It can be an extremely stressful and frustrating experience to have been injured at work. Ironically, getting injured as a result of the tasks that you carried out at work can mean that you have to stop working for a time and lose wages as a result. Luckily, there are protections in place for workers so that they don’t have to suffer financially while they are recovering and are not able to make an income.
Taking time off work
If you are injured but not seriously, you will usually be seen by the company doctor for the first 30 days. After this time, you can submit a written request for another doctor. If you suffered a temporary disability because of your injury, you are likely to be able to claim temporary disability payments. In order to do this, your doctor must confirm that you are unable to work.
Rehabilitation
You might have suffered an injury that will prevent you from being able to ever work again in your current vocation. If this is the case, it is likely that worker’s compensation benefits will include vocational rehabilitation. This is a service that assists workers in training for a new profession.
Returning to work on a lower salary
When you do eventually return to work, you might be working at a lower capacity and therefore a lower wage. If this is true then you will likely be entitled to worker’s compensation until you salary returns back to normal.
It is important to learn what you are entitled to so that you get the worker’s compensation that you deserve.
Source: Findlaw, “Returning to work after injury,” accessed Oct. 26, 2017