A cross-province workplace injury case has been successfully resolved, resulting in a 600,000 yuan compensation package for a migrant worker. The settlement, achieved through the efforts of a legal team in Handan, Hebei province, represents a new benchmark for similar injury claims in the region.
The case began in July when a migrant worker from She County approached a prominent labor rights lawyer for assistance. The worker had been employed at a coal mining company in Gansu province for just two months when he was involved in a serious workplace accident. He suffered multiple fractures, including three broken ribs and a pelvic fracture, after being crushed by机电 equipment that toppled from a mining cart.
While the injury was officially recognized as work-related and classified as a ninth-degree disability, the employer delayed in providing the legally mandated compensation. Numerous attempts at negotiation between the two parties failed, leaving the worker without recourse and the case at an impasse.
The dispute centered on several key issues. These included the calculation base for wage compensation, discrepancies in social insurance contribution amounts, and the absence of required workplace safety liability insurance. The worker's salary varied significantly across his brief tenure, with earnings of 5,000 yuan for 10 days of work in October, 12,500 yuan for 25 days in November, and 4,500 yuan for 9 days in December, the month of the accident. The employer argued for an average based on these three months, while the worker contended that his full-month salary of 12,500 yuan should serve as the benchmark.
Furthermore, the company had been contributing to work injury insurance based on a monthly salary of only 5,000 yuan, substantially less than the worker's actual earnings. This practice significantly reduced the statutory compensation amount. Additionally, the company had failed to purchase the mandatory safety liability insurance for its industry, thereby denying the worker access to those corresponding insurance benefits.
The legal team meticulously reviewed all employment, wage, injury, and insurance documentation, identifying the employer's legal violations and key points of fault. Following professional negotiations and detailed legal arguments, the Gansu-based mining company acknowledged the facts and legal basis of the dispute. A company representative traveled to Handan specifically for settlement talks. After a full day of intensive negotiations, both parties reached an agreement.
The final settlement stipulates that the employer will pay the worker a one-time compensation of 600,000 yuan to cover all losses related to the work-related injury, with the full amount to be settled by the end of August 2026. The lawyer who led this case, a former coal miner himself, has been a practicing attorney since 2009 and has handled over 3,000 cases, recovering more than 300 million yuan for injured workers and other vulnerable groups. In June, he established the province's first model worker innovation studio within a law firm, which focuses on legal challenges faced by migrant workers and those in new forms of employment, offering services in injury relief, public legal education, and cross-regional rights protection.