Having an accident at work can be a difficult time for anyone, but particularly for those who are not fluent in the spoken language. That is why it is worth hiring a professional Polish translator if you need help following an incident in the workplace.
According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), there were 1.8 million cases of work-related ill health in 2021/22 and 600,000 workers sustained a non-fatal injury. Together, these resulted in 36.8 million working days lost.
This shows how frequent these incidents can occur, and how, in some cases, they could even be fatal. Indeed, 123 workers were killed in work-related accidents in 2021/22.
Most people might not know that they need to report an accident at work as soon as it happens. According to the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), any incident of work-related accidents that causes death or certain serious injuries, cases of industrial diseases, and certain ‘dangerous occurrences’ need to be reported and kept a record of.
This helps authorities understand how deaths, occupational diseases, injuries, and dangerous incidents occur, so they can determine the risks.
Workers should also take photos of their injuries and what caused them, make notes about what happened, and ask witnesses to come forward, particularly if they want to claim benefits, such as Statutory Sick Pay.