Bakersfield Lead Poisoning At Work Lawyer

California leads the nation in state population with more than 38 million residents. With that many residents, it makes sense that California has more employees and more chances for workplace injuries. While there are many common risks across job roles in various industries, another danger often goes unnoticed and is not frequently considered. That risk is lead poisoning, and the fact is that it’s common, but it’s unknown how many cases go unreported every year. The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health in 2024 increased the lead exposure standards. The hope was that it would make violations more visible, save money by creating greater awareness, and highlight the need for better prevention processes.  The California Department of Public Health still reports that it is one of the most common environmental illnesses in the state, despite how long it has been around and how preventable it is.

If you are an employee and your work brings you into contact with lead in any state, you have a chance to become seriously ill. If you work as a welder or in building demolition, lead poisoning is a hazard, and while preventable, you should still be aware of it. The number of lead poisoning cases in the workplace is still going up each year. Lead poisoning as a workplace injury isn’t limited to employees who know they are working with lead on a daily basis, either. The variety of different manufacturing jobs alone that deal with lead constantly is an extensive list. Making sure you are being as safe as you can be is crucial not just to your health, but you are likely to be questioned about how you got ill from lead poisoning after filing a worker’s compensation case.

Situational awareness at work in a dangerous job is a critical skill and excellent habit to have. It will help keep you safe most of the time. However, if you are injured or get sick, the employees of California based companies will be covered by worker’s compensation insurance. If you have been hurt at work, please contact the Normandie Law Firm any time, day or night. We are prepared and want to help you get your questions answered. It doesn’t matter what they are. They could be related to your coverage, support, or benefits. Our legal staff is capable and experienced, and poised to help you. If your initial call to one of our team at Normandie Law Firm doesn’t resolve your questions, then we will schedule a free meeting with one of our Bakersfield lead poisoning at work lawyers to get the details of your incident and illness. This will enable our staff to give you better advice, support, and direction for any challenge you are dealing with. Sharing information between the client and the lawyer is the primary focus during the initial meeting. If we believe that taking legal action is the best course of action, we are prepared to do so for you. We want you to know that you are not required to hire the Normandie Law Firm to represent you in any way. If you need help or any kind of assistance after you are ill from lead poisoning, please call Normandie Law Firm as soon as you have time.

After the Bakersfield lead poisoning at work lawyer gathers all your information regarding the illness, they will help you by reviewing what they believe to be the following steps to get the claim opened or progressed and get you compensated for medical bills, lost wages due to missed work, and every other expense that qualifies. With this info, you can take the steps needed to work directly with worker’s compensation. One crucial piece of information you need to know at this point is the amount of time you have to open a worker’s compensation claim in California.

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How Long Do I Have To File A Worker’s Compensation Claim In California?
The normal time limit to file a worker’s compensation claim is 30 days from the date of your injury or illness. In many organizations, an injured worker’s employer will have staff that works with worker’s comp to get your claim filed once they have the details of the injuries and circumstances. For lead poisoning, the state typically requires the company to notify the state of the lead poisoning case. That will usually occur in a few days immediately after the incident. If your employer tried to block you from opening a claim with the worker’s compensation insurance, please reach out to the Normandie Law Firm staff so we can get you the help needed to open your claim before the 30-day time limit expires. If you wait more than 30 days to open your claim, it is going to be denied. The 30-day time limit is strict, and one exception to it deals with injuries due to cumulative trauma.

What Is Cumulative Trauma, And What Kind Of Injury Is Caused By it?
Injuries that some employees get as a result of repeated use over a period of time can be diagnosed as caused by cumulative trauma. This kind of injury remains eligible for treatment under worker’s compensation past the 30 day limit. One potential cumulative trauma injury would be repeated incidents that, over time, resulted in loss of function in your hands, like carpal tunnel. Another example would be minor cases of lead poisoning that combined over time to cause severe damage. The time limit for any injury diagnosed from cumulative trauma is 1 year from the date of the first day of work due to the pain or treatment. Normandie Law Firm is ready and capable of helping you get your claim filed with worker’s compensation insurance.

