Understanding Your Workers' Compensation Rights

In the industrial age, the hazards to which workers were subjected in the course of performing their labors became significantly more dangerous, more abundant, and markedly different than in any previous era. By the late 19th and early 20th century it became increasingly apparent, thanks in large part to the work of labor unions, that something needed to be done to provide for the welfare and safety of workers. There were many new laws and regulations introduced to support that effort, and one of the most substantial movements was toward the adoption of workers' compensation laws.

For the first time, most employees had a right to secure financial benefits from their employer to address the medical expenses and wages lots due to an injury sustained in the workplace without being required to demonstrate that the employer bore some fault for the accident or creating the conditions that led to it. Unfortunately, the system has not worked out exactly as intended, because the balance of power in the processing of workers' compensation claims falls squarely in the hands of the businesses and the workers' compensation insurance companies from whom they purchase insurance coverage.

Overcoming the Odds

One of the primary advantages of workers' compensation law is the provision that excuses injured workers from having to establish the employer's fault. In theory this should mean that claims are resolved quickly and without needless protest from those who are evaluating them, but in practice the situation is far different. Employers who have numerous claims filed by their workers might be asked to pay more for their insurance premiums, so they have an incentive to discourage or derail claims. The insurance companies that issue the policies under which the companies are covered are driven by profits and they are most profitable when they take in significant premiums and issue minimal payments.

These parties are both also likely to be much better versed in the specific details of the pertinent workers' compensation laws and can take advantage of an injured worker's comparative lack of familiarity with the subject. To overcome these obstacles, it is important that you have the counsel of a skilled and experienced workers' compensation attorney who will help you to obtain the following benefits that you are due:

• Full payment for medical expenses associated with the occupational injury
• Compensation for travel costs to attend medical appointments
• Compensation for time missed at work due to the injury and subsequent recovery

If You Have Been Hurt at Work