120 and 3—The Two Most Important Numbers in Workers’ Compensation
Everyone makes mistakes. Thousands throughout our lives. Most end up causing little to no harm. These mistakes are often beneficial as the damage caused is outweighed by the lesson learned. Some mistakes are more severe. Some can never be undone. In Pennsylvania, if you are injured at work, 120 days and 3 years are two mistakes that cannot be fixed.
If you are injured at work in Pennsylvania, you have 120 days to report the injury to your employer. If you do not report the injury to your employer within this period, you will likely not be able to obtain any Workers’ Compensation benefits.
Reporting an injury is usually simple. You are at work, you slip and fall and break your wrist. You tell your boss what happened and that you are going to the ER. You just satisfied notice. In order to be safe, never assume that just because your boss was there when you got hurt that she knows you are hurt. Make sure you tell her. Email is a great way to ensure you satisfied notice, and it gives you a record of when you provided notice and what you said.
Besides 120 days to notify your employer of an injury, you have 3 years from the date of injury to file a claim with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. This is called a Statute of Limitations. This is a fancy way of saying there is a limit to how long you have to pursue some legal action. This is to ensure that things are done without delay; records will be easily obtainable; and witnesses’ memories are fresh.
The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to contact Abes Baumann as soon as you are injured. That very day. There is no charge to talk. A few minutes of talk now, can save you a lifetime of pain later.