Worker's Compensation: Benefits Vary by State

Hartford, CTThe benefits of Worker's Compensation far outweigh the costs, even in the face of some employers crying foul over legislated benefit improvements in some states that will result in premium increases.

Still, with 450 deaths attributed to workplace accidents each year in the state of Texas alone, the need for compensation funding to support workers injured while at work, or the dependents of those who are tragically killed on the job, has never been greater.

In a nutshell, Worker's Compensation is an entity that protects you from lost wages due to a work-related injury. Benefits can include (but are not limited to) wages, medical expenses and monetary compensation for pain and suffering.

It's little surprise, however, that employers are not a fan of Worker's Compensation in view of the premiums they have to pay - costs that can rise when claims are processed, or benefit improvements are legislated into existence.

That's what is happening in the State of Connecticut, whose Senate approved by a vote of 21-15 legislation on May 31st of this year improving benefits for people seriously injured on the job. The Bill has yet to pass the House, but if approved could see dramatic extensions of benefits. In an example cited recently in the Connecticut Post, a worker awarded a partial disability through Worker's Compensation would, under current rules, receive benefits for 35 weeks. However, proposed changes in Connecticut would give compensation commissioners the power to extend those benefits to as long as 117 weeks.

The Bill, however, has fuelled raging debate between business owners and workers' advocates about the costs. One business owner in Bridgeport fears that her premiums will increase by $8,000 per year, and opponents to the Bill are claiming that jobs will disappear in Connecticut as businesses move out-of-state to less expensive locales.

But that shouldn't stop you from making a claim, if you are legitimately injured or compromised on the job. A law is a law, and it is your legal right to file a claim for benefits under Worker's Compensation legislation.

But know your rights and your entitlements. If your claim is denied or watered-down, legal advice might be in your best interest. And the fact that regulations vary from state to state is aptly demonstrated by a recent case in Texas, where the families of 140 workers killed on the job were denied a total of $17 million in benefits due to the state's narrow definition of eligibility.

In Texas, only a spouse or dependent children can be eligible for benefits - or parents, or adult children who can prove financial dependence on the deceased worker.

Donald Coit Smith lost his 22-year-old son to an electrocution accident that happened on the job. Worker's Compensation benefits that might have been paid to him or his son's estate were he eligible, wound up going into a state fund that benefits insurance agencies that incur losses in other cases when benefits are overturned in the appeals process, according to Austin-based lawyer Joe Anderson, as quoted in the Killeen Daily Herald.

Compare the Texas situation, with the benefits environment in the State of Arizona, where on May 17th business leaders together with Republican legislators agreed to push up Worker's Compensation benefits to a maximum of $2,400 monthly. That's $800 more than the current maximum. The increase would be phased in over a two-year period.

What's more, in Arizona Worker's Compensation benefits will now be indexed to inflation - a benefit that workers have been trying to secure for years, without success.
What turned the tide was a threat by the unions to take the issue directly to the people in a ballot initiative. Flush from a victory last year in marshalling a raise in the state minimum wage to a level above the federal plateau - and indexed to inflation at that - unions threatened to lobby for even better benefits until leaders representing business and the state came through with the current package of improvements, including indexing.

It should be noted that filing a false claim is considered a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, or a $50,000 fine - or both.

However, if you are injured on the job, know your rights. Know too, that if your buddy is getting a square deal in Arizona, don't necessarily expect the same thing in Texas, or other states. Know the individual state limits and entitlements for your district, and make sure you are properly compensated according to the letter of the law. If your claim is denied or clawed back in any way, it is wise to seek the advice of a lawyer.