I work at a bubble tea place, and the machine that seals the cup has a knife loop inside it to cut the plastic off. The other day on my way to work, I saw a text in the group chat apologizing for leaving early because the machine cut his the tip of his finger off… I ran there as fast as I could and arrived to see the shop closed, and the other two on shift (also teenagers) completely pale faced with blood absolutely everywhere. It was sprayed on the walls, on the counters, it even got in the boba. They told me the EMTs just left, and that the coworker in question had been adjusting the plastic wrap when the machine went off. It was a silly mistake, but he didn't actually know there was a knife inside it, and none of us are trained in using it beyond the basics of turning it on, replacing the plastic and sticking the cup in. Actually, it's very common to have to adjust the plastic when it twists on the fly or even sticking a hand inside to adjust loose screws that aren't accessible when it's off. I cleaned everything with a heavy dose of bleach to the best of my ability, but I don't think the machine itself ever got deep cleaned by someone who actually knows how to take it apart.
The coworker is fine now, but obviously he's putting in his two weeks, and I don't blame him. My boss says that their insurance won't cover workers comp for him because only two others actually saw the incident and they need at least three witnesses- but they only ever put three people max on any given shift! I even worked entirely by myself there for six months, what if I had gotten into a similar accident? I feel like even if the insurance won't cover it, the boss personally paying for the hospital fees is LITERALLY the least he could do.
Is this, like…legal? Can they do this? Does this actually sound like a legitimate reason why the insurance would deny comp? I'm actually astounded that this would happen, I otherwise like my job but if he sued I would 100% back him up.