Experienced Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Fighting for the Rights of Injured Manufacturing Workers

Strong advocacy after a workplace injury throughout the Gulf

From building automobiles to aerospace, shipbuilding to plastics, Mississippi workers build the products that Americans want. The Center for Manufacturing Research reports that manufacturing in Mississippi accounts for about 15.8% of the state’s total economic output, employing 12.5% of the workforce. In 2016, there were 143,100 manufacturing workers in Mississippi from 1,868 manufacturing firms throughout the state.

People who work manufacturing jobs are exposed to complex, heavy machinery that can malfunction, sharp edge, toxic chemicals and repetitive stress from performing the same movement for hours on end every day. When a worker is injured, they may qualify for workers’ compensation coverage, which provides a partial wage replacement benefit and medical expenses for their injuries. Workers’ compensation also provided a death benefit for the dependents of workers’ who lose their lives in fatal workplace accidents. At Merkel & Cocke, we help injured employees in the manufacturing industry get the compensation they need to get healthy and back to work.

Local manufacturers near us

There are hundreds of manufacturing companies scattered throughout Mississippi. Some of the bigger names around here include:

• Eaton Hydraulic Systems
• Olin Corporation-Winchester Division
• Specialty Metals Supply, Inc.
• Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
• Grainger Industrial Supply
• KBH Corporation
• North MS Conveyor Company, Inc.
• Unified Brands, Inc.
• Merchants Foodservice
• Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp.
• C&S Textiles
• BASF
• Burchfield’s Inc./Triple J of MS
• Standard Industrial Corp.
• W.M., Co. Inc./Blauer Mfg.

Common workplace injuries for factory workers

Working in manufacturing on an assembly line can pose many potential hazards for workers. Often, workers are interacting with large, heavy machinery, but there are countless types of working environments. The following are a few examples of common injuries among factory workers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics :

• Overexertion
• Repetitive stress injuries
• Bodily reaction injuries
• Transportation accidents
• Exposure to harmful chemicals and substances
• Struck by, struck against objects and equipment
• Fire and explosion
• Slip, trip and falls

Types of injuries that can occur in manufacturing workplace accidents

The following are a few examples of the common types of injuries that can happen to workers in the manufacturing sector:

Musculoskeletal injuries Burn injuries Occupational disease from exposure to harmful chemicals Head injuries Back and neck injuries Hearing loss

Vision loss Hearing loss Respiratory diseases Limb loss from getting tangled in big machines Skin diseases

Mississippi workers’ compensation benefits

Regular employees who sustain an injury while doing their job may be eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits, which include medical coverage for workplace injury or illness-related care, a partial wage replacement benefit for the time you have lost at work from the illness or injury, vocational rehabilitation, and a death benefit for the loved ones of workers who lose their lives in workplace accidents.

Workers must report a workplace injury to their employer right away and file a claim for workers’ compensation benefits if the injury is severe enough that you will lose time at work while you are recovering from the injury.

Personal injury lawsuits for workplace injuries

Workers’ compensation does not cover every worker. If you are a contractor, you may not qualify for workers’ compensation from your employer, however, if you are an employee of a contracting agency, you may be able to recover compensation from your agency. If you are not an employee and you suffer an injury on the job, you may still be able to take legal action against the client if their negligence caused or contributed to your injury.

Another option for injured workers would be to take legal action against the manufacturer and suppliers of the tool, equipment or heavy machinery that malfunctioned or was defective and caused your injury.

Whether you have been diagnosed with an occupational disease such as occupational asthma, lung diseases, dermatitis, welder’s eye, computer vision syndrome, noise-induced hearing loss, exposure, or you were injured in an accident at work, you need the skilled advocacy of a Mississippi workers’ compensation attorney from the law firm of Merkel & Cocke. With our combined decades of experience helping clients recover compensation for injuries at work, we protect your rights and make sure that you recover all the compensation you have earned.

Contact a skilled workers’ compensation attorney when you have been hurt and work

Have you been unfairly denied workers’ compensation for a workplace injury? Call us at 662-627-9641 or complete our contact form to schedule a free consultation today. Our reliable workplace injury attorneys are here to make sure you get the compensation you have earned. You can rely on the lawyers of Merkel & Cocke to fight for your rights when you have been hurt at work. We have offices in Jackson, Clarksdale, and Oxford where we serve injured clients throughout Mississippi and injured clients in Tennessee and Arkansas.