Employment Considerations After a Denver Workers’ Compensation Injury
There are many things to consider after sustaining an injury. For example, a common thing to consider is employers taking advantage of injured workers. Sometimes workers do not know how the legal system works and most of the time the employer does not know what they should or should not be doing. When reporting an injury to the employer, the injured victim should make sure that the employer files the first report of injury and that the information is correct. Contact a worker’s compensation lawyer to learn more about employment considerations after a Denver workers’ compensation injury.
Wage Loss & Modified Duty
Aside from the first report of injury, when a person is experiencing wage loss, they should review the average weekly wage calculation, and make sure their employers are respecting their work restrictions. When a person is on a lighter modified duty because they are restricted from doing certain things, if they are making them feel like they are going to lose their job if they do not do it, that is them taking advantage.
Talking to an Adjuster
Talking to an adjuster is one of the many employment considerations after a Denver workers’ compensation injury. The attorney could talk to the adjuster the whole time, but the adjuster also has an interest in making sure that the employer behaves properly and follows the law.
If they do not, it comes out of the carrier’s pocket, whether it is in the form of penalties or the employer doing something they should not, or the employer not doing the right thing especially when it comes to returning to work and wage loss. It can amount to the injured workers being entitled to more benefits than they otherwise would have because the employers making a mistake or doing the wrong things.
Inability to Return to Work
Returning to work is another example of common employment considerations after a Denver workers’ compensation injury. In the context of a temporary inability to return to work, if the treating physician restricts an injured worker from their normal job duties, then employers must review those restrictions and determine whether they can accommodate the restrictions with a modified duty job offer. If they cannot, then that injured worker is entitled to TTD, temporary total disability, which are wage loss benefits. That person would be getting two-thirds of their average weekly wage.
If an injured worker cannot return to their original job, once the case is coming to an end and they are placed at maximum medical improvement, so it is on a permanent level, workers’ comp carriers do not really have to do anything or give value for the fact that they cannot return to their original job outside of the benefits that they owe under the law, so that would be the PPD or PTD and vocational rehabilitation.
Permanent Inability to Work
If it is a matter of it being permanent, a person cannot do the specific job anymore so someone who maybe works in a heavy labor type of position and they have a spinal surgery and there is just no way they can ever lift 150 pounds again. There is a value to that injury but outside of that, workers’ comp does not account for the fact that they can no longer do the same job. If someone is permanently disabled which under the law means they cannot return to do any work whatsoever, which is a high standard and not very common, then they would receive lifelong permanent total disability benefits.
Importance of Consulting with an Attorney
It is important to consult with an attorney about employment considerations after a Denver workers’ compensation injury. That is the main way a person is going to feel protected. If someone calls, they can have the attorney step in and call the employer, or call the adjuster because the issue is that there are three parties involved, the claimant, the injured worker, the employer and the worker’s comp carrier. It is in everyone’s interest for the employer to do the right thing.
