Many people associate workplace violence with mass shootings, because those make the news. However, most workplace violence occurs in one-on-one situations. The perpetrator may be a co-worker, customer or a robber.
For those who work in hospitals and other medical settings, it’s often a patient who becomes violent. They may be on drugs (or off their prescribed meds), drunk or mentally ill. Sometimes, gang and other fights continue into the emergency room with an injured party, endangering hospital staff.
It may seem obvious that if an employee is injured by a violent act at work, they qualify for workers’ compensation. However, that’s not always the case.
What does New York law say?
For a victim of workplace violence to be eligible for workers’ comp, the violence must “arise out of and occur in the course of employment.” That robbery scenario would apply if an employee were shot or otherwise injured. So might a case where someone punched a co-worker who got a promotion they believed should have been theirs.
The law includes a “rebuttable presumption” that any injury occurring in the workplace is related to the work and eligible for workers’ comp. That means it’s up to the workers’ comp insurer and/or employer to rebut that presumption if they don’t believe the injury qualifies for workers’ comp benefits.
For example, if two employees get into a fight over politics or sports, that typically wouldn’t be considered related to their employment. The same would be true if a spouse followed an employee into work and attacked them.
A hospital shooting by a former employee
One case that made it up to the New York Court of Appeals last year brought some clarity to rebuttable presumptions in workplace violence cases. It involved a shooting by a former employee of a Bronx hospital. He killed a doctor and wounded five other employees.
The workers’ comp claim of one victim, a medical resident, was denied because he had never worked with the shooter. Therefore, the Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) determined that the presumption that his injuries were work-related was rebuttable.
The Court of Appeals overruled that decision. They found that if an assault occurs in the course of employment with no evidence of motivation, the presumption hasn’t been rebutted.
When there are gray areas, it’s a safe assumption that insurers and employers will try to avoid paying benefits. That’s why it’s important to understand New York workers’ comp law and have sound legal guidance.