Bethlehem Workers’ Compensation Lawyers

Suffering a work injury can be a highly disruptive experience. You may incur a large amount of medical bills for treatments that are necessary for your injury to heal properly. Furthermore, the limitations caused by your injury may severely inhibit your earning capacity at work.

Fortunately, you may seek payment for these losses by filing a Workers’ Compensation claim. Most employers are required to provide this type of insurance to cover on-the-job injuries suffered by their employees. Our legal team is ready to review your case and guide you through the process for filing a claim. We can help ensure that you recover the full range of benefits you are owed.

Get help from our Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Specialists at Cardamone Law today by calling (267) 651-7945.

What Types of Injuries Are Covered by Workers’ Comp?

In general, any type of on-the-job injury or illness should be covered by Workers’ Compensation insurance. As long as your injury or illness occurred during the course of your job performance, then it will likely be covered.

Still, there are certain situations where determining whether an injury is covered may be complicated. For instance, car accidents during your commute usually are not covered, but crashes during errands or work trips are. Further, injuries during/on the way to a lunch break might not qualify, but injuries during/on the way to a lunch meeting should.

Injuries during trips or travel for work should also be covered, even if they occurred off-site. Conferences, retreats, and client meetings might involve driving or flying, and accidents during the trip should be covered, as should accidents during the events.

Assistance from our Workers’ Compensation lawyers is highly valuable when pursuing your claim. We will help determine whether your injury is work-related. If your employer’s insurer mistakenly asserts that your injury did not occur at work, we will gather evidence to defeat their argument and support your case.

What Types of Employees Are Covered Under Workers Comp?

In general, all “employees” are covered, but whether you qualify as an employee is not always clear, and there are some exceptions.

Some casual employees or household employees (like nannies) are not always covered. Additionally, realtors and federal workers (like postal employees) are not usually covered.

“Independent contractors” are considered self-employed and are not “employees.” Telling the difference between a contractor and an employee is often difficult, and many employers misclassify workers to try to avoid covering their injuries.

Contractors generally work for themselves under their own volition, while employees work for a company and follow a supervisor’s or boss’ instructions. Contractors receive 1099s and employees receive W-2s, but this is not the sole factor in determining your status. If you work under a contract but are told what to do all day and work in the same field or industry as the person or company that hired you, you might actually be an employee, even if some signs point to you being a contractor.

In any case, you can always check with our attorneys about your employment status and coverage. Note that you never have to pay into Workers’ Compensation, so coverage will not appear on your pay stubs like Social Security or unemployment taxes do.

Proving that an Injury is Work-Related in Bethlehem, PA

Injuries need to be “work-related” for Workers’ Comp to cover them. As discussed above, this usually means that they happen at work or while doing work tasks. Injuries on your own time, during commutes, or while under the effects of drugs or alcohol usually are not covered.

To show that your injury was work-related, our attorneys will seek out important pieces of evidence, such as the following:

Witness Statements

Witness statements can play a crucial role in proving that an injury is work-related. For example, co-workers who witnessed a workplace accident may provide valuable insight into how the accident occurred and the damage it caused. Accordingly, if you were hurt at work, then you should attempt to retrieve contact information from anyone who witnessed your injury.

Surveillance Footage

Like witness statements, surveillance footage can help demonstrate the events that occurred before, during, and after workplace accidents. Such footage may be very valuable when proving that workers were hurt while performing their job duties.

However, recovering this evidence can be difficult. The parties in control of surveillance footage may be unwilling to cooperate with injured workers. Thankfully, after reviewing your case, our lawyers can help locate and recover any relevant footage that may exist.

Expert Witness Statements

Expert witnesses are considered experts because they have the necessary training, education, and experience in their specific fields. These types of witnesses may be called to help evaluate medical records and other evidence to determine whether an injury is work-related.

For example, if you got sick because you were exposed to dangerous chemicals in the workplace, then a specialized physician may be called to explain that your illness is directly related to occupational hazards.

Workplace Accident Reports

After many workplace accidents, reports will be created by employees on the scene. These reports outline various details surrounding accidents, such as times, dates, and locations. Furthermore, some accident reports will provide a description of what happened and point to likely causes.

The details provided in an accident report may be crucial to proving that your injury is work-related. Our team can help recover and review a copy of the accident report in your case.

