In our ongoing series to show how workers' compensation impacts (and is noted in) our everyday lives — many times a day, week, and month — we will discuss a recent article in ABC 10 News San Diego about local teachers and the reopening of San Diego schools. The point of this is not to have people address whether school reopening is appropriate or not, but how this decision impacts and is affected by California workers’ compensation laws.
An interesting comment was noted by one of the teachers in the article which stated, "My parents and guardians are out at work every day, and quarantining is a luxury they don't have."
When my kids were little, my wife and I used to joke that what ever was going around the school, our kids would eventually get and kindly bring home to us. If the children being taught at Johnson Elementary are unknowingly suffering from COVID and the teachers and staff of Johnson Elementary School contract COVID from the children, then COVID is a work-related injury for those teachers and staff so infected. Of course, we hope the teachers and staff of all the schools that reopen do not contract COVID-19. We also hope that reopenings are done safely and without any further spread of the virus.
But this is an example of the hidden impact of workers’ compensation affecting your daily life, especially if you have any school-age children attending the soon-to-reopen elementary, middle, junior high and high schools.
Contact our San Diego workers' compensation attorneys if you contracted COVID-19 on the job
If you contracted COVID-19 on the job, you have the right to pursue a workers' compensation claim under California law. Be sure to notify your employer immediately if you notice any symptoms or test positive. Then, see a doctor and contact our law firm. Award-winning attorneys Robert A. McLaughlin and Denise L. Sanchez have more than 30 years of combined experience helping injured workers get the compensation they deserve. We offer free and confidential case consultations to workers in the greater San Diego area.