Illinois correctional officers injured on the job
On behalf of of Frederick & Hagle posted in Workplace Injuries on Wednesday, July 9, 2014.
Despite any inherent dangers that a job may come with, it is still imperative that employers provide a safe environment for all employees. This can even include providing adequate resources alongside proper training and safety equipment. After some Illinois prison officers were injured on the job due to attacks by prisoners, questions were raised concerning whether or not the officers had a sufficient amount of resources available to them.
In July 2014, inmates seriously injured three officers in what is believed to have been a planned assault. This comes only three months after another attack injured an officer working in a prison. Someone from the Illinois Department of Corrections recently asserted that physical contact initiated by an inmate is never acceptable, which may leave some wondering why these attacks happened in the first place.
Although the IDOC is investigating the most recent attack on the correctional officers, the spouse of an Illinois correctional officer says that changes need to be implemented soon. Otherwise, she says, these men and women may not get the chance to come home to their families. In an effort to help these workers seek the resources needed for their jobs, she even founded an organization that gives these workers a platform to stand on in order to express any concerns they may have at their jobs. On July 12, 2014, the organization even held a rally to bring the issue of attacks on correctional officers to the public’s attention.
Of the five Illinois officers that reported to the inmate attack, three of them were injured. Their injuries totaled a broken knuckle, a busted pinky finger and even a cracked rib. Reports indicate that the officer who suffered the cracked rib reportedly showed up for work the next day, although injuries such as this do often require a painful period of recovery and, in some situations, long-lasting pain and suffering. Those injured on the job, whether due to a lack of resources or to other related unsafe working conditions, retain the legal right to seek a workers’ compensation claim against their employer. If successful, it can provide crucial financial compensation for medical bills or any related pain and suffering.
Source: kfvs12.com, “Resource questions raised after Illinois prison guards attacked“, Giacomo Luca, July 8, 2014
