Tom McCutcheon – Attorney at Law
Q: I was working in a plant and cleaning the top of a machine. I had to stand on a brace as I always did to clean this machine when my foot slipped off and I fell and broke both bones below the knee. I was taken to the hospital by ambulance and now I have all these bills. My employer says I was supposed to use a ladder and that they are not going to pay my medical bills. I didn’t do anything wrong and they had seen me clean this machine by standing on this brace. What should I do?
Dennis
Athens, AL
A: Under the Alabama Workers Compensation Act, an employer has a defense to a claim if an employee breaks a known safety rule. The violation of the rule has to be a willful violation of a known rule.
This type of defense is an “affirmative defense” meaning that the employer has to prove all of the elements of the defense. They would have to prove that the employee deliberately and intentionally violated a reasonable rule that was known to the employee.
The penalty for the violation of a known safely rule relieves the employer from paying compensation. I haven’t seen a case that tells me that the employer does not have to pay the medical bills and I would take the position that even if successful in their defense, the employer would still be responsible the medical bills.
If an employee is injured and fails a drug test, the employer is still responsible for the medical bills but they do not have to pay any compensation to the employee.
I don’t think the employer would be successful in your case if they had seen you doing your job in the same manner before. The safety rule has to be known to the employee and consistently enforced by the employer for the employer to be successful in this type of defense. You should hire an attorney.
Buckle up and drive safely.
McCutcheon & Hamner, P.C.
2210 Helton Drive
Florence, Alabama 35630
Telephone: 256-764-0112
Facsimile: 256-349-2529
