Accident at work Do you know how to manage your sick leave?

Any worker, at some point in their professional career, has to face sick leave. However, in this article we want to focus on a special case that has nothing to do with common illnesses. We would like to show you how to manage it in the event that you are unable to continue working due to an accident at work.

What is meant by accidents at work?

The first thing to do is to define what an accident at work is. Specifically, it is a bodily injury or psychological damage caused to the worker while performing the tasks of his or her job. On the other hand, if the sick leave is not due to an injury but to a work-related illness, the person will have exactly the same rights, although he/she will have to apply for sick leave under the criteria of 'occupational illness'.

Other cases considered as accidents at work

Accidents at work do not necessarily have to take place in the workplace. There are other cases covered by the law that provide the same degree of legal protection. These are:

1. Accidents on mission. These occur when the employee is away from the workplace by order of the employer.

2. Accidents 'in itinere'. These are accidents that occur on the way to or from the workplace.

3. Accidents while carrying out trade union work. Those that may be suffered by a trade union delegate of a company while carrying out his or her duties inside or outside the workplace.

4. Accidents occurring while carrying out tasks unrelated to the post held. They are covered provided that they are carried out by order of the employer.

5. Accidents as a consequence of rescue actions. Only if they are related to the job.

6. Illnesses that do not appear in the report of occupational illnesses. If they appear as a result of work performance, they have the same coverage.

7. Previous illnesses. If an employee suffered from an illness before starting work and, as a result of the tasks he/she performs, this is aggravated, he/she will also be recognised as an occupational illness.

How is sick leave due to an accident at work managed?

It should be said, in this regard, that it will depend, fundamentally, on whether the worker is employed or self-employed. In any case, the most important step is to visit the corresponding general practitioner, who will be responsible, if he/she deems it appropriate, for issuing the sick leave certificate for a specific period of time.

1. Management of sick leave due to accident at work for self-employed workers

Once you are in possession of the sick leave report provided by the worker's family doctor, it is time to inform the mutual insurance company to which you are affiliated that you can no longer perform your duties. In this regard, in addition to the aforementioned document, you must submit completed Form 145 and the Direct Payment Request. You will also have to provide information regarding whether your business will not be able to continue operating during the period of sick leave or whether there will be someone else to take over the running of the business. In most cases, any employment consultancy can take care of this.

2. Managing time off work for employees

The case of employees is even simpler than that of the self-employed. It is literally enough to provide the company where you are employed with the sick leave reports issued by the family doctor in order to continue receiving the percentage of the regulatory base that corresponds to you.

How much is paid for sick leave due to an accident?

In the case of common illness, both employees and self-employed workers are not paid for the first three days, after which they receive 60% of the regulatory base they have been set. However, sick leave resulting from accidents at work has greater and more favourable protection for the subject.

Specifically, in the case of an accident at work or an occupational disease, the worker begins to be paid from the same day on which he/she takes sick leave. In addition, the applicable percentage of the regulatory base is 75%. Calculating the corresponding figure is as simple as applying the following formula, for which we will use the example of someone who has a regulatory base of 1000 euros and is on sick leave for 15 days:

1000 (Regulatory Base) / 30 days = 33.33 x 75% = 25 x 15 (days off work) = 375 €.

It should be added that, especially in the case of the self-employed, but also in the case of employees, there are sick leave insurances designed to compensate the salary in a better way. They are of course particularly useful in cases of fairly long periods of temporary incapacity.

Employer's civil liability

There are a number of cases in which the employer has civil liability for the employee and his or her family members. This becomes effective, for example, in the event of the death of the employee as a result of an accident at work or occupational disease suffered. In such cases, the employer is obliged to compensate the widow or widower with 6 months' pension and each of the children with 1 month's pension.

The worker is also entitled to compensation in the event that, as a result of the accident or occupational disease suffered, he/she becomes permanently disabled or suffers a non-disabling injury (e.g. mutilation). The amount is calculated by applying a certain percentage of a scale depending on the reasons for the accident. There are also agreements that set their own rules in this respect.

All of this means that employers also frequently take out civil liability insurance to cover possible compensation for death, disability or property damage to the worker. In fact, in many cases, the law requires a policy to cover these contingencies.

If you still have any doubts, please contact us.