Employees face a variety of harms in the workplace. When a worker is injured or suffers from an illness as a result of their job, the worker may be entitled to workers’ compensation. Recently, a New York court ruled that a former supermarket manager was entitled to workers’ compensation after his job triggered PTSD that he developed during the Vietnam War.
According to reports, the man worked as a manager for the supermarket and called some of his employees to inform them that hours at work were being cut due to poor sales. Following a phone call to one female employee, the man claims that he was harassed by that woman’s husband. The manager claims that the woman’s husband showed up at his office and threatened to kill him. Over time, the man’s behavior became more erratic. Further attacks on the manager included trying to pay an undercover police officer to perform genital mutilation on the man. The man also poured sugar into the manager’s gas tank.
Eventually, the man was arrested and faced criminal charges for his behavior. The manager claims that the constant threats triggered his PTSD and therefore he is entitled to workers’ compensation. The court agreed.
Workers’ compensation can help employees pay for costs that are associated with occupational diseases and injuries. Workers’ compensation can pay for lost wages, medical expenses, rehabilitation costs and more. This compensation can help workers return to a normal life after an incident at work has injured them in some way. In other words, it ensures that workers do not suffer the burden of the financial costs of a workplace accident or an illness caused by a person’s job.
Source: New York Daily News, “Former New York supermarket boss threatened with genital mutilation gets workers’ comp, court rules,” Deborah Hastings, July 8, 2014