Industries in Bethlehem Covered Under Workers’ Compensation

Bethlehem has a number of industries and types of jobs that should usually be covered under Workers’ Compensation for employees:

Hospitals and Medical Care

Pennsylvania often hires doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals as employees of the hospital system, something many other states do not do. This means that if you work for St. Luke’s, Lehigh Valley Hospital, Sacred Heart, or one of the many other medical institutions in and around Bethlehem, you should be covered under Workers’ Comp.

Healthcare is one of the largest industries in the Lehigh Valley, which also makes it one of the most likely for worker injuries.

Restaurants and Hospitality

From the many restaurants on Main Street or the South Side to The Hotel Bethlehem, many workers in the area are staff at fast food, fast casual, and sit-down restaurants or hotels. From injuries working a fryer to slip and falls on a wet kitchen floor, any accidental injuries at work in these industries should qualify you for Workers’ Comp.

Delivery Drivers

Bethlehem and the Lehigh Valley at large are home to a number of Amazon warehouses, and thousands of workers drive for delivery apps or other delivery services. Additionally, the area is full of UPS and Fed-Ex workers.

Some of these workers are treated as independent contractors and have no “employer” to provide them Workers’ Comp. However, if you work as an employee of a store, restaurant, or delivery service, you should be covered for injuries on the road, lifting and carrying packages, or even dog bites during a delivery.

Reporting Your Work-Related Injury in Bethlehem, PA

Under § 311 of the Workers’ Comp Act, you are required to report your work-related injury within 120 days. Missing this deadline can block you from recovering crucial Workers’ Compensation benefits.

Despite having up to 120 days to report your workplace injury, you should attempt to inform your employer as soon as you can, usually within 21 days. By reporting this early, you may allow your boss to fix issues and reduce future chances for injury by tending to the safety hazards that contributed to your accident. This is also the expected timeframe for claims and gets your case moving sooner.

Finally, prompt reporting of your injury allows your employer to create documentation of the injury. This documentation may be very useful when seeking to strengthen your potential claim. Medical records, incident reports, and the memory of the event are all fresh and easy to access.

Can Lost Wage Benefits Be Terminated in Bethlehem, PA?

Lost wage benefits are crucial to injured employees. They offer payment for a portion of the income that claimants miss out on as a result of their on-the-job injuries. However, there are several scenarios in which your lost wage benefits may be terminated.

Benefits may be discontinued if your employer finds out that you have resumed employment. Part-time employment should only reduce your benefits instead of terminating them, but you cannot restart work without notifying your employer.

A Workers’ Comp Judge can also stop benefits if your employer files a Petition to Terminate and wins their case. For this petition to succeed, there usually needs to be proof that you violated some rule. Usually, this involves refusing available work, refusing necessary medical care, working without notifying your employer, violating doctor’s orders on limitations, or retiring from the workforce entirely.

However, the most common reason for a successful termination petition is proof that you are no longer disabled. After 2 years on benefits, your employer can ask you to undergo an exam every 6 months to determine your disability status. If you recover to a level of partial disability, you will have to return to light-duty work, and your benefits will be reduced. If you are found to be no longer disabled, benefits can be terminated.

Finally, your wage-loss benefits may cease if your 500-week maximum period for partial disability status runs out. There is no time limit on total disability benefits, so they should never run out.

Importance of Legal Representation in Bethlehem Workers’ Compensation Cases

Legal representation can be crucial to injured workers when seeking the benefits they deserve.

Our attorneys can help potential claimants navigate intricate legal procedures and fill out complicated paperwork. We will offer thorough guidance during each step of the process for pursuing a claim.

Additionally, we will handle all communications with employers and insurance companies to ensure that our clients’ rights and interests are protected. We will work diligently to negotiate for the maximum amount of payment available in each claim.

With Workers’ Compensation claims, you often cannot handle your case without a lawyer. Gathering evidence from medical examinations, doctor’s reports, witness depositions, and other expert reports is all costly. However, your lawyers can pay for these costs and get reimbursed when we win your case. Without a lawyer, you would have to pay these costs to progress your case.

It also might hurt your case to act as your own lawyer. If you are claiming you are disabled and cannot work, you should not disprove that by performing hours of legal work for your own case.

Lastly, our attorneys have decades of experience, additional Workers’ Comp certifications, and legal training that help us represent you and fight your case.

Contact Our Attorneys for Help with Your Workers’ Compensation Case in Bethlehem, PA

Get assistance from our Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Specialists by calling Cardamone Law at (267) 651-7945.