Forney, TX asked in Civil Litigation, Libel & Slander, Personal Injury and Employment Law for New York

Q: My sister was assaulted on her job by the assistant director of the respiratory department. What should she do?

She is working as a temporary worker at a hospital for an assignment. She was shoved twice and verbally assaulted by the male employee. He was arrested on Friday, but has since been released with no charges per the police. My sister is experiencing trauma from being physically assaulted by this male employee after he told her “she was full of ****! Please can you help her know what she should do next?

1 Lawyer Answer
Jonathan R. Ratchik
Jonathan R. Ratchik
Answered
  • New York, NY
  • Licensed in New York

A: Sorry to hear what happened to your sister. If she hasn't already, she should report the incident to her supervisor and request that the other employee be transferred to a different department to reduce the risk that she might run into him again. With regard to bringing a lawsuit against the assailant, keep in mind that the statute of limitations for intentional torts in New York is only one (1) year from the date of incident. Unless the assailant has any assets, however, a lawsuit against him might be akin to drawing blood from a stone. As for suing her employer, depending on circumstances surrounding the incident, she might be entitled to workers' compensation benefits. Here's an article I found online which you might find helpful, https://blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/07/can-i-get-workers-comp-for-an-attack-at-work.html

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