Workers’ compensation insurance is mandatory in most jurisdictions, and it’s common in most of the others. It’s a tool that can protect both employees and employers, and in many cases, it provides more than adequate compensation for injuries that are sustained on the job.
That said, workers’ comp doesn’t always treat workers fairly. But what exactly does that mean? And why is this the case?
The Value of a Workers’ Comp Attorney
A good workers’ compensation attorney is going to be invaluable in your pursuit of adequate compensation. A workers’ comp attorney is typically very familiar with how workers comp insurance works, as well as the legal options available to employees who are injured on the job. Working collaboratively with them, you can better understand the options available to you, contextualize the settlement offer you’ve likely received, and decide which legal strategy makes most sense for you moving forward.
These types of attorneys work for you, and they have a vested interest in getting you as much compensation as possible. Accordingly, you should take their advice very seriously, regardless of your personal thoughts on the matter.
The Basics of Workers’ Comp
Workers’ compensation is a form of insurance held by employers to protect their employees who might be injured on the job in the future. In exchange for waiving any claims against your employer, you can accept a settlement offer from the insurance company whenever you’re injured on the job, for any reason.
This type of insurance policy is structured and optimized for quick, effective, and seamless transactions in most cases. It’s designed to keep employees protected, regardless of the causes or extents of their injuries.
However, this system isn’t always appropriate, and it doesn’t always equip employees with the compensation they need for the injuries they’ve sustained on the job.
Why Workers’ Comp Doesn’t Always Treat Workers Fairly
These are some of the ways in which workers’ comp doesn’t always treat workers fairly.
- Waiver of legal action. For starters, accepting a settlement here means waiving any further legal claims against your employer. If they were negligent or otherwise liable for your injuries, you may end up missing out on compensation that you would otherwise fairly deserve.
- No pain and suffering damages. Workers’ comp typically doesn’t provide pain and suffering damages. This is a category of damages that is common in tort law, and in many cases, it can be substantial.
- Minimum settlement offers. As you might imagine, insurance companies are interested in maximizing profitability, which means they’re also interested in minimizing potential payouts. As an injured employee, you can expect only the minimum compensation from workers’ comp.
- Lengthy negotiations and processing. Sometimes, workers’ comp can take a long time to process. This presents problems for people who need compensation more urgently.
What You Can Do
So what can you do about this? What actions can you take and what strategies can you pursue to be treated more fairly if you’re injured on the job?
- File a thorough report. You should always file an accident report after any workplace accident. This is true regardless of the extent of your injury, the nature of the accident, or whether or not you intend to accept a workers’ comp settlement. It’s going to serve as an official record of events, as a piece of evidence, and as motivation for your employer to improve workplace safety. Accordingly, you should take this report very seriously and ensure it’s as accurate as possible.
- Gather evidence. It’s also a good idea to collect as much evidence as possible independently, even if you’ve already filed an official report with your employer. Take photos and videos of the scene of the accident, see if you can get any witness statements, and write down everything that you remember. These pieces of evidence may be important if you take legal action in the future. Your lawyer can also help you here.
- Talk to an attorney. Before you accept a workers’ comp settlement offer, you should talk to an attorney. Your attorney will help you review the details of your case, evaluate the settlement offer, and determine your legal options moving forward. They will likely have a strong recommendation for what you should do next.
- Trust their advice. You hired your professional legal advisor for a reason. In nearly all cases, you should trust their advice.
In an ideal world, our workplaces would be perfectly safe, and the risk of injury would be practically zero. But the reality is, employees can experience injuries in a multitude of ways in almost any workplace environment. The better you understand the mechanics of workers’ compensation, and the more open you are to alternative options, the better positioned you’ll be to win the compensation you deserve.
Founder Dinis Guarda
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