Work-Related Repetitive Stress Injuries: Do You Qualify for Benefits?

Yes, you could qualify for workers’ compensation benefits in Chattanooga if your job duties are the primary cause of your repetitive stress injuries and you report them in a timely manner. You can receive workers’ compensation benefits for RSIs just like you can for injuries that happen suddenly, but work-related RSIs can be harder to prove. The benefits you might qualify for include medical, wage replacement, and rehabilitation. Consulting a workers’ compensation lawyer can make your case stronger and help you get the full amount of benefits for which you are eligible.

Why you could qualify for work-related RSI benefits

Tennessee recognizes that many injuries happen gradually, especially in jobs involving repetitive motions, forceful motions, or long periods in the same position.

Your job duties are the primary cause of the RSIs

Many employees in the Chattanooga area perform repetitive tasks such as typing, scanning, lifting, and gripping tools. They may work in offices, on assembly lines, or in stores stocking shelves. The repetitive motions each workday stress the same nerves, muscles, and tendons, and frequently cause or contribute to injuries.

Tennessee law generally requires that employment be the primary cause of the injury, meaning it contributed more than 50% to causing the condition compared with all other causes. Nonwork activities that may contribute to RSIs (and that insurers may try to play up as primary causes) include frequent smartphone, computer, or video game use, picking up or lifting children repeatedly, driving for long periods, particularly with poor posture and gripping the steering wheel, and sports or fitness activities such as tennis, golfing, or weightlifting.

A doctor’s opinion lays out job duties as the main cause

Establishing that job duties are the primary cause of a repetitive stress injury typically requires medical evidence, often including a physician’s opinion linking the condition to workplace activities. It needs to directly link your work duties and your injury. The doctor needs to:

• Review your job duties thoroughly
• Determine how often you perform certain tasks at work and for how many hours per day
• Calculate how much force you use when performing these tasks
• Assess how long you stay in awkward positions

The more specific a doctor’s opinion is, the stronger your claim should be. Doctors also consider timing. For example, if your injuries worsen while you are at work, that bolsters your case.

If insurers claim that nonwork activities are the primary cause, the doctor’s opinion can explain why work tasks put a greater strain on your body.

Workers’ compensation in Tennessee covers gradual and aggravated injuries

Sometimes, RSIs worsen, accelerate, or aggravate pre-existing conditions. You may still qualify for benefits. The central question is whether your job duties made the condition worse, not whether you had it before the business hired you.

You can also qualify for injuries that appeared slowly, or that became serious over time. After all, it is difficult to recognize repetitive stress injuries right away. However, you should report your injuries once you reasonably know they are work-related.

You reported the injury in a timely manner

Tennessee generally requires employees to report workplace injuries within 15 days of the accident or of discovering that the injury is work-related. Some exceptions to this deadline apply, but you help your case tremendously if you report in a timely manner. For instance, a general sequence of events could go like this:

• You notice certain symptoms get worse at work and improve when you are off duty
• You also realize that your pain or symptoms align with typing, lifting, gripping, or other specific tasks
• You go to the doctor, and the doctor concludes that your injuries are work-related (this is when the 15-day reporting timeframe could start)
• You get a diagnosis of carpal tunnel, tendonitis, or another condition with strong ties to repetitive work

Another common scenario happens when employees take on a change in job duties, perhaps working longer hours or at a faster pace. At this point, they may seek medical help and get information on the probable connection between their job duties and their symptoms. The 15-day clock could start at this point.

Not surprisingly, insurers often argue that the clock started earlier. To be safe, report the injury as soon as you think it could be work-related, even if you lack a formal diagnosis.

Your employer carries workers’ compensation insurance

Most Tennessee businesses with five or more employees must carry workers’ compensation insurance, though construction industry employers must typically carry coverage even with one employee. If an employer required to carry workers’ compensation insurance does not have coverage, an injured worker may file a claim through the Tennessee Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims. Benefits may be paid through the Uninsured Employers Fund (UEF) if eligibility requirements are met.

If the law does not require your employer to have the insurance, you could consider a lawsuit, third-party claim, or another option. Employers may also try to get out of workers’ compensation by saying you are an independent contractor. A workers’ compensation attorney in Chattanooga can help you figure out possible next steps.

What RSI benefits could you qualify for?

Medical treatment is one of the benefits you could be eligible for with RSI injuries.

• Doctor visits, surgeries, physical therapy, or other types of medical treatment for your RSI, at no cost to you
• Wage replacement, typically at two-thirds of your average weekly wage, calculated under Tennessee workers’ compensation rules and subject to state maximum and minimum benefit limits
• Partial disability if you go back to work and earn less
• Permanent disability, based on impairment ratings and vocational factors

Workers’ compensation benefits focus on medical care and financial compensation, not on pain and suffering or emotional distress like a personal injury claim might.

Repetitive stress injuries can be confusing, but timely reporting is important. Contact Wagner Workers’ Compensation & Personal Injury Lawyers today for possible next steps in the Chattanooga area.