Workers’ Comp And HR

If you turn ill or injured due to the work-related incident, the  PEO workers comp insurance can help make you whole by providing monetary aid to help cover lost wages and medical costs. Workers comp is a type of insurance designed to cover expenses caused by injuries that occur at work and can also assist the company involved with legal issues and covering expenses. When injured, your company’s HR department often helps with the workers’ comp process.

What Is Workers’ Comp?

Worker’s compensation is a program adopted by the government to provide access to benefits to workers injured or affected by illness while working. 

It is a disability insurance program for the workers, providing them with cash and healthcare benefits while suffering injury. Let us understand more on it in detail in the following sections. 

What Are the Benefits of Workers’ Compensation 

There are some requirements for workers’ compensation, and they may vary from one state to another. But the baseline of the benefits is more or less the same. Here in this section, we discuss what are the generic benefits that an employee can get from workers’ compensation insurance.

Reimbursement of the Healthcare 

Most of the compensation plans have their own specifics for coverage of medical expenses. For example, if you are a construction worker, claim compensation for the injury you suffer while working on site. If the workers fall sick or get heavily injured while working in the office, they will receive the compensation amount.

Temporary Disability Benefits 

If a worker receives an injury while working on the site and becomes disabled temporarily, then they will receive the temporary disability benefits. This will  provide them with the scope to rehabilitate and attain the old physical and psychological state of working in the company. Yes, you got it right; it is one of the benefits. 

Permanent Disability Benefits 

The workers’ comp also receives the payment through the workers’ compensation insurance if they receive the wage lost due to the injury. 

Death Benefit 

The workers comp insurance also provides the payment to the surviving members of the employees if they die from the injury while working. 

How Do You Apply For Workers’ Compensation?

 The rules for the application for workers’ compensation generally vary from one state to another. First, you have to describe in writing the details of the injury or illness in detail. Thereafter, you report the injury to your employer.  

Every State in the US forces the employer to compensate the employees. It is a mandatory law to protect the interest of the vulnerable.  Most states possess their own online websites. They help you determine if you are under workers’ compensation insurance. 

How HR Assists In A Workers’ Comp Situation

When communicating with HR for a workers’ comp, filing their goals to handle the process quickly and efficiently. Common tasks an HR rep will assist with are collecting proper paperwork, answering general questions, providing important contact information, and giving consideration to legal corners such as the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Remember your HR department is focused on both speed and fairness as they want to avoid any possible lawsuits or behavior that could be considered illegal under labor laws.

Things Not Covered By Workers’ Compensation

While workers’ comp is designed to pay for injuries that occur in the workplace, it does not cover everything. Some of the broader injuries not covered by workers’ comp are getting hurt in a fight with a coworker that you started, any injuries caused on purpose, injuries that occur it being drunk or intoxicated due to other substances, and psychological injuries that are not tied to a workplace incident or trauma.

The Workers Comp Claim Process

When you need workers’ comp, the longest part of the process is the claims process. Your HR department does a good deal of the work collecting documents and reporting needed information to the correct governmental agencies. The job of your HR rep is to execute the claim and your responsibility as an employee is to provide relevant information and states to aid in the process. Legal requirements can vary depending on the state you live in, but the general process is usually the same. The steps can include the following.

• The first step is reporting that an injury or illness has occurred.
• You also have to verify you are looking to seek workers’ compensation.
• Basic information for your HR department will include your personal information such as your name, DOB, address, age, SSN, and other identifying data. They will need this information for the filing of an insurance claim so you can be properly identified and contacted if needed. Your company will have their account number and policy information on hand to speed up the process.
• It’s important to provide relevant information to your HR department related to your injury. This includes detailing the type of injury you have, what parts of the body are impacted by this illness or injury, when and where this injury occurred, where any other people were involved in the accident, details of what happened, and any medical care you received afterward.

After you see a doctor or medical professional, your employer’s HR department has to officially file a workers’ compensation claim with their insurance provider and also inform the state government’s workers’ compensation office. The involvement of local government is to verify nothing illegal occurred that would require an outside investigation. While accidents do happen, your employer has to provide a working environment that meets safety standards. You can also appeal to the state if you think your employer has done something that may be considered negligent.

Final Thoughts

Injuries on the job are sudden and highly stressful events. When you’ve been hurt on the job, it’s important to go through the proper channels so your employer can be made aware and file a claim with their insurance company. The job of HR is to guide you through this process quickly and ensure all needed information is both collected and correct.

Additional:

• How to Help Your Employees Develop into Good Leaders
• 6 Reasons Why Employee Communication is Important for HR
• The Employee Experience: How to Make Your Workers Happy