{"id":47,"date":"2026-07-21T13:44:20","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T13:44:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/?p=47"},"modified":"2026-07-21T13:54:48","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T13:54:48","slug":"had-an-accident-at-work-heres-why-you-should-report-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/?p=47","title":{"rendered":"Had an accident at work? Here&#8217;s why you should report it"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No workplace is entirely risk-free. But if you&#8217;ve been injured at work, one of the most important things you can do \u2014 both for yourself and your colleagues \u2014 is to <strong>report it properly<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s natural to feel hesitant. Maybe the injury seems minor, or you&#8217;re worried about drawing attention to yourself. But reporting an accident isn&#8217;t about blaming anyone. It&#8217;s about making sure you&#8217;re protected, and helping prevent the same thing from happening to someone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stir.ac.uk\/about\/professional-services\/estates-and-campus-services\/safety-environment-security-and-continuity\/safety\/\">Report any accident<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why reporting matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When you report an accident through the University&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stir.ac.uk\/about\/professional-services\/estates-and-campus-services\/safety-environment-security-and-continuity\/safety\/a-z\/report-an-accident\/\">online accident reporting system<\/a>, several important things happen:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>A formal record is created<\/strong> \u2014 This is your evidence. If you need to make a claim later, or if symptoms develop over time, having that record on file is vital.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Your manager is notified<\/strong> \u2014 Once you submit the report, you&#8217;ll be asked to allocate it to your School Manager or Service Director, and the system will automatically email them. This means they know what happened and can take any immediate action needed.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Investigations can happen<\/strong> \u2014 If something needs fixing \u2014 a hazard, a faulty piece of equipment, or an unsafe process \u2014 reporting it means that problem can be investigated and put right before anyone else gets hurt.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What UNISON says<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">UNISON is clear: <strong>it is every employer&#8217;s responsibility to make sure the potential for accidents at work is eliminated or minimised.<\/strong> But workers have rights too \u2014 and reporting is how you exercise them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;re injured at work, UNISON advises you to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Seek any necessary medical treatment first.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Report the accident and your injuries to your employer.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Make sure the incident is recorded \u2014 through the University&#8217;s accident reporting system.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Take photographs of where the accident happened, if you can.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Contact your UNISON representative<\/strong> as soon as possible for advice and support.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If an accident prevents you from returning to work for seven days or more, your employer is legally required to notify the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Reporting promptly helps ensure this happens within the correct timeframe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Keep copies of everything \u2014 correspondence, medical reports, photographs. These will be essential if you decide to pursue a legal case, and your UNISON rep can help you with that process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What if it seems like nothing?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some injuries don&#8217;t seem serious at the time. A trip, a minor cut, a twinge in your back \u2014 it&#8217;s easy to brush them off. But some injuries develop or worsen over time, and without a report on file, it becomes much harder to prove what happened and when.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reporting also plays a wider role. Every report contributes to a bigger picture of health and safety across the University. Patterns can be spotted. Risks can be reduced. Future colleagues may be spared the same experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">You&#8217;re not on your own<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;ve had an accident at work and you&#8217;re unsure what to do, or you&#8217;d like support through the reporting process, get in touch with your local UNISON representative. We&#8217;re here to help you understand your rights, navigate the system, and make sure your voice is heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Your safety matters. Your rights matter. And reporting is one of the simplest, most powerful ways to protect both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Need help?<\/strong> Contact your UNISON branch rep or visit <a href=\"https:\/\/unison.org.uk\/get-help\/accidents\">UNISON&#8217;s accidents at work page<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>No workplace is entirely risk-free. But if you&#8217;ve been injured at work, one of the most important things you can do \u2014 both for yourself and your colleagues \u2014 is to report it properly. It&#8217;s natural to feel hesitant. Maybe the injury seems minor, or you&#8217;re worried about drawing attention to yourself. But reporting an<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/?p=47\" aria-label=\"Had an accident at work? Here's why you should report it Read full post\">Read full post<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-home"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49,"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47\/revisions\/49"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=47"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unison-uos-branch.stir.ac.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=47"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}