If you are a worker in the Philadelphia area and have been hurt while on the job, you might be eligible to receive a settlement under workers compensation.
The Pennsylvania Workers Compensation Act entitles many workers to compensation for illness or injury that happened while they were working, and it also provides death benefits to dependent spouses of workers who died from a job related incident. You may also be able to receive lost wage replacement if you could not return to work after your incident.
The Act dictates that all employers in the state must give their employees the protection of workers compensation. This includes almost every worker in Philadelphia and across the state, including employees of smaller businesses, nonprofit organizations, and unincorporated businesses.
The most common examples of workplace injuries occur on construction sites and in manufacturing jobs.
Common injuries involve issues with heavy machinery, slip and fall accidents, or illnesses from exposure to chemicals or particles. However, the process of filing a workers compensation claim is often very confusing and complex.
That may even be the reason you are visiting this site. There are many different things that go into a workers compensation claim in terms of paperwork and evidence, so it is important to get in touch with a Philadelphia workers compensation lawyer as soon as possible if you think you may have a case.
Benefits of Filing a Workers Compensation Claim
The most common benefit of filing a workers compensation claim is to receive financial assistance for your medical bills that you incurred while treating your work related illness or injuries. Hospital and emergency room bills are often very costly, which can be an issue for many people, especially those who cant return to work to earn a wage. Compensation can be invaluable to these individuals.
Specific loss Benefit
Some workers are eligible for what is called a specific loss benefit, or a benefit that pays out a certain amount of money if a worker loses a body part or the use of a body part such as a leg, arm, hand, or foot, and it also includes people who have lost their hearing or vision.
Lost Wages Benefit
The benefit designated for lost wages is intended to help workers who cant go back to work for a while or at all if their injuries or illness are too severe. Because you cant earn a living if you cant go to work, the benefit will help replace those wages so that you can pay your new medical bills and keep up with your day to day expenses, such as rent or mortgage payments, food, gas, car payments, or utilities.
Death Benefits
The death benefit from workers compensation pays out a certain amount to spouses who were financially dependent on the money of a spouse who died in a work related incident. The death benefit can help cover the cost of a funeral and provide financial assistance to the surviving spouse.
How Common are Accidents On The Job
Accidents on the job are unfortunately not as uncommon as we would like to believe. They can occur in any kind of job, from a manufacturing job to a service or office based job. Construction or machine equipment accidents are fairly common, but something as simple as slipping on cleaning products or cutting yourself with a sharp box cutter can result in injuries on the job.
Someone mixing dangerous chemicals while cleaning can produce noxious gases that can poison workers.
These kinds of accidents can make illnesses you already have, like asthma, much worse. This especially happens in jobs involving chemicals or coal like in mining jobs. But it can often be very difficult to prove that these chemicals or particles made your asthma worse, a situation that can happen with any preexisting condition that is worsened by your workplace environment.
The general rule of thumb is that any disease or sickness had to have appeared within 300 days of working in that particular environment. For cases related to coal or silica particles, you had to have worked there for at least two years.
Don’t be afraid of your workers compensation case.
Hiring your own lawyer to process your clam is the smart move
Our lawyers have handled workers compensation claims for twenty years in the Philadelphia area and will assist you throughout each step. If you keep track of your medical bills, records, and other information, we will help file your claim and ensure that the settlement you are offered will meet your needs.
Call our offices right away, because there is often a time limit within which you must file your claim. Our attorneys will get you the full compensation that you deserve for your work related injury or illness.