Florida Injury Lawyer Blog
With so many attractions and beautiful weather, Florida is able to welcome tourists year-round. This has led to a thriving tourism and hospitality industry, staffed by hard-working employees that include tour guides, restaurant servers, bartenders, hotel staff, and others. These employees have very demanding jobs—and, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, dangerous jobs as well. BLS reports that tourism and hospitality jobs account for about 5% of all fatal on-the-job injuries each year.
If you’re a tourism and hospitality worker and have been injured on the job or have suffered a work-related injury, contact Flaxman Law Group for a consultation. We can talk about whether you might qualify for workers’ compensation or whether there may be other ways you may be able to seek compensation for lost wages, medical bills, and the other financial stresses you may be facing.
Common Tourism and Hospitality Work Injuries
Workers in this sector can commonly suffer from:
- Cuts. Restaurant workers work around sharp knives and can easily suffer lacerations. In addition, employees working around amusement park rides or other heavy equipment can suffer cuts and bruising in workplace accidents.
- Musculoskeletal injuries. Hotel workers, bartenders, and tour operators may need to stand all day and some of these employees may need to bend and pick up heavy objects as part of their work. This can place added stress on bones, tendons, and muscles, putting them at risk of injury.
- Toxic exposure. Cleaning staff at casinos, amusement parks, hotels, often work with harsh chemicals. These can cause chemical burns, allergic reactions, and skin and lung irritation.
- Hearing loss. Some hospitality workers work in venues where live acts perform or where fireworks are part of the fun. Even the sound volume of a busy bar can be enough to cause hearing damage over time.
- Falls. All hospitality workers are at risk of falls. Employees on tour boats and cruise ships, for example, can slip and fall from a deck. And any worker in a restaurant, hotel, or other establishment can easily fall when running back and forth to serve visitors.
- Burns. Hospitality workers serving food or working in restaurants or coffee shops can suffer serious burns if they spill hot food or drinks or if there is a grease fire in the shop.
- Violence. Unfortunately, tourism and hospitality workers sometimes deal with upset visitors. In some cases, these situations can escalate, and an employee may end up getting hit, punched, or assaulted.
What Options Do You Have as a Tourism and Hospitality Worker?
In Florida, most employers, including in the tourism and hospitality industry, need to pay for workers’ compensation for their workers, even if their employees work part-time. So, if you’re injured or become ill because of your job, you should have access to workers’ compensation benefits. Depending on the situation, you may also have the right to file a claim. For example, if a visitor assaulted you, you may be able to file a legal claim against that person or other liable parties.
To claim your benefits, it’s important that you get medical help for your injury right away and report the injury or illness to your place at work. This way, you’re gathering evidence and your employer can file a claim with their insurance company.
Even if you have every right to workers’ compensation benefits, not all insurers and employers treat their workers fairly. This is why many employees turn to a workers’ compensation attorney. An attorney can deal with the often-complicated process of filing a claim and can use their experience to increase your chances of getting fair benefits or recovery.
If you’ve been injured at work, don’t hesitate to call Flaxman Law Group at 866-352-9626 to speak to a Florida workers’ compensation attorney. Our father-son attorney team is here to explain your options and to help you understand what it will take to pursue the benefits you deserve.