Workers' Compenstion

If you were injured “on the clock” while performing your job duties, you are likely eligible to receive workers’ compensation. Disputes frequently arise over what the employee was doing at the time of their injury. 

What if you slip on a puddle while walking to the office kitchen for lunch? Technically lunch isn’t in your job description. Should you receive workers’ compensation? What if you get into an accident while pulling out of the parking garage after work? 

In the first scenario you are likely eligible to receive compensation. In the second scenario you might not be eligible to receive workers’ comp benefits. Interpretations of the law and what you were doing at the time of your injury can play a role in claim approval or denial. 

If a business employs at least three workers, they usually are required to carry workers’ comp coverage. This includes businesses with three or more seasonal workers and part-time workers. Companies that are incorporated must carry workers’ comp even if they have fewer than three employees. 

Exceptions for these requirements apply to some types of businesses. Workers employed by exempt businesses can still file a personal injury claim against their employer if they are ever injured on the job. 

Businesses that may be exempt from normal Georgia workers’ comp insurance requirements include: 

• Agricultural employers / Farms
• Gardeners and landscaping businesses 
• Railroads 
• Some independent contractors 

It’s difficult to overstate just how disruptive and life changing a disability can be for you and your family. Being unable to return to your same job or do the things that gave your life meaning can be devastating. The emotional and psychological ramifications are just one facet of temporary or permanent disability injuries. There are also the short- and long-term financial consequences. 

Disabilities are expensive to treat and manage. You might also have no source of income and require compensation to cover everything from groceries and rent to car insurance and clothing. 

Workers who suffer a temporary or permanent disability should be eligible to receive lost wage compensation and temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits. TPD benefits are specifically intended for workers who are unable to return to their position or perform their assigned job duties at their full capacity due to their injury.

TPD is ideal for injured workers who can return to work but can no longer work as many hours or can’t function at their previous capacity. TPD is intended to help workers in these scenarios make up the difference between their pre-injury income and their post-injury income. 

It’s generally necessary for your doctor to recommend restrictions to your hours or job duties to qualify for TPD. 

For example, if your doctor says you can return to work for four hours a day for the next two months, TPD can pay up to two-thirds of the wages you would have been paid for the missed four hours of work. That essentially means you could receive nearly seven hours of pay instead of just four hours of pay each day (up to $450 per week). 

The maximum TPD length in Georgia is 350 weeks or until your doctor approves you to return to full-time work or your pre-injury job position. 

Some of the most common reasons employers and workers’ comp insurance companies attempt to deny workplace injury claims include: 

• You didn’t notify your employer quickly enough (you have 30 days after your injury to notify your employer and a year to file your WC-14 with the Georgia State Board of Workers’ Compensation) 
• Your injury allegedly wasn’t related to your job duties 
• You failed to follow proper procedures (immediately seeking an examination from an employer-approved panel physician, failing to notify your employer, etc.) 
• You either didn’t take or didn’t pass a post-injury drug screening 
• You didn’t file the proper paperwork or failed to do so in a timely manner
• Your injury was caused by a preexisting condition 

Some common work-related injury causes that might not qualify as eligible workers’ comp injuries include: 

• Injuries sustained in car accidents that occurred when you were driving to work or home after work 
• Injuries you suffered while horsing around at work 
• Any injuries that you sustained while you were intoxicated 
• Injuries caused by something you were doing that wasn’t a specific job duty 

An example could include a customer service representative suffering an injury from falling off a desk they were standing on to change a florescent light bulb. Changing lightbulbs isn’t an approved job duty of the customer service representative.