Is The California Worker’s Compensation Program Covering All Injuries That Occur At Work?
If the injuries happened while you were at work and doing your job on the clock, the answer is yes, they will cover all injuries. If the cause of the injury is investigated and shows that your injuries were actually caused by conduct not having anything to do with work, like horseplay at a company outing, or if you were under the influence of alcohol, or committing a criminal act of some kind, the worker’s compensation program will not cover the injuries.

Workers who get hurt while at work are usually focused on getting the medical treatment they need and getting the costs covered. The hospitals and doctors should bill worker’s comp directly, but that should be asked. If the answer is yes, then this helps you quite a bit when dealing with the medical bills. Direct billing lessens the effort you have to make when trying to get reimbursed for out of pocket expenses. Please call Normandie Law Firm to find out about the complete list of benefits and how to get access to everything the worker’s compensation program for the State of California provides.

What Are The Benefits Provided By The Worker’s Compensation?
Below is a brief list of the key benefits provided by worker’s comp insurance when you are employed in California. It is not a complete list, but it does show the most used benefits and coverages. They handle many of the challenges that someone might encounter when dealing with a workplace injury. The coverage offers:

• 100% payment or reimbursement of all your medical expenses related to your diagnosis, including treatment, and rehabilitation of your injuries, as well as other costs like prescriptions, rental of medical equipment, all with a maximum of 1 million dollars per incident
• 66% of your weekly earnings are paid to you when your injuries do not allow you to work during treatment or if you are hospitalized for required treatment
• Disability payments, if your injuries end up leaving you unable to work for a longer period, will reduce or eliminate your income in the future
• As a result of the injuries received, you are unable to return to your job, the program will provide free vocational training to help you find employment in a new career after doctors have cleared you to return to work

What Job Roles Have Employees Getting Lead Poisoning?
As we called out earlier, there are many different industries that continue to work with lead as part of their delivered services. What will surprise you is some of the jobs listed that don’t directly work with lead but still have the risk of exposure and illness.

• Lead-acid battery manufacturing and recycling
• Ammunition manufacturing and handling
• Firing range worker’s for the public, as well as training ranges for law enforcement and the military
• Mining/Smelting operations
• Welding shops and job roles
• Demolition of pre-1978 homes and apartments with lead paint on the walls

If you work in any of these job roles, you are aware of the chance of being exposed to lead and have taken precautions. You also need to know about the symptoms and warning signs of lead poisoning, and more importantly, be on the lookout for them.

What Are The Common Warning Signs Of Lead Poisoning Illness?
The first item everyone should know is that there is no age limit for getting ill with lead poisoning. It doesn’t matter if it is from exposure to any type of product containing lead, or in an environment that generates lead in gas, dust, or any other consumable form. There are no known tolerances, so you should try to avoid getting lead poisoning at all costs. The only thing that is effective is prevention of exposure and immediate treatment if you are exposed. The most common symptoms of lead poisoning include:

• Fatigue
• Bluish gums
• Abdominal pain
• Loss of appetite and decreased weight
• Constipation
• Vision or hearing loss

If you have any of these symptoms, please seek medical attention as soon as possible. Our staff at Normandie Law Firm will be ready to assist you with your needs once you call us.

Can I Sue My Employer For Lead Poisoning?
Any employee who gets hurt at work while doing their job is usually restricted to only getting financial assistance from the California worker’s comp program. The program is a single source and exclusive remedy for all workplace injuries and victims. An exception to this is if gross negligence by the employer caused the hazard, resulting in harm to the employee. The Bakersfield lead poisoning at work lawyer at Normandie Law Firm will review with you the case details and advise you if they believe you have a case where gross negligence might apply.

If gross negligence is suspected and can be proven, you can file a personal injury lawsuit against the entity that is responsible, and the court will award damages. You cannot sue for damages received, like your medical bills or anything else that you have been or will be compensated for, only for things you will not be compensated for.

Up Front Expenses And The Normandie Law Firm
When you hire a Normandie Law Firm lawyer for representation after a workplace injury, we will not be charging you for any upfront legal fees. Please do not wait to call upon the Normandie Law Firm when you have questions or concerns. We are ready to help you if you need to talk to a Bakersfield lead poisoning at work lawyer.

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