Tag: workers compensation

Most Illinois workers are aware of essential Workers’ Compensation benefits such as covered medical treatment disability payments. However, there is one other benefit that is essential for their financial security. It’s called ‘wage differential,’ and it can ensure you can go a long way in reducing your stress if you suffer from serious workplace injuries.

What is a Wage Differential?

If your workplace injury incapacitates you to the point that you have to quit your job, you may be eligible for a wage differential settlement.

 

Here is how it works. Whether your injuries prevent you from working permanently or temporarily, your employer may offer to give you ‘light duty’ that can accommodate your physical limitations.

 

If the new position hurts your salary, you are eligible for a solution that pays you part of the difference. It is called wage differential benefits, and it can only be applied if you qualify for Workers’ Compensation.

 

If you are eligible, you are entitled to 2/3 of the difference between your old wages and your light-duty salary as per wage differential laws. So not only will you get a regular paycheck for your new position, but you will also get a workers’ compensation check for 2/3rds of the difference between the wages.

 

To qualify for a wage differential settlement, you have to prove that you cannot pursue your original and customary line of employment. An experienced Workers’ Compensation lawyer in Antioch can help you establish this and calculate the amount you can receive. They can also help you determine if you are eligible for this award or not.

 

If your light-duty job puts your recovery and health at risk, you are a good candidate for temporary total disability (TTD) payments. You can also claim this benefit if your employer is unable to accommodate your limitations at work.

Denied Wage Differential Payments? Here is What You Should Do

The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act describes how and when an injured employee is eligible for wage differential payments. However, this doesn’t mean that employers and insurance companies will comply. In some cases, they may try to withhold benefits by saying you are ineligible.

 

Contact us to discuss your legal options if you or someone you know qualifies for wage differential payments, but cannot get them because of uncooperative employers/insurance companies. As a dedicated and skilled Workers’ Compensation lawyer in Antioch, Robert Edens can develop a strategy that can ensure you get the compensation you deserve. His team of lawyers has recovered millions of dollars in claims for their clients. Ensuring you can get a wage differential settlement is barely a challenge for them.

You can get in touch with him and his team of workers’ compensation lawyers at the Law Offices of Robert T. Edens in Antioch, Waukegan, Libertyville, Woodstock, and Chicago, IL. At this point, the worst thing you can do is rely on advice from your employer or insurance company. They may try to sabotage your claim. We can ensure they don’t get away with it. Get in touch with us for a consultation today!

Workers’ compensation serves as a safety net for employees faced with a work-related injury. It covers their medical bills and rehabilitation costs, and other damages such as lost wages resulting from the injury. They also provide death benefits to dependents of a worker who is killed in a work-related accident. In 2018 alone, around $62.9 billion were paid in workers’ compensation benefits, according to the Insurance Information Institute.

However, receiving the coverage you deserve in workers’ compensation is more difficult than most employees think. You don’t know how low insurance providers can go to minimize the compensation they need to pay out. You might well be under 24/7 surveillance in an attempt to spot loopholes and inconsistencies in your case. Here are some workers’ comp adjuster tricks to look out for when you file your claim:

Using Private Investigators

Regardless of whether a claim is contested or uncontested, insurance companies often hire private investigators to keep an eye on you. The purpose is to collect evidence against you that shows that you violated your doctor’s restrictions, such as not leaving your home or lift heavy objects. For example, if you attempt to leave your home when you’ve been told not to, you will most certainly be videotaped doing so.

Recording Your Statements to be Used Against You

Before you receive medical treatment or get paid for the damages, your insurance company will do its best to obtain a recorded statement from you. Their request may sound innocent but their aim is to use your comments against you. Insurance agents know that the victim of the accident will be under severe stress right after the event took place and may give out information that can be used against their case.

Therefore, we recommend hiring a workers’ compensation lawyer as soon as possible, especially before you give out any information to insurance providers. More importantly, understand that you are not legally bound to give a recorded statement.

Voluntarily Paying You Benefits

When insurance providers realize your case is strong, they voluntarily make compensatory payments but fail to inform you about your obligations so that you lose your benefits at some point in the future. What they hide from you is that if you don’t obtain an award order and file a claim for benefits form, you will no longer be entitled to the payments you deserve when the statute of limitations runs out after a year from the day of the workplace accident.

Seeking a Blank Medical Authorization from You

When you file your workers’ compensation claim, your insurance provider may proceed to a fishing expedition, looking for any pre-existing medical conditions that might justify a low payment or dispute. Don’t fall for the trap of giving them a blank medical authorization. They’ll use this authority to find medical conditions that may undermine your case.

Now that you’re aware of some common insurance adjuster tricks, you should be in a much better position to dodge them as they come your way. Don’t become complacent here; hire Robert Edens, a reliable workers’ compensation lawyer in Grayslake, who will offer expert advice from the beginning till the end.

Although working conditions have improved over the years, workplace injury remains an ongoing problem for workers. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, around 5,333 American employees lost their lives due to a work-related injury in 2019 alone. Even if an injury doesn’t prove fatal, it can lead to injuries that may lead to lost wages and other damages.

While Workers’ compensation is the only way to recover the loss, certain mistakes on your part can destroy your case, depriving you of the compensation you deserve. Here’s what not to do while on workers’ compensation.

Delayed Reporting of Your Work-Related Injury

This is one of the most ridiculous, yet common mistakes employees make while on workers’ comp. When you don’t immediately report the work incident and the associated injury, the insurer for your workers’ compensation assumes that you faced no major injuries. While you have 45 days to report your injury in writing to your employer, report the damages the day you face them. And if you missed the deadline of 45 days, you won’t receive any compensation at all.

