Workers Compensation

September 18, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

Workers’ Compensation Benefits Are Available to Off the Books Employees

workers-compensation-under-the-table For a variety of reasons, your employer may choose to pay you “off the books,” i.e., without running your wages through the company payroll. Your employer may want to avoid withholding taxes for you, or may want to avoid paying minimum wage. You may be only a part-time employee, so your employer considers your relationship similar to that of an independent contractor. But what happens if you are injured on the job? Are you without recourse to cover any disability or medical expenses that may arise?

In New Jersey, the test to qualify for workers’ compensation benefits is essentially two-fold: you must have been working at the time, and you must have been injured on the job. Accordingly, if you performed all the duties of an employee, but were simply not called one, you will still be able to seek workers’ compensation benefits from your employer.

If you were truly an independent contractor, however, you may be excluded from receiving workers’ compensation benefits. But don’t rely on your employer’s verbal statement that you were an independent contractor. In fact, even if you have a written agreement that calls you an independent contractor, the workers’ compensation judge will look at the actual relationship you had, as well as the nature of your work, to determine if you were really an employee.

Among the key questions that will be asked are:

How much control did the employer exercise over your time and your assignments? The more the employer controlled both, the greater the likelihood of an employer-employee relationship
Did you provide your own equipment and tools? If your employer provided those items, you were probably an employee.
Was the work performed an integral part of the employer’s business? If so, you were probably an employee.

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At Taylor & Boguski, we bring more than 70 years of combined legal experience to injured people throughout New Jersey. For a free initial consultation, contact our office online or call us at 856-200-8989.

Filed Under: Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation

September 1, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

What Benefits Are Your Survivors Able to Recover?

In New Jersey, after a job-related injury, you can apply for disability and medical benefits under the state’s workers’ compensation system. If your injury keeps you from working, either temporarily or permanently, you’ll be able to pursue disability benefits, either for the time you are out of work, for a set period of time (if your injury is permanent), or even for the rest of your life, in certain situations. But what happens if you are killed in a workplace accident or die from an occupational disease?

Under New Jersey law, the surviving spouse and natural children who were in a worker’s household at the time of death qualify as dependents and are entitled to receive a death benefit after a worker is killed or dies because of a work-related cause. As a general rule, the benefits will be 70% of the worker’s average weekly wage (AWW) for the past 52 weeks. That benefit amount is divided among the dependents. Other relatives or dependents may also seek death benefits, but must prove actual dependency to the workers’ compensation board. A minor child will be considered a dependent until age 18, unless in college or physically/mentally disabled, when benefits may be available for a longer period of time.

In addition, the workers’ compensation insurance company or the employer must pay up to $3,500 in burial or funeral expenses when a worker dies from a job-related cause.

Contact Us

At Taylor & Boguski, we bring more than 70 years of combined legal experience to injured workers throughout New Jersey. For a free initial consultation, contact our office online or call us at 856-200-8989.

We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. We won’t charge you attorney fees if we don’t recover compensation for your losses.

Filed Under: Personal Injury, Social Security Disability, Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation

August 29, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

You Could Be on Candid Camera…and It Could Squash Your Workers’ Compensation Claim

workers-compensation-insurer When you’ve suffered an injury on the job, you have a right to seek workers’ compensation benefits for any temporary or long term disability that keeps you from working or for any partial, but permanent, injury. Your employer and the workers’ compensation insurance company, though, have an incentive to minimize the amount paid to you, or to deny your claim altogether, as your claim cuts into their profits. So they’ll often use any means at their disposal to try to invalidate your claim, including hiring private investigators to secretly videotape you.

The easiest way to avoid any potential problems in a workers’ compensation claim is to be honest with doctors at all times. Don’t exaggerate the extent of your injury because you think it will ensure that you get benefits. If you really are hurt, it won’t be difficult to refrain from doing things that might indicate you aren’t injured. But if you overstate the nature of your injury, you’ll have to be conscious of the exaggeration you made at all times. You could easily forget that you told doctors you couldn’t lift more than 10 pounds and then be videotaped carrying in bags of groceries or hauling a keg of beer.

Another tip—be willing to acknowledge your injury and that you need to alter your lifestyle to really have a chance at getting healthy. If you are accustomed to being active—you play golf, bowl or like to do physical work around the yard—recognize that maintaining the same level of activity will likely be used as evidence that your injury does not merit workers’ compensation benefits.

Contact Us

At Taylor & Boguski, we bring more than 70 years of combined legal experience to men and women throughout New Jersey. For a free initial consultation, contact our office online or call us at 856-200-8989.

We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. There will be no attorney fees unless we recover damages for your losses.

Filed Under: Personal Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation

August 2, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

common-mistakes-when-filing-for-workers-compensation-part-two If you’ve been hurt at work and had to pursue workers’ compensation benefits, you know that the process can be long and difficult, even when it seems like you have an open and shut case. You don’t want to make some of the common mistakes people do, errors that can delay your receipt of benefits or even disqualify you. We’ve talked about some of the medical issues, such as failing to get a second opinion or failing to follow doctor’s orders. Here are some of the more fundamental mistakes that can jeopardize your right to benefits.

