Casino worker’s back injury was aggravated by dealing cards
October 22, 2009 by Fred HosierPosted in: Bizarre Accident of the Week, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, Workers' comp
Here’s proof that workplace injuries happen in the service industry, too. And those injuries can lead to workers’ comp claims.
A casino dealer at Harrah’s Metropolis Casino in Illinois claimed she hurt her back while dealing a stand-up card game.
She said she had to twist her upper torso to take the cards in her left hand from the card dispenser located to her right.
Her doctor said she aggravated a prior back injury which was caused by repetitive bending and twisting as a card dealer.
The casino argued that the work incident was only a minor contributing factor.
Result: The Workers’ Compensation Commission ruled that the employee established her accident arose out of and in the course of employment. She’ll get comp benefits.
Does your company teach proper lifting to any employees performing mostly service functions? Let us know in the Comments Box below.
Cite: Britton v. Harrah’s Metropolis Casino, Ill. W.C. Comm. 2009.
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Tags: back injury, casino dealer, service industry, workers' comp claims
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October 23rd, 2009 at 8:31 am
Let’s all just go on disability and welfare. See how sustainable that is!
October 26th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
I can see how an injury like this could happen. The casino should have moved the dispenser so the dealers could pick up cards without twisting or they could have trained her to pick up the cards with her right hand.
I have scoliosis, and when I would play cards with my mother, my back would start to hurt after a while from the reaching motion required for dealing.
When I started working I received no ergonomics training, I did not even know how to recognize a RSI. I now have a neck injury resulting from repeatedly looking over my shoulder. Because I did not know I had a work-related injury, I thought it was perhaps related to my pre-existing condition, I never applied for comp and now it’s too late.
October 26th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
Really? Really?!? What doesn’t the employer have to do for the employee these days? If I have a machine and disable the safety features so it’s more productive and the employee gets hurt, then I should have to pay dearly for that. I’m on board with that general concept. If I do something (or don’t do something) that creates a legitimate hazard in the workplace then I should be taken to task for it. But where the hell did personal responsibility go? Did she HAVE to twist her upper torso to deal the cards? Or is that just the way she CHOSE to deal the cards? How about pivoting your entire body? Without further investigating the case (I’m assuming there has to be more to this) I have to say this is pretty weak (though, not surprising). It’s a sickening trend.
October 26th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
Ok here’s skinny from someone who has worked for casinos. Dealers have no union. No representation. They stand in same spot for hours upon hours. They have to perform their tasks a certain way so the ‘eye in the sky’ can quickly identify cheats, problems and be relitavely sure the dealer is ‘clean’. The generally are treated like independant contractors and a lot to them have no healthcare from the employer. As far as RSI you may not have a claim. I’ve had two carpal tunnel, two trigger finger surgeries and am due for another. I an a Journeyman Heavy Duty Repairman and Welder, am in Management and writing a book so I type a lot, and unil my latest problem started, I played guitar. Who do I blame? I’d probably have to sue every company I’ve worked for in the last ten years, and take a certain percentage of the responsibility myself. Know whai I’ve been seeing more and more on employment applications? “Have you applied for Workers Comp anytime in the last five years”?
October 26th, 2009 at 9:36 pm
I am a chiropractor in Reno, Nevada and this is a legitimate problem. I work on Casino employees all of the time and most of them are dealers. SafetyGoon suggests that she should just move her body differently, but sometimes it is not that easy. Dealers are told by the casino how they must stand when interacting with the cards, which typically means they must twist at the torso. They are not allowed to just turn their whole body and bend over the cards to deal, because it would obstruct the view of the cameras and I don’t think the Casino would like that much. Repetitive stress injuries are real and it makes me sick when someone that is not even a physician thinks they know everything about the body. Next you’re going to tell me that Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Plantar Fasciitis are made up conditions. Maybe SafetyGoon would have more sympathy if he/she was actually suffering from a RSI. If you want to try it out, become a card dealer.
October 27th, 2009 at 9:12 am
In reply to Reno Chiropractor: You’ve misinterpreted me. I’m not denying in any way that RSI’s are real. I fully admitted in my comment that I was making said comment based only on the article (SEE: “without further investigation”). In no way was I attempting to suggest that I, as you put it, “know everything about the body.” The “move your body differently” comment was simply there to suggest that MAYBE there were things that could be done differently to prevent this. This is an industry that I know virtually nothing about - I was simply speaking in generalities because that’s what this article offered. The whole point of my comment was to suggest that the trend in our society seems to be that of the individual trying to deflect any personal responsibility. I am sorry you misinterpreted my comments as you did, as it was not my intent to “sicken” anyone, but please refrain from making this a personal attack on an innocent SafetyGoon.
January 19th, 2010 at 12:03 am
I am a poker dealer and three months ago I was injured on the job while dealing cards. I felt paralized. I couldn’t stand up from the table nor could I walk. They had to wheel me away in a wheelchair. I was brought to the EMT’s office where I was given heat for my back (I later found out that putting heat on my injury further worsened my condition, allowing swelling to increase). I was released without paperwork and sent home by my supervisor. My husbnd drove me home and carried me into the house where I spent the night on the couch. I saw a chiropractor the next morning who informed me that the prolonged heat applied to my back since my injury increased the swelling which in turn increased the pain I was in. He iced my back, hooked me up to electrodes and then gave me an adjustment. He advised me to apply ice to my back fifteen minutes every hour.
I saw my primary care physician two days later on a Monday to give me prescriptions for the pain I was in and hopefully for a diagnosis he could contend with. He gave me a cortizone shot and asked me for my workers comp paperwork. I had no idea what he was talking about, he said I should have been sent home with them directly after my injury. I informed him that they sent me home with nothing, and he told me to obtain them at work that evening.
After all was said and done, I am still currently awaiting approval or denial of my workers comp claim. They supoenaed ten years of my medical records and have been dragging their feet for three months. I am not allowed to see the workers comp doctor because the casino’s insurance company will not authorize any more visits and I am in pain every day. Now they want me to start light duty on a shift that I have never worked, in a department that I have no training in, for less than minimum wage forty hours a week. Is this legal??? Am I getting screwed nine ways to Sunday??? How is it that there isin’t a lawyer on this God given planet who is willing to help me when dealing with a casino on tribal land? Help please, advice, suggestions, referrals. I am not picky, I am desperate!