What You Need to Know: Workman’s Comp. vs. Workplace Injury Cases

While we hope you never become injured at work, but it is important that you know and understand your rights in the event that you are hurt and unable to perform the requirements of your job.

Keep reading to learn more about workplace injury cases, workman’s compensation, and if you qualify to receive benefits after being hurt on the job.

What is Worker’s Compensation?

Many employees who are unable to work due to an illness or injury are entitled to salary replacement benefits, medical treatment, rehabilitation, and other benefits depending on the extent of the injury they suffered and the state in which they are working.

This state-mandated disability compensation program provides benefits to workers and their dependents in the event of an illness or injury at work that prevents them from performing their job and collecting their normal paycheck.

In most cases, employees will receive about two thirds of their regular salary when collecting worker’s compensation benefits. To learn more about a specific state’s workman’s compensation program, you can visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s website, here.

It is important to note that worker’s compensation claims do not require proof of fault in order to receive benefits. For instance, as long as an employee was working when the injury occurred, and the worker did not deliberately attempt injury, violate policy or commit a crime, benefits likely will  be paid.

Understand Workplace Injury

A workplace injury case, similar to personal injury accident cases, occur when negligence is a direct cause of the incident and resulting injury.

When an injury was caused by an employer’s intentional conduct and could have been prevented or avoided, you may have grounds for a lawsuit.

If your injury was due to deliberate negligence, improper training, abhorrent policy violation, or a knowingly unsafe work environment, your employer could be held accountable for your medical bills, lost wages, future earnings, loss of quality of life, pain and suffering, and any other damages you incurred as a result of the injury.

The amount of damages you qualify to collect for your workplace injury case is a substantial  difference between a worker’s compensation claim and a work injury lawsuit.

What to Do If You Have Been Injured While at Work?

Employers must provide a safe and non-hazardous work environment.

According to the Department of Labor’s Workplace Safety and Health page, employers have the responsibility to create laws and policies to protect the health and enforce the safety of workers in the United States.

If you have been hurt on the job and believe you are entitled to compensation or benefits, contact Chaffin Luhana today for a free case evaluation. Our law firm has successfully recovered billions of dollars in damages for our clients, and we specialize in representing those injured due to negligence.