When most people think of a work injury, they imagine a sudden accident: a fall, a machine malfunction, or something sharp that causes immediate harm. But not all work injuries happen in a single moment. Some develop slowly over time from doing the same tasks day in and day out. In Wisconsin, those gradual wear-and-tear injuries are just as valid under worker’s compensation law.
Two Types of Work Injuries: Sudden vs. Over Time
Wisconsin law recognizes two kinds of work-related injuries:
Accidental Injuries: These happen from a specific event – something you can point to that occurred at a clear time and place. Think: lifting a heavy box and instantly feeling a sharp pain in your back.
Occupational Diseases: These come on slowly, from doing the same kind of work over months or years.1 They don’t happen all at once but gradually build up.2 Think: breathing problems from years of dust exposure, or joint pain from repetitive lifting.
Even if there wasn’t a single accident, if your work contributed to the condition in a meaningful way, you may still have a valid claim. We regularly help people from all kinds of physically demanding jobs – construction crews, factory workers, nurses, warehouse employees – who are dealing with long-term injuries caused by the work they do every day. These injuries might not come from a single accident, but they build up over time until the pain or damage is impossible to ignore.
A lot of folks come to us with problems from doing the same motions over and over again – lifting, bending, reaching, or twisting – sometimes for years. That repetitive motion can lead to issues like carpal tunnel, tendonitis, herniated discs, or shoulder damage. These injuries are especially common for people working assembly lines, in food service, or healthcare settings where the pace is constant and the motions are repetitive.
We also see a lot of wear and tear from standing for hours on hard surfaces, like concrete floors, without proper support or footwear. Over time, that kind of strain can cause serious knee problems, chronic back pain, or foot issues like plantar fasciitis. Workers in factories, retail, and food production lines often deal with this kind of daily stress on their bodies.
Then there’s the impact of using vibrating tools and heavy equipment. Whether it’s a jackhammer on a construction site or a grinder in a mechanic’s shop, that constant vibration can do a number on your spine, joints, and nerves. Conditions like degenerative disc disease or hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) often show up in these industries.
Chemical exposure is another big one – folks who spend years breathing in paint fumes, solvents, dust, or diesel exhaust may develop asthma, chronic sinus problems, or even more serious illnesses like COPD or cancer. We’ve seen this in painters, custodians, manufacturing workers, and auto mechanics.
Poor ergonomics and awkward postures can take a toll too. If you’re constantly kneeling, squatting, working overhead, or hunched over a poorly set-up workstation, you can end up with neck and back pain, joint damage, or bursitis. This happens across a wide range of jobs – from office workers and janitors to construction laborers and packagers.
And of course, there’s the plain old reality of lifting without enough help. Whether it’s heavy boxes, parts, or patients, doing that work day in and day out – especially without proper equipment – can lead to muscle strains, hernias, or slipped discs. We see it all the time in warehousing, nursing, and agriculture.
Just because the injury crept up slowly doesn’t mean it isn’t real – or work-related.
It Doesn’t Have to Be 100% Work-Related
Wisconsin law doesn’t require your job to be the only reason for your condition. If work played even a small part – as little as 5-10% – in causing or making the injury worse, that’s often enough.
For example, say you’ve had some back problems over the years. If your job involved heavy lifting, bending, or standing all day, and that made your back worse – even only partially – that could be enough. Or if you have asthma but also worked around dust, fumes, or chemicals, and your lungs got worse because of the job, you may still have a valid claim, even if smoking played a role too.
It doesn’t Have to Be 100% One Employer
Wisconsin courts have made it clear that when a worker develops an occupational illness, the responsibility isn’t split between multiple employers or insurance companies.3 Even if the exposure happened over time, across different jobs, the full liability falls on the last employer where the harmful exposure occurred.
Further, if the exposure happened while working for one employer, but that employer changed insurance carriers over time, the insurer that was on the hook when the illness actually showed up is the one responsible for the claim.
12-Year Deadline for Occupational Injuries
For long-term or repetitive injuries, you have 12 years from the last date of wage loss or benefit payment to file a claim – not the usual six-year window for one-time accidents. That gives workers more time to recognize and act on these slowly developing conditions.
Why These Claims Often Get Denied
Insurers like to argue that these kinds of injuries:
- Are just a result of aging
- Weren’t reported quickly enough
- Aren’t tied to any specific event
But those arguments don’t automatically disqualify your claim. The law only requires that your job contributed to the injury. That’s why it’s critical to talk to someone who understands how to fight for workers dealing with gradual trauma or exposure.
Final Word: “Normal” Pain Isn’t Always Acceptable
Many workers brush off joint pain, back issues, or breathing trouble as “part of the job.” But that doesn’t mean you have to suffer without help. If your work has taken a toll on your health – even slowly over time – you may have a right to compensation.
Don’t wait. Talk to an experienced worker’s comp attorney and find out if your everyday wear and tear could actually be a valid injury under the law.