Employees who have “work-at-home” jobs are becoming more and more common. Many of the largest companies in the nation, such as Apple and IBM offer work-at-home opportunities, or telecommuting, to potential candidates and current employees as well. Working from home has given employees more opportunities to create their own schedules and have more flexibility with their day.
This begs the question, then, what happens if a work-at-home employee is injured sometime during the workday? Is the employer still legally liable?
How Do the Courts Handle These Cases?
Telecommuters have an added set of challenges when these cases are brought to court. A judge will also need to consider the nature of the employee’s work and situation. There may need to be an investigation into the employee’s surroundings where they work.
These are some of the considerations the courts will need to make:
- If the worker’s surroundings are safe or suitable for performing the job duties
- Whether or not the employee has the proper equipment to complete their job
- Whether or not the employee is working from home on a regular basis
- Any additional conditions that the job requires for the employee to work at home
- If it is necessary for the employee to work from home
There are certainly ways to recover workers' compensation for any injuries that took place in the home for telecommuting employees. The only condition of the current laws states that the employee must be carrying out the duties of his or her job and that the injuries arose during that time.
Are you a telecommuting employee? You have options to find compensation! Call our team at Rosenberg & Rosenberg, P.A. today! We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to receive calls. We know what it takes to win cases—as we have attained an innumerable amount of success for our clients over the years.
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