You’ve probably heard of workers’ compensation as a business owner or worker. However, you may not know the details surrounding it. As someone who needs it, you may need to do a little research to determine how it works. As an employer who must offer it, the same thing applies.
Understanding workers’ comp and personal injury becomes crucial if you ever sustain an injury or experience an illness that prevents you from fulfilling your job’s duties. You must also know how this system works if you’re the owner or operator of a company.
If you don’t know about workers’ compensation yet, there’s no better time than the present to learn about it.
What Does Workers’ Compensation Mean?
Some people might refer to workers’ compensation as workers’ comp. This is a type of insurance that helps workers who require wage replacement or medical benefits. Workers can only receive it, though, if they sustain an injury through their job or their work makes them sick.
If an employer offers the worker this form of compensation, though, the employer gets something in return. If an employee accepts workers’ compensation offered through their job, they can no longer sue the company.
If a worker feels that a company or employer made them sick or injured them through the tort of negligence, they might feel they should sue. If they take workers’ comp payments, though, they instantly give up that right. That’s why each worker must carefully consider whether to accept these payments if they feel some inaction or action by their employer harmed them.
Do All Employers Need to Offer It?
Nearly all US-based employers need to offer worker’s comp. They will need to look at the minimum amount their state requires them to have. They can always get a policy that gives their workers more than the minimum if they injure themselves or get sick while on the job. However, most companies get the minimum.
Texas is currently the only state that does not have a mandatory workers’ comp insurance mandate for employers. Someone who’s a business’s sole proprietor must have it, but companies must also carry it if they belong to a large national or international conglomerate.
Workers’ comp stands as one of the major protections employees can utilize when they need it. In some instances, though, a company might go for a slightly different option. In some states, a business entity can forego purchasing workers’ comp if it meets specific conditions.
For instance, a business doesn’t need workers’ comp if one or two individuals own it. These co-owners also own 100% of the stock and hold all of the corporation’s offices. In such situations, each individual must hold an office and at least one share of the available stock.
Since these scenarios don’t happen often, it’s reasonable to assume that most businesses you might start working will have workers’ comp available. If you’re unsure whether an entity you might work for has it, you can always ask. They must legally disclose whether they offer it or not.
Do Any Other Situations Exist Where a Company Doesn’t Have to Carry Workers’ Comp?
A few other situations sometimes come about where a company doesn’t offer workers’ comp. For instance, a business with no contracted employees doesn’t have to offer it. If a company only deals with volunteers, they needn’t provide them with workers’ compensation.
You might also have a company that employees only family members. These business entities can sometimes circumvent workers’ comp laws.
How Much of an Employee’s Regular Pay Do They Get Through Workers’ Comp?
You should also know that as an employee, if you hurt yourself on the job or get sick and try to collect workers’ comp from your employer, you will not get the full amount you usually would from your paycheck. Workers’ comp might keep you afloat, but it’s not the same as a regular salary.
In most states and most instances, you will get about 66% of your weekly, bi-monthly, or monthly paycheck. You must do some research and look into your particular state’s policies to know for sure.
You can always contact a lawyer if you feel you should get more money through workers’ comp than your employer offers. You can also hire a lawyer if you feel confident you should get workers’ comp, but your boss won’t offer it to you.
Do Situations Exist Where an Employee Can’t Get Workers’ Comp?
Legal action remains the most common reason why an employee can’t get workers’ comp. If you sustain an injury while on the job or get sick, you might feel like your employer caused it. If you tell a lawyer your story, and they agree with your assessment of the situation, they might take you on as a client. They can help you sue the company.
Once you do that, though, you can’t change your mind and accept workers’ comp. That clause dictating that you can’t sue once you take workers’ compensation keeps many lawsuits from moving forward.
Sometimes, even if a worker feels that their job or boss bears some responsibility for what happened, they would rather have that percentage of their normal paycheck while they’re recovering rather than moving forward with legal action. Court proceedings can exhaust you, and some people simply don’t feel that litigious.
Other situations might also occur occasionally where a person who works for a company can’t get workers’ comp through it. Usually, that’s a scenario like those we described earlier, where a family member works for a business. That’s why, if you plan to work for one of your relatives, you should consider their workers’ comp situation because of this loophole in the law that exists in several states.
Now that you know about workers’ comp, you’ll know that it’s there to protect you as a worker and make you a more attractive candidate as an employer.