Whether you break your arm or suffer a brain injury, getting hurt on the job might mean taking a leave of absence. The worse your injury is and the more demanding your profession, the longer you may need to remain home from work.
Typically, if you file a workers’ compensation benefits claim, you can receive temporary disability benefits until you recover and can return to work. While those disability benefits won’t replace all of your lost wages, they can provide you with enough compensation to continue meeting your basic household expenses.
Unfortunately, some people suffer severe injuries on the job and will never be able to work in the same position again. If you are able to return to work but cannot hold the same position you previously did, you may have to accept a drop in income. Workers’ compensation benefits can help when injuries affect your earning potential.
There are partial disability benefits available
Not every lasting injury forces someone to prematurely stop working. Some injuries simply limit an individual’s functions and prevent them from working the same job. They can still perform light-duty work or lower-demand tasks, but they are no longer capable of doing the same work as before on a full-time basis.
Injured workers can potentially receive ongoing permanent partial disability benefits after moving into a different role that pays a lower wage. The benefits can replace a portion of someone’s lost earning potential for up to 500 weeks. In cases where someone loses a limb, vision or hearing because of a work injury, there could be lump-sum benefits available based on their loss of function.
Although there may still be an overall reduction in someone’s take-home pay, disability benefits help limit the losses someone must accept with a workplace injury affects their income. Workers can also rely on workers’ compensation medical coverage to fully pay for the treatment related to their work injury. In some cases, there could also be vocational rehabilitation support available if a worker will need to change professions.
Getting the most from your workers’ compensation claim requires understanding the types of benefits available and maintaining records that help validate your claims.