Within the various state and local government departments workers are exposed to a multitude of workplace hazards including: If you are a state or local government employee who has been injured during the course of performing your job, you are entitled to receive workers’ compensation benefits.

Whether you suffer from physical or occupational-related disease, your employer-provided insurance should provide financial support during your convalescence. Workers’ Compensation benefits may include lost wages, medical expenses, permanency benefits and vocational rehabilitation costs. The amount that you receive depends on factors such as your average weekly wage and your degree of incapacitation.

The Workers’ Compensation system was designed to ensure that employers, including state and local governments, provide insurance to financially assist employees who become injured or disabled on the job.

“No fault” insurance provides a portion of a worker’s pay based on their weekly wages. Dependants of employees killed in work-related accidents are also eligible for benefits. In exchange for employer-provided Workers’ Compensation “protection”, you sacrifice your right to file suit against co-workers and employers for negligence. However, you can file a civil suit against a third party if your injury is the fault of someone other than yourself, a coworker or your immediate employer. You may be able to recoup not only medical expenses and wages, you may also receive civil damages that include pain and suffering, past/present/future lost income, medical bills and other damages.

The benefits an injured worker is entitled to receive from a work-related injury are as follows:

• Medical Treatment - An injured employee is entitled to medical treatment, at no cost, to cure and relieve the effects of his/her work injury. The injured employee is not required to treat with a company doctor, but can seek out a doctor of his or her choice.
  
  
• Temporary Total Disability Benefits - If a doctor finds that an injured employee is unable to work while being treated for his/her injuries, he or she may be entitled to temporary total disability benefits. The employer's Workers' Compensation insurance carrier is required to pay the injured employee up to two thirds of their salary (with established maximums depending upon the date of injury) while they are at home recuperating from their industrial injury
  
  
• Permanent Partial Disability Benefits - Once an injured employee is released from a doctor’s care, he/she may be entitled to permanent partial disability benefits. How much an injured employee will receive is determined by the part of the body that is injured, the extent of the injury, the average weekly wage the employee was earning for the 52 weeks preceding the accident and any work restrictions as determined by a medical professional.
  
  
• Vocational Rehabilitation - If the doctor finds that an injured employee is not able to return to his or her pre-injury occupation, the injured employee may be entitled to vocational rehabilitation at no cost to the employee. Vocational rehabilitation is a program designed to assist an individual in returning to gainful employment or by providing a retraining program designed to help an individual acquire to skills necessary to return to suitable employment.
  
  
• Permanent Total Disability Benefits - If an employee is injured to the extent that he or she is unable to return to any type of gainful employment despite an attempt at vocational rehabilitation, then the employee is entitled to weekly benefits (two thirds of the average weekly wage but capped by a scheduled weekly maximum) for life.
  
  
• Death Benefits - If you were a total or partial dependent (one who relied upon another for financial support) of an employee who died as a result of a work injury, you may have the right to recover certain benefits, including burial expenses and weekly benefits.
  
  

Unfortunately, it is not always easy to obtain benefits. There are several circumstances where it is particularly important that you contact an attorney for assistance.

• An employer has denied that you were injured while on the job;
• You have been refused medical treatment;
• You have received a Notice of Denial from the insurance company;
• Compensation was promised but has not materialized;
• You are without income;
• An employer or insurance company has requested your deposition;
• Your employer does not carry compensation insurance;
• A third party has caused your accident.

Only experienced counsel can advise you of the appropriate course of action to increase the probability of winning your claim. Your attorney can also provide information on the ways that claims can be settled including arbitration, mediation, and collective bargaining.