The workplace can be dangerous, despite regulations and the safety protocols put in place to protect workers. Injuries and accidents happen, but if you believe it was the workplace’s fault and they’re refusing to grant you the workers compensation you deserve, you should consider hiring a worker compensation lawyer. Knowing when to file a workers compensation claim is also important and can help you successfully win your case. If you’re unsure, a worker compensation lawyer may be able to offer you advice during a free consultation of your case. Check and see if they offer free consultations or not before engaging them. This will keep you out of trouble and if it’s determined you don’t really have grounds upon which to file a workers comp claim, you’ll save the money of hiring a worker compensation lawyer and any other legal costs involved. It’s always better to be informed and prepared ahead of time. That way, should you incur an injury serious enough to file for workers comp, you’ll know exactly what steps you need to take.
How Often Are Employees Injured In the Workplace?
In 2013, people incurred over 325,000 sprains, strains and tears related to their jobs; over 225,000 slip, trip, and fall injuries were reported, and over 150,000 back injuries were recorded. Over 900,000 occupational injuries and illnesses caused people to take time off work in 2013, for an average of at least eight days of work. The good news is that that rate seems to be going down slightly. Private industry employers had an incident rate of only 3.3 injury or illness cases per 100 full-time workers in 2013 as compared to 3.4 cases in 2012. However, it’s important for employers to stay sharp and ensure that employees are well trained in safety procedures and know what to do in case of emergencies. They should also take complaints or incident reports seriously and take steps to make sure those issues are addressed.
What Is Workers Comp and What Does it Cover?
Workers’ compensation is responsible for paying the full medical costs for workers who have been injured in the workplace and give them cash benefits for work they’ve missed after a waiting period that’s usually between three to seven days.
In 2011, workers’ compensation programs were available for almost 126 million employees –it gets trickier if workers are on a part-time or freelance basis. The benefit payments that year were around $60 billion, which went up 3.4% from the revised 2010 benefits package of just under $59 billion. In general, compensating for wages and salaries lost are 70% of the compensation benefits and helping out with benefits totals up the remaining 30%. Employers spend a little under 2% in supplying workers’ compensation costs, says the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2010 National Compensation Survey.
When Should I Think About Filing for Workers Compensation and Start Talking to a Lawyer?
You can’t sustain a simple scratch or bump on the head and immediately file for workers’ compensation, unfortunately. If you have moderate to severe injuries that impact your ability to work regularly in your present job or in any job in the future or your injuries require surgery, that’s a good indication you should be talking to a worker compensation lawyer. If you already had a significant disability before the accident occurred or find that your medical benefits are being denied, talk to a lawyer about filing for workers’ compensation. Additionally, if your work is refusing to comply with your state workers’ comp division or you’re running into issues with your insurance company after filing, you’ll want to speak to lawyer.
A lawyer will help explain any part of the process you don’t understand and make sure you do it correctly the first time around, so that you get the money you deserve (and probably need) as quickly as possible.
Being prepared ahead of time is always a good idea. If you have a serious enough injury to file for workers’ compensation, you don’t also want to be trying to figure out the best way to file for workers’ comp. Do the work ahead of time!