Legal Question in Employment Law in California
We need to know if our co-worker have a case.... she died today in a hospital.... she had a brain stem stroke at work last Wednesday morning 8/31/2011.... we thought stress might have triggered the stroke... she is not taking breaks, takes short lunches... because of a competition that is going on among workers...... We thought the "friendly competition" is an "unhealthy" for us.... which caused great deal of stress to my co-worker.... and trigerred the brain stem stroke.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Off hand, I would suspect there is no relationship between the stress at work and the stroke which was probably caused by a clot getting trapped in a blood vessel. The competition was over a relatively short period of time; if plaque played any role, it is a process that involved many years to become serious. The connection between stress ad a progressive disease is very controversial. Her family would need a medical opinion that there is any relationship.
Your coworkers family needs to consult with an attorney. While I appreciate your concern and interest on behalf of the family, as an attorney I cannot be giving to you my legal advice or opinion, as you would not be my client. You might suggest to family members that they consult with a workers comp and/or personal injury attorney in their area.