People don’t generally think of grocery stores as hazardous places, but they certainly can be for workers and shoppers. In fact, each year in Georgia, people get seriously injured in a wide variety of ways in grocery stores and other retail stores.
If you work in a grocery store and get injured on the job, you need to know your options for getting all the Georgia workers’ compensation benefits you need. Workers’ comp benefits do not come automatically, and it is always best to get help from a workers’ compensation attorney to ensure that you receive the maximum available benefits for your injury. In addition, if a third party (not your employer or a co-worker) is responsible for your injury, you may have grounds for a personal injury claim in addition to your workers’ comp claim.
What are the most common types of work injuries in grocery stores?
- Back, neck and shoulder injuries — Often grocery workers have to lift or jerk heavy objects, resulting in serious back, neck and shoulder injuries.
- Contact with sharp objects — An obvious place where this can happen is in the grocery store deli or meat and fish section. Contact with slicing machines can cause very serious injuries. People also get seriously injured due to contact with sharp objects in shipping and receiving at grocery stores.
- Injuries from falling objects — Workers suffer multiple types of injuries when stocking aisles and various sections of a grocery store. Falling objects are a real risk in these situations. An object that is high up could fall on your head or shoulders, but ankle and leg injuries are also common when objects fall from stocking carts, shelves and pallets.
- Slip-and-fall and trip-and-fall injuries — These are very common in many types of work environments, but especially in grocery and retail settings. Hazards range from slippery floors to obstructed aisles and pathways. Learn more about these types of injuries at our Slip-and-Fall Overview.
If you suffer a work-related injury, there are specific steps that you must take to get the workers’ compensation benefits you need. Don’t go through the process alone. In far too many cases, workers’ comp benefits are denied due to errors in the filing process, as well as refusal of the insurance company to provide benefits for a legitimate injury. A workers’ compensation lawyer can help you navigate the process and get the medical and wage loss benefits you need. To learn more, please see our Georgia Workers’ Comp Do’s and Don’ts.