“Meetings with the Mutual Fund” analyzes the work accident in teleworking
X PROTXe99f2c79
On this occasion, the webinar, with the title "Work accident in teleworking: acceptance criteria" has addressed, in front of more than 400 attendees, this issue, which poses important challenges when determining the occupational nature of the injuries produced while working from home.
Silvia Vela, director of the Communication Department of Fraternidad-Muprespa, presented the day and the speaker,Ana Lorenzo, coordinator of the Mutual Fund's Economic Benefits Department. Lawyer and specialist in occupational risk prevention and health law, she has offered a practical vision of the regulations, the jurisprudential criteria and the guidelines that the Mutual Fund follows to assess this type of contingencies.
Teleworking and new protection scenarios
Lorenzo has contextualized the evolution and consolidation of teleworking thanks to technological transformation and new business organization models. Among its advantages he has cited the reduction in travel, greater autonomy in the organization of time and a better balance between personal and professional life. It has also described the inconveniences: longer working hours, difficulty separating personal and work space and the greater risk of a permanent digital connection.
It has reviewed the regulatory framework for remote work, with special reference to Law 10/2021, of July 9, and the obligations of companies and workers, above all, the importance of the formal remote work agreement, the preventive obligations of the company and the identification of the place of provision of services.
He also recalled the need to respect the rights to privacy, data protection and digital disconnection, as well as the particularities of assessing occupational risks when the workplace is one's own home.
The classification of the work accident at home
One of the central blocks of the day has been dedicated to analyzing the personal and domestic circumstances that may arise and that need to be analyzed, since working at home can introduce difficulties when determining whether there is a connection between the injury suffered and work activity, unlike what happens in a workplace.
In this context, it has addressed the presumption of occupational nature of accidents that occur at the time and place of work and has highlighted that this protection also operates in the field of teleworking, as long as the corresponding requirements are met.
Likewise, he has insisted that each accident must be analyzed taking into account its specific circumstances, without the fact of being at home during the day allowing any injury to be automatically considered work-related.
To illustrate this, it has resorted to examples and judicial decisions related to accidents that occur when moving around the home, when handling everyday objects or during breaks and activities that may fall outside the provision of services.
The criteria for evaluating accidents
Another highlight has been the explanation of the criteria used by
The speaker explained that the Mutual Insurance Company verifies the coherence between the injury and the elements that may have had a bearing on the work accident to determine the contingency. If you consider that it is a work accident, it is processed as such; If it is determined not to, the worker is referred to the public health service.
Casuistry and situations that generate doubts
The session has also dedicated an important part to analyzing common situations that raise doubts in the management of accidents during teleworking, including accidents during breakfast breaks, injuries when moving around the home, accidents in places other than the usual home and trips for tasks such as taking the children to school.
Lorenzo has pointed out that there are no automatic responses for each situation as they must be studied individually and taking into account the time, place, activity that was being carried out and the conditions agreed upon between the company and the worker.
It has also responded to questions related to the existence of the formal teleworking agreement, preventive self-assessment and the documentation necessary to assess an accident.
The day concluded with a question-and-answer session in which attendees were able to raise different practical cases and resolve doubts about the application of the criteria presented.
