Legal Question in Workers Comp in New York
I hope you can help guide me. Thank you for your assistance.
Between October 2008 and May 2009, I worked for an employer (a school) who repeatedly violated state smoking laws and New York City's Smoke-Free Indoor Act - a department manager was allowed to smoke in their office, an office I had to frequently visit as a requirement of my job. Despite the emails and conversations with my supervisor about the smoking and my allergy to cigarette smoke, nothing was done to remedy this - my supervisor said not much can be done, said that my complaint would be forwarded to the boss, and then soon began to "ignore" or "downplay" my complaints. The department manager continued to smoke in their office.
After getting sick from having allergic reactions to the cigarette smoke (3 times) and subsequently having to use up all of my sick days, and being told by my supervisor to meet the other manager someplace else instead of their office, I made the difficult choice to resign from the position after only 7 months.
Since then, I have noticed a significant increase in sensitivity to airborne smells and substances, including passing cigarette smoke on the street, which never used to bother me that much, AND I have gotten sick with several colds, have increased sinus problems, and the flu - something I haven't had in almost 15 years. I recently researched and discovered I could have filed formal complaints, but at the time, I didn't fully understand my rights in the situation and I was intimidated because -1) my supervisor changed their attitude toward me after my complaints, and told me they would handle it and then never really did, -2) their boss (whom I contacted on my own) said it was handled, but it wasn't because the department manager continued to smoke in their office, and -3) I really needed to keep the job. In addition, I have been unemployed since that time - I would never have left the position in the first place if the "smoking issue" had been properly addressed.
Is there a statute of limitations on filing a formal complaint or seeking any legal recourse?
Please let me know either way, so that I can either move on with my life, or possibly follow through with what I should have done in the first place. Thank you very much.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Hello for starters, I would just like to point out that you an incredibly difficult workers' compensation case. But if you are very serious about compensation please read below...
You need to a) fill out a C-3 with your old employer and b) file your case with the workers' compensation board. The time limit to give notice to your employer is 30 days (and if you did not they have to show that they were prejudiced by your delay) and you have 2 years to file with the board from the time that you know that your problems were caused by work related exposure or should have known. Usually this is when a doctor tells you that your current olfactory/sinus problems are causally related to your exposure to smoke at work.
You also need a doctor who will treat you for this problem and testify credibly in front of the workers' compensation board.
I hope that this advice is helpful.
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