Working in America is not easy. In the United States, the saying is that we “live to work”, rather than “working to live”. The issue with this, of course, is that people often find themselves working strenuous hours in potentially dangerous business environments with very little pay. One of the problems with this prospect is that people are at higher risk for getting hurt on the job, without much extra money leftover from living expenses to pay the resulting medical bills. Now, the government is aware of this and thus there are provisions made to legally ensure that your medical bills are taken care of should you get hurt on the job. Unfortunately, these laws and regulations are not always observed by employers. As sad as it is to believe, many employers every year attempt to get away with neglecting to compensate their employees. It’s unscrupulous and morally wrong — and for that matter illegal. If you feel this has happened to you, there are options you can take; but you won’t get anywhere on your own, because you don’t practice law. Good workers’ compensation lawyers know how to not only make sure their clients get the compensation they deserve — but to ensure that justice is served as well.
What Is Workers’ Compensation?
Before we get into why you may deserve workers’ compensation, let’s make sure that you know what it is first. Many believe themselves familiar with workers’ compensation, but it can be quite tricky to understand. Essentially, workers’ compensation is a type of insurance. If you are injured while working — if due to an accident of some kind, or perhaps a safety violation on your employers’ part — workers’ compensation should replace your wages missed during your time off and cover your medical bills. By taking workers’ compensation, the injured party gives up their right to sue to their employer in a kind of trade. Now, there are times in which employees have sought workers’ compensation, but have not been given the full amount they deserve. This is when attorneys get involved. If you feel that you have been taken advantage of by your employer in some way, shape, or form and deserve more workers’ compensation, you’ll need someone who can practice law on your side. Because believe it or not, there’s more money at stake in workers’ compensation cases than you might imagine.
How Much Do People Receive In Workers’ Compensation?
Technically, the amount paid out in workers’ compensation depends on the injury sustained, the medical bills at hand, and the days of work missed. But the number can get quite high, even in the case of an injury that seems relatively minor. Medical bills tend to climb, even when injuries appear to be small — which is why 74% of states require all businesses to have workers’ compensation. Now, how do most workers’ compensations arise? Well, a surprising 85% of all workers’ compensation claims are attributed to employees slipping on slick floors. This may seems silly until you realize that a shocking 22% of slip and fall accidents result in over 31 days of missed work. Now, the maximum average of workers’ compensation awarded to an employee who injured one arm at work in the United States came out to about $169,880 as of March 2015. When you see that number, perhaps it becomes a bit more believable that some employers would be willing to attempt to avoid paying out all that they should.
Why Do I Need An Attorney On My Case?
So, why do you need someone who can practice law on your case? Well, with the ability to practice law comes a lot of knowledge, of course. You will be one person going up against not only the people directly above you on the employment ladder, but potentially a major business. Even small businesses will arm themselves with lawyers in cases like these. Your lawyer will be able to speak and fight for you — and hopefully, win for you.
