When we look at the business world of today, everything points out that the young generation of millennials has a pretty good chance to become one of the most entrepreneurial generations that have ever lived. But the biggest obstacle to that road of success for the millennial entrepreneur lies in their lack of patience and their hunger for the responsibility they’re not quite ready to handle yet.
When we look at the business world of today, everything points out that the young generation of millennials has a pretty good chance to become one of the most entrepreneurial generations that have ever lived. But the biggest obstacle to that road of success for the millennial entrepreneur lies in their lack of patience and their hunger for the responsibility they’re not quite ready to handle yet.
If you have ever tried to run a business then you know that the famous Sam Raimi’s “Spiderman” quote is 100% correct – “with great power really comes the great responsibility.” The problem with the millennial generation is that they’re all eager to get the power without thinking too much about that responsibility that tags along. There are so many duties for an entrepreneur, so it can be pretty hard to prioritize them if there are conflicts attached. Since every company run by a millennial most likely also has other millennials as employees, you should be very well aware of what their expectations are and how to provide them:
Progress
Every millennial is looking for an internal mentorship in a company. They want to learn about the business, how to develop certain skills and how to nurture them. Of course, this will require investing additional time.
Control
They’ll want to own a certain project in order to experience the sense of control. But the advantages are mutual – if you let them take control over the project they will develop a heightened sense of accountability and responsibility.
Navigation
Although they can be pretty arrogant and stubborn, young millennials are actually very dependent on guidance. They will want to know if they’re moving in the right direction, so you need to provide them with ongoing feedback on a regular basis.
Reward
It is not uncommon for millennials to expect a certain reward for the success of their project, but in their case, if they don’t feel that their work has an impact on the company as a whole they will quickly lose their motivation and quit. This is why incentives are mandatory.
Connections
They don’t want to learn just through an internship – they want to meet the bigger players and absorb their knowledge, too. Networking provides much bigger learning opportunities, so your company can’t have its C-suite executives invisible to the day-to-day employees.
While it is hard to prioritize any of these expectations, there is one responsibility that undoubtedly earns the place at the top – employee safety and health. No matter how safe you think their work is, injuries always find their way to appear. Since this sense of security is everyone’s top priority, one of the most important things for a company to have is the presence of the best work injury lawyer. If you think this is an unnecessary investment just for show, reading on will make you change your mind.
What Can Happen
Of course, the risk of work injury varies depending on the industry and company profile. It is quite obvious that the accountants in their cubicles won’t be exposed to the same risks as the workers in an auto manufacturing plant. But that still doesn’t mean that cubicles are injury-proof. Although the overexertion that comes as a result of carrying, pulling, pushing, lifting, or holding is the most common workplace injury, there are a lot more things that can happen in every workplace, at any time. In the movies, we are bombarded with the machine entanglement, but everybody knows that the cinema has always had the need to be dramatic. But what about driving as part of your work? You can’t control the traffic, can you? Vehicle accidents are just around the corner. Everyone can slip, trip, and fall, right? And what about repetitive motion injuries? We can all agree that there’s nothing more repetitive than the office work.
This is not the end of the list of the injuries that can happen in a workplace. We simply mentioned the most pervasive ones today, in order to point out anything can happen on a daily basis. Being the most common ones, the potential for their occurrence is fairly easy to recognize up ahead and there are a lot of ways to prevent them. But if they do happen, there are still some tangible steps you can take in their wake.
What You Can Do
Since most of the work injuries are the “freak” ones – a maintenance worker knocks his head against the countertop after he has slipped in the bathroom, a warehouse employee lifts a simple box (after thousands he’s lifted) and instantly injures his back, a company vehicle hits an employee in the parking lot – it is quite normal that our bewilderment makes it harder to act immediately. Since the outcome of the situation for your company is highly determined by the way you respond, we’ll take you through some mandatory steps.
Health
As a head of the company, it is quite normal that a work injury immediately directs your thoughts to its financial repercussions, but you cannot worry about this at the moment. Seeking immediate medical attention is the number one priority. We don’t need to remind you that the person’s life will always have the highest value, but the lack of medical attention can also have severe consequences for the company. First of all, it will have a negative impact on all employees, and second, it can turn out to be legally damning in the future. So, calling 911 must be your first action. Even if the injury doesn’t appear serious and the employee himself declares there’s no need for emergency attention, you should encourage him to receive medical care as soon as possible.
Paperwork
After the health issues have been taken care of, then you can direct your thoughts toward the protocol and take care of your legal obligations as an employer. The employee who has suffered the work injury has the right to file a claim by asking for the claim form, and it is your duty to provide him with one. Then you’ll have to report the injury to your workers’ compensation insurance company if he chooses to pursue the claim. Typically, this requires you to file the First Report of Injury or Illness. There can be a large amount of required paperwork, but this mustn’t prevent you from also recording any information that can be helpful in a future lawsuit. This information includes your own thoughts, statements of the other employees who have witnessed the injury, and it would also be smart to take some pictures. Even if the injury was close but didn’t happen (someone slipped in the bathroom but didn’t hit his head), you should also file a report about this near miss. We understand that the amount of paperwork for these “no harm, no foul” scenarios might make this seem unnecessary, but a near miss is not equally defined among different safety professionals and keeping a record about them can help you prevent similar accidents in the future.
Cooperation
If a claim is pursued, your workers’ compensation insurance company and their attorney will ask for a bunch of different files and documentation on the employee and the only road you can take is the one of cooperation. While you need to hand over these records to them, you shouldn’t give it to anyone else. There may be other attorneys who claim to present the injured employee, which needs to be clarified immediately by contacting the compensation carrier.
If you fail to meet your state’s regulations in regard to the worker’s compensation insurance (vocational rehabilitation, lost wages, medical bills) you may end up not only paying for these benefits out of your own pocket, but also paying the penalties imposed by the state. The biggest trap lies in the fact that your business may not be required to purchase worker’s compensation insurance. If you operate as a partnership or a sole proprietor, generally you’re not required to do it until and unless you have employees who aren’t owners. In some states, even the employee doesn’t need to be cover if he’s paid solely by commission. But if you hire someone for a maintenance position and he gets hurt on the job, he’ll probably be able to make claim against you. It makes you reconsider the need for your workers’ compensation insurance, doesn’t it?
Return
No matter if the injury leads to a successful claim or not, the moment your employee is physically able to resume his employment your responsibility is to welcome him back. This welcome is not supposed to be just routine because you can’t terminate or penalize him for filing a claim (for this will only lead to further legal repercussions). Your welcome needs to be sincere and warm because the employer who doesn’t care about its employees is the one who isn’t worth the trust.
Now that you’re aware of all the work injury problems, it’s time to put all that millennial potential to a good use – accept that injuries do happen and be prepared for an immediate reaction. Keep health a priority, be careful with paperwork, and show all the cooperation you can muster.
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