Work Injuries in Custom Framing

There are a wide variety of niche jobs in South Florida that can be fulfilling, but they can also result in injuries on the job. Custom framers can work for large retail stores or boutique framing companies. Their jobs require certain aesthetic knowledge, but they also require a significant amount of hands-on work with materials and tools that can be dangerous. In addition to consulting with customers and helping them to consider decorating questions, as well as performing a range of retail duties, custom framers use sharp and hazardous tools to cut glass and wood. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), framers can be responsible for cutting glass and plexiglass, cutting mats, assembling wood frames, and more.

If you were injured while doing any kind of custom framing work or handling tools at your job that are commonly used by customer framers, you could be eligible to seek workers’ compensation benefits.

Tools Used By Custom Framers That Can Cause Injuries 

Workers in custom framing and art shops can sustain injuries in various ways, from slips and falls while walking in the retail storefront or while in the workroom, or while delivering framed prints as a result of motor vehicle collisions. Yet custom framers and art shop employees frequently use certain types of tools that can cause severe cuts, lacerations, and even amputation injuries. Some of those tools include, for example:

• Mitre saws;
• Mitre boxes;
• Power sanders;
• Clamps and joiners;
• Mat cutters;
• Glass and plexiglass cutters; and
• Various hand tools.

Saws and cutting tools, in particular, can result in permanently debilitating fingertip and finger amputation injuries.

How to Seek Compensation After Cut, Laceration, or Amputation Injury 

While custom framers can sustain various types of injuries on the job, cuts and lacerations are particularly common. Depending upon the circumstances of the injury, these types of injuries and many others may be compensable through the Florida workers’ compensation system. How should an injured worker seek compensation?

First, the injury should be reported to the employer no later than 30 days from the date of the injury. If the initial injury requires emergency treatment, the worker should go to the nearest health care facility for initial treatment and then should see an approved provider for follow-up care. If the initial injury is not an emergency, the injured worker should see an approved provider and receive health care as soon as possible.

Contact a Fort Lauderdale Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today 

If you were injured in any type of job in South Florida, you should act quickly to find out more about obtaining workers’ compensation benefits. The Florida workers’ compensation system allows employees in nearly any type of job to seek benefits when they meet the requirements and work for a covered employer. Any injured worker with questions about their eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits should get in touch with an experienced Fort Lauderdale workers’ compensation lawyer at the Law Offices of David M. Benenfeld, P.A. as soon as possible. Our firm has extensive experience representing injured workers in South Florida, and we can begin helping you with your case.

Sources:

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0400-0499/0440/0440.html

bls.gov/careeroutlook/2007/spring/yawhat.pdf