Waiting to Notify Your Employer

You should let your employer know of your injury as soon as possible. Remember, your employer and the workers’ compensation insurance company have a vested interest in paying as little as possible (or nothing, if they can get away with it) to settle your claim. The longer you wait, the greater the risk that your employer or the insurance company will make one or both of the following arguments:

Your injury wasn’t really that serious, or you would have notified your employer immediately
Your injury was caused by some intervening event (another accident, unrelated to work)

Waiting to File Your Workers’ Compensation Claim

There’s a time limit for filing a workers’ compensation claim. If you don’t submit your claim within the required period of time, you stand a good chance of losing any right to benefits.

Trusting that Your Employer Will Take Care of Everything for You

Don’t operate under the mistaken assumption that your employer will acknowledge your injury and help you get the benefits you need. By the same token, don’t try to handle the workers’ compensation claim on your own. Your employer and/or the insurance company will likely have your claim reviewed by legal counsel, and may actually employ attorneys to try to deny or diminish your claim. Hire an experienced lawyer as soon as possible to ensure that your rights are protected.

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We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. We won’t charge you attorney fees if we don’t recover compensation for your losses.

Filed Under: Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation

July 19, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

common-mistakes-in-workers-compensation-claims-part-one Securing workers’ compensation benefits in New Jersey can be difficult, even when your case seems like a slam dunk. You need to be careful that you don’t make some of the common mistakes that can diminish or jeopardize your claim.

Seeking Treatment Only for Major Injuries

It happens all the time. You suffer a broken arm or some other highly visible trauma and focus all your medical attention on the obvious injury, ignoring the twists, sprains or strains to muscles or connective tissue in your back or neck. Unfortunately, it’s often the less visible injuries that cause more long term problems. When you seek medical care after a work-related injury, be sure to tell the doctor about everything that happened and anything that feels out of the ordinary.

Trying to Be Strong or Brave

When you have been hurt on the job, it’s not the time to show how tough you are. It’s the time to fully acknowledge the extent of your injuries. Don’t brush them off and, most importantly, don’t ignore doctor’s orders. There’s no race to full recovery—you need to take as much time as necessary to fully heal. If you try to do too much too soon, you may risk the loss of benefits, even though you are still injured.

Accepting a Single Medical Opinion

When you seek workers’ compensation benefits, you’ll be required to undergo a physical examination by a company-chosen doctor. That doctor may conclude that you are not prevented from working, or that your injury was not work-related. You don’t have to accept that single opinion. You can obtain a second opinion, or even a third opinion, if the first two are conflicting.

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We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. We won’t charge you attorney fees if we don’t recover compensation for your losses.

Filed Under: Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation

June 28, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

work-related-injuries-part-two As we explained in an earlier blog, to qualify for workers’ compensation benefits in New Jersey, you must meet two requirements—you must have been injured, and that injury must have been sustained during the course of your employment. Clearly, if you are on the clock and performing any of the duties listed in your job description, you’ll likely qualify for workers’ compensation for any injuries suffered. But there are situations where there may be questions about whether your injury was work-related.

In an earlier blog, we looked at whether you can recover workers’ compensation benefits when you are hurt at company outing or because of your own wrongdoing. In this blog, we look at your eligibility if you suffer injury on a break or while traveling for your employer.

Injuries Incurred on a Break

Under labor laws, you are entitled to take regular breaks, including a lunch break. Can you collect workers’ compensation benefits if you slip and fall while punched out for lunch or a scheduled break? Does it matter if you leave the company grounds?

Generally speaking, if you suffer an injury on company property while on a lunch or other break, you will be able to recover workers’ compensation benefits. There are exceptions—if you were involved in some time of unauthorized or forbidden horseplay at the time, you may be disqualified. If, on the other hand, you leave the physical premises of your employer for lunch, you generally won’t be able to collect workers’ compensation benefits for injuries suffered at or on the way to or from the restaurant, unless you went to the specific destination to pick up food for your boss or at the request of a supervisor.

Injuries While Traveling

As a general rule, you don’t qualify for workers’ compensation benefits for injuries sustained on your commute to or from work, unless you took a detour to complete a task at the request of a supervisor (your boss asked you to pick up bagels or stop at the post office). If your job requires that you drive to see customers, or if you travel to conferences, workshops or seminars for work, you will generally be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if you are hurt, unless the activity you were engaged in was wholly or primarily personal. For example, if you are hurt on the way to or from a meal, you are probably covered, but if you go to a night club while at a convention and hurt yourself on the dance floor, that probably won’t be covered.

Contact Taylor & Boguski

At Taylor & Boguski, we have more than 70 years of combined experience representing injured workers across New Jersey. For a free initial consultation, send us an e-mail or call us at 856-200-8989.

We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. You won’t pay any legal fees unless we get compensation for your losses.

Filed Under: Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation

April 25, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

lady injured

Medical marijuana has been legal in New Jersey since 2010, but most employers and workers’ compensation insurance companies have thus far refused to cover the costs of medical marijuana when prescribed to treat a work-related injury. That practice has been ruled a violation of law by a workers’ compensation administrative law judge, in a ruling handed down in February, 2017.

