When your business in need of an employee, you’ll need to be aware of federal and state laws regarding workers compensation insurance. The workers compensation insurance is a program that an employer sets up to provide workers who were injured on the job the benefits to compensate for lost wages while they are incapacitated.
Many American workers faced a large number of work-related hazards before workers’ compensation laws were established. Numerous employees suffered serious injuries, some were killed on the job. And suing their employer was the only option for injured workers or their next of kin to get compensation for their grievances.
Most employees lacks the needed funds to go after their employers. For one thing, lawsuits are expensive and almost all employers use these three major defenses that an injured employee would find difficult to overcome:
- Fellow Employee Negligence: An employee’s injury was caused by another fellow employee.
- Assumption of Risk: The worker assumed the risks of the job when they agreed to employment.
- Contributory Negligence: The worker’s injury was because of their own negligence.
The American public had become supportive to injured workers and started to demand reforms by early 20th century. Wisconsin was the first state to pass workers’ compensation and the other states followed suit, and by 1920 a majority of states had a workers’ compensation law.
Coverage
According to thebalancesmb.com, states are quite consistent in the types of benefits the insurance program provide. These are the general areas they cover:
- Medical Coverage: Including medical expenses for medications, doctors, hospitals and nursing care.
- Disability: The disability may be total or partial. The program provides partial reimbursement of lost wages during a temporary or permanent disability.
- Rehabilitation: Provides vocational training for employees who needs to change occupations due to their injury.
- Death: If any employee dies due to a work-related injury, death benefits are paid to the worker’s spouse, minor children and other dependents. Burial costs are also covered.
While most states afford similar types of benefits, the amounts they provide may be different from other states. For example, one state may provide up to 500 weeks of benefits for a temporary total disability, another state may provide benefits for only 104 weeks.
Offering workers’ compensation can protect you from litigation if and when an employee would get injured or sick because of their job. The cost for this insurance program also varies by industry and provider, high-risk work like construction carry higher premiums compared to office jobs. Plus, a company’s premiums can either increase or decrease depending on the number of claims filed.