Seeking Workers’ Compensation Benefits After Being Terminated or Laid Off

Some employers will fire or lay off workers who recently faced a workplace injury but haven’t yet reported the issue. This way, they get away with the liability or may not have to pay as much in compensation as otherwise. The problem is that insurance companies assume that workers’ compensation claims filed by employees after being terminated or laid off are motivated by anger or revenge against the former employers, and are thus false. Such claims are always viewed with suspicion and deeply scrutinized.

Ideally, you should take a medical exam within 24 hours of facing a workplace injury. Otherwise, you may not be able to prove that your injury was a direct result of the work accident.

Not Being Honest About Your Injuries

Many victims of a workplace injury will let their emotions take over and will exaggerate while reporting the accident and the injuries. Keep in mind that if your description of how you sustained the injury, how severe it is, and other details are not consistent with the results of your medical exam, your workers’ comp claim may be denied. Thus, when speaking to your employer or healthcare provider, stay honest about what exactly happened.

Not Choosing Your Own Doctor

Many corporate giants have a retainer or doctor on staff. Don’t assume that you can’t choose your own doctor and will have to wait for the company doctor for treatment. This further delays the reporting of the injuries, which is exactly what these companies want. Be informed that as an injured employee, you have full command over who you want to consult and seek medical care from. Instead of waiting for the company doctor to treat you, make an appointment with your own family doctor and explain the situation.

Workers’ Compensation Lawyer In Antioch

While avoiding these above-discussed mistakes should help you with your workers’ comp claim, securing full coverage from your insurance agent can still be a big challenge. Consult Robert Edens, an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer in Antioch, who is dedicated to securing you the reimbursements you deserve.

If you’re an independent contractor, one of your major concerns might be whether you can collect workers’ compensation or not. This guide will provide you with a comprehensive answer:

Workers’ Compensation in Illinois

In Illinois, independent contractors are not eligible for workers’ compensation. However, the criteria for a person to be called an independent contractor or an employee (employees are eligible for workers’ compensation in Illinois) are different under Illinois Workers’ Compensation law than in other states. Let’s find out what exactly is meant by independent contractors:

Defining Independent Contractors

Independent contractors are self-employed individuals or freelancers who are temporarily hired by companies to deliver specific tasks without joining them as employees. According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a worker is only regarded as an independent contractor when the employer has the right to direct or control only the outcome of the work and not what work is being performed or how it’s being performed.

 

In the state of Illinois, there are numerous cases where legitimate employees are wrongly categorized as independent contractors in an attempt to deprive them of workers’ compensation benefits and thereby save significant amounts of money. When such workers get injured or disabled while performing the work they’ve been assigned, they should seek legal representation to claim their rights.

 

This means that even if you signed an independent contractor agreement and received 1099 income, you may still be considered an employee.

The Robertson vs. Industrial case is a clear example of how a trucker who was referred to as an independent contractor was entitled to workers’ compensation, according to the Illinois Supreme Court ruling.

When Are You Considered an Employee in Illinois?

If following cases, you’ll be considered an employee and are wrongly classified as an independent contractor:

• The employer gave you a work schedule that you are bound to follow; you weren’t given the freedom to set your own hours
• You are exclusively bound to the employer and can’t work for someone else
• You’re provided with a uniform by your employer
• You don’t use your own equipment or materials; your employer provides the tools to you
• Your employer took taxes out of your paycheck
• You were given specific instructions by your employer for how the job needs to be done; you were not allowed to follow your own approach

If your employer claims that you’re an independent contractor, but one or more of the points stated above holds true, you may be considered an employee that qualifies for workers’ compensation benefits under Illinois law.

See more on our Illinois Workers’ Compensation FAQs page.

Hire a Top-Rated Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney

However, it can be a big challenge to prove that you’re an employee, not an independent contractor. An Antioch workers’ compensation lawyer can make life considerably easy for you. Hire Robert T. Edens, who has 20 years of experience in fighting for the rights of employees. His law firm has recovered millions of dollars for clients up till now.

Most people who get injured at their workplace don’t know that their ability to receive benefits is bound by the Illinois statute of limitations for workers’ compensation claims. The statute of limitations is basically a deadline before which a claim needs to be filed. If the injured party fails to file a claim before the deadline mentioned in the statute, then they will not be entitled to receive the benefits.

The Statute of Limitations For Workers’ Compensation Claims

In Illinois, there are two deadlines that injured employees need to meet in order to maintain their eligibility for worker’s compensation benefits. The first deadline is for the reporting of the injury and the second one for filing a claim for benefits.

1. Deadline to Report the Injury

According to Illinois law, all injured workers who want to file a worker’s comp claim have to report their injury to their employer within 45 days of the accident. However, it’s not advised to wait out the entire 45-day period and you should ideally report your injury within an hour of it happening.

On the other hand, if you’re suffering from an occupational illness instead of a job-related injury, the 45-day deadline doesn’t apply. In this case, you need to inform your employer about your condition as soon as you become aware of it.

2. Deadline to File A Claim

Reporting your illness or injury is not the same as filing a claim for worker’s compensation benefits. After you report your injury or illness, you will have to file an Application for Adjustment of Claim through the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission.

As per Illinois law, you can file a worker’s compensation claim up to 3 years from the date you got injured or ill. So, if you got injured at your workplace on January 1, 2020, you have until January 1, 2023, to file a claim.

If you have any questions regarding the time limit for filing a claim or if you need help with filing a claim, get in touch with The Law Offices of Robert T. Edens. Never assume that you’re late in filing a claim for your injury, or that you aren’t entitled to benefits, even if your employer or the insurance company tells you so. To contact us, dial (847) 395-2200.

See more on our Illinois Workers’ Compensation FAQs page.