Being injured on the job is never a positive experience, especially if it prevents you from working and results in lost wages. Fortunately, there are protections for workers in Cicero under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act that a dedicated personal injury attorney could help you explore.
If you are injured on a job site, your employer may be required to offer you significant compensation and coverage for your injuries. A knowledgeable Cicero workers’ compensation lawyer could walk you through the relevant legal processes and help you get the compensation you deserve.
Benefits Under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act
The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act is rather extensive and affords workers numerous benefits in the event of an injury that occurs on the job site. Under this Act, workers’ compensation in Cicero covers all medical care and expenses, and there is no requirement for a co-payment or deductible.
If a workplace injury leaves an employee disabled, there are different levels of compensation that the company must pay them. A total disability that is deemed to be temporary would result in a weekly payment of two-thirds of the worker’s salary while they heal from the injury. Conversely, permanent total disability would result in that two-thirds salary being paid for the rest of the worker’s life.
Another form of disability is called Partial Permanent Disability, and it results in one lump-sum payment of an amount determined by whichever body part is permanently disabled. An experienced workers’ compensation lawyer in Cicero could help clients understand all the benefits to which they may be entitled.
Family Benefits After Fatal Workplace Accidents
Workers’ compensation also applies to the legal dependents of people who are fatally injured in the workplace. This means that, while the spouse of a fatally injured person may not be eligible for benefits, their children may receive significant compensation. Of course, compensation does not undo the injury or replace the deceased family member, but it is designed to offer some recompense and make life easier for the family after the loved one’s death.
Access to Job Retaining After an Injury
If a worker has to take a new job after being injured at a previous one, there are several ways in which the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act requires their former employer to assist them. Specifically, their employer must offer or pay for vocational retraining if their worker is medically unable to perform their old job after a workplace injury.
This mandatory compensation for retraining is meant to ensure that injured workers are not left jobless and can transfer their skills to a new industry. To that end, if the new job is a lower-paying position than the one they previously held, the company paying this compensation may be legally required to cover two-thirds of the difference in salary.
Contact a Cicero Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you are injured on a job site, the best way to ensure that you are afforded appropriate compensation may be to contact a Cicero workers’ compensation lawyer. A practiced attorney could assist you with filing your claim and argue passionately on your behalf if your claim is contested in court.
The sooner you contact a seasoned lawyer, the sooner you may be able to rest assured that your case is being handled in the best possible manner. To set up an initial consultation and get started on your case, call today.