are Injured at Work as a Whole Foods Clerk

Do not wait until the end of your shift to tell your manager about your injury. Tell your manager about the injury right after it happened. If your manager is not available, then speak to human resources or an assistant manager.

Always keep a detailed record of the time, date, place, type of injury you sustained, and whom you informed. Make sure another person you work with knows about your accident and injury. They can act as a witness if need be. You may be required to see a company doctor, or you may be allowed to see your physician, but have to pay for your visit. If you are told to see a company doctor, you must do so, or your workers’ compensation claim may be denied.

Keep complete records on the medical care you received, including all expenses, trips to the doctor, and other related costs and appointments, such as going for physical therapy or surgery.

Get emergency medical care if you severely cut yourself while preparing food for the deli or cutting meat. Fill out the required accident reports and follow all the necessary steps to fill out a workers’ compensation claim.

In filling out your workers’ compensation form, you need to include your full name, what your job is at Whole Foods, what type of injury you sustained, when, where, and how the injury happened, and the names of anyone else involved in the accident.

Evidence a Whole Foods Employee Needs to File a WC Claim

• To file a workers’ compensation claim, you need evidence to support your injury claim. You need to file it with your claim form to do this. The type of evidence you may need to support your workers’ compensation claim includes:
• Proof you reported your accident and injury to a supervisor within the required deadline.
• Written and signed reports from trustworthy eyewitnesses.
• Any pictures of the accident location show the accident’s cause, such as tripping over boxes, slipping on a wet floor, or showing how you cut yourself.
• If possible, get in-store videos from the surveillance cameras.
• Provide the doctor’s report outlining all injuries and an expected recuperation time.
• Receipts for all medical treatments.
• Unpaid invoices for treatment already provided.

The items on this list are difficult to compile. If you need help, reach out to the Todd J. Leonard workers’ compensation attorneys. We’ve got decades of experience and can check your claim form with you. It is essential to know the most common reasons for denying workers’ compensation claims: failure to file your accident report by the set deadline and not having witnesses who vouch that you hurt yourself at work. It is also important to note that a work accident at Whole Foods that aggravates an initial or pre-existing condition is still compensable under workers’ compensation law.

Why You Should Have a Lawyer File Your New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Claim

Working with an experienced New Jersey workers’ compensation lawyer makes obtaining benefits much more straightforward and can increase the chances your claim gets approved and maximize the number of benefits. To successfully bring a workers’ compensation claim, you need to know what information to include. Failing to present relevant details can delay a claim or result in your claim being denied. You may need to contact multiple healthcare providers, asking for your medical records. You also need to include details on how the accident occurred. At the Todd J. Leonard Law Firm, we will handle all workers’ compensation-related items on your behalf.

Contact the Experienced Whole Foods Workers’ Compensation Lawyers at the Todd J. Leonard Law Firm Now!

If you were recently injured in a workplace accident, this is undoubtedly a difficult time for you and your family. The workers’ compensation lawyers at the Todd J. Leonard Law Firm understand the challenges you face and want to help protect your rights. We aggressively represent every client we serve, ensuring they recover the benefits they need to move on with their lives after a serious accident while on the job.

Whether it be through a workers’ comp claim and/or a third-party personal injury case, our worker’s compensation and personal injury lawyers will help you navigate the complexities of the process, so you can focus on your recovery. We have recovered over $100 million for our clients and can effectively negotiate on your behalf with even the largest insurance companies. We have successfully served thousands of clients throughout New Jersey. To learn more about how we can help you pursue a workers’ compensation claim, give us a call today at (973) 920-7900 to request a free and confidential consultation. You can also connect with us through our online form. There is never a fee unless we win. We have two conveniently located offices in Denville and Morristown, New Jersey.