In the case before the administrative law judge, a worker at a lumber company sustained an injury to his hand, and experienced ongoing pain. His doctor prescribed medical marijuana and the man filled the prescription at a state-authorized dispensary. His employer and the employer’s workers’ compensation insurance provider refused to reimburse him for the costs of the drug, so he stopped using medical marijuana and started using Percocet, which he claimed was less effective and had undesirable side-effects. He then brought legal action against his employer and the workers’ compensation insurer, asking for reimbursement of past expenses, as well as a ruling that all future prescription costs would be covered by workers’ compensation.

After hearing evidence from both parties, the judge concluded that the expense of the medical marijuana should have been reimbursed, as it was for prescription medication that was legally dispensed in New Jersey. Citing evidence that indicated that the medical marijuana was not “as debilitating” as the other medications the injured man had substituted, and that the medical marijuana had successfully treated his condition, the administrative law judge also ordered the workers’ compensation insurer to cover all future prescriptions for state-sanctioned medical marijuana.

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We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. We won’t charge you attorney fees if we don’t recover compensation for your losses.

Filed Under: Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation, Workers Compensation attorney, Workers Compensation attorney new jersey

April 6, 2017 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

leg-injured

When you’ve been injured on the job in New Jersey, you have a right to pursue workers’ compensation benefits. There’s a good chance, once your claim has been filed, that you’ll hear the terms “scheduled” and “non-scheduled” losses. If you’ve never been involved in a workers’ compensation claim before, you may be uncertain what those terms mean and how they might apply to your case.

Scheduled Losses

A scheduled loss derives its name from that fact that it’s a loss that is specifically listed on a state-approved “schedule” of the kind of injuries for which compensation is available. Furthermore, that schedule identifies a specific number of weeks of benefits for each type of injury. For example, an injury to your hand will allow you to recover for a certain number of weeks, but an injury to your knee or ankle may qualify you for a different number of weeks.

So-called “scheduled” losses typically involve appendages, including arms, legs, shoulders, hips, elbows, knees, wrists, ankles, fingers, toes, as well as ears and eyes. It important to understand, though, that scheduled loss payments are only available for what are perceived to be permanent injuries. If your injury is temporary, you will only be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for the period during which your injury keeps you from working, or until you have reached what is known as “maximum medical improvement.” If your injury is deemed to be permanent and it’s to a body part that is listed on the schedule, the amount of weeks you would receive benefits is calculated by looking at the degree of your disability and your “scheduled” number of weeks. As an example, if your injury entitles you to 150 weeks, but the medical opinion is that you only have 30% loss of use with the foot—you’d be entitled to 45 weeks of compensation.

Non-Scheduled Losses

Non-scheduled losses involve injury to other parts of the body, including internal organs or your spinal cord. As with a scheduled loss, you will probably get a disability rating from the treating physician, who will estimate the degree of your disability. The number of weeks you’ll be able to recover benefits (at a rate of up to 70% of Average Weekly Wage) will be the percentage of your disability times 600—the maximum number of weeks you can recover benefits.

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We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. There will be no attorney fees unless we recover damages for your losses.

Filed Under: Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation, Workers Compensation attorney

October 5, 2016 By Taylor & Boguski Leave a Comment

panel-says-workers-compensation-insurer-can-seek-reimbursement

If you have been in a work-related motor vehicle accident and you file a third party claim for injuries suffered in the crash, your company’s workers’ compensation insurance carrier may be entitled to a portion of any recovery you receive in the personal injury lawsuit, if you also received workers’ compensation benefits. A New Jersey appellate court came to that conclusion in August, 2016.

In an appeal that consolidated claims from three different insurers, the court was asked to reconcile competing provisions of two New Jersey statutes: the Workers’ Compensation Act and the Automobile Insurance Cost Reduction Act. All three cases involved public workers who were hurt on the job and who had recovered damages in personal injury actions for medical expenses.

At the trial level, all three courts held that workers’ compensation insurance companies could not seek reimbursement of medical expenses in such occasions, as the Automobile Insurance Cost Reduction Act prohibits reimbursement of medical expenses collected or paid under personal injury protection (PIP) policies. The trial judge concluded that, because an injured employee in a work-related accident is treated as a “no-fault” insured, the worker can’t recover medical expenses from the defendant if those medical expenses have been paid by an insurance company—that would be a double recovery. The judge concluded that, because the injured party could not recover medical expenses, the damage award could not and did not include compensation for medical expenses, so that workers’ compensation insurance company had no basis for reimbursement.

The appellate court disagreed, finding that the Automobile Insurance Cost Reduction Act seeks to minimize insurance costs by guaranteeing medical expense coverage. Since the recovery could include reimbursement of medical expenses, and since the Workers’ Compensation Act allows a workers’ compensation insurance provider to seek reimbursement of any medical expenses paid, the requests of the insurance companies were permissible.

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Filed Under: Insurance, Personal Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: Workers Compensation