A DOZEN THINGS EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT WORKER'S COMPENSATION LAW

When you're injured at work you are entitled to three basic worker's compensation benefits.

A. Medical Benefits. An injured employee is entitled to receive all the necessary first aid, medical, surgical and hospital services reasonably required to cure his condition of ill being resulting from his work injury.

B. Temporary Total Disability Benefits (TTD). The injured worker is entitled to temporary total disability benefits. This means the injured worker is entitled to receive two-thirds of his or her average weekly wage during the time he or she is unable to return to work as a result of the work-related injury. The temporary total disability (TTD) benefits are payable after the first three days the injured worker is off due to a work-related injury. If the injured worker is off work for more than 14 days for that same injury, the Worker's Compensation Act requires the worker's compensation insurance carrier to pay the injured worker the first three days he or she was off.

C. Permanent Partial Disability Benefits (PPD).
At the conclusion of the case the injured worker is entitled to a permanent partial disability (PPD) benefit. This PPD benefit is calculated as a percentage of
disability for each body part that was injured in the work-related injury times 60% of the average weekly wage up to the current statutory maximum rate. The current maximum PPD rate is $636.15.

After the work injury, the injured worker must notify his or her employer of the work accident promptly. The law requires notification within 45 days of the injury. The notice must be given to a person who is part of the management team of the company as opposed to only a co-worker. The notice of the injury does not need to be in writing, but the injured worker must notify his or her employer as to the date, time and place of the work injury.

Every employer in the State of Illinois is required by law to purchase worker's
compensation insurance coverage for their employees. The State of Illinois has
formulated an insurance compliance division, they have hired investigators to
ensure that every employer has worker's compensation insurance. Failure of an employer to carry worker's compensation insurance subjects that employer to stiff financial penalties. You can easily check to determine if your employer has worker's compensation insurance by visiting the Illinois Worker's Compensation website at www.state.il.us/agency/iic/ and then click on the right hand side of the webpage "Employer Insurance Coverage Search". From there you can follow the prompts to determine if your employer does, in fact, carry worker's compensation insurance and learn the identity of the insurance carrier.

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