Redding Workers’ Compensation Law Blog

Workplace accidents and injuries take many forms. Each one has a different set of causes, circumstances, and outcomes. But there is only one way to be sure you get the financial compensation you need to cover your costs and lost income: workers’ compensation. This article dives deep into what makes for a strong California workplace compensation claim and how to prove it, including: The elements you will need to prove to get workers’ compensation. The evidence needed to prove a workers’ compensation claim in California. How to handle a qualified medical evaluator form without making costly errors. In an ideal world, workers’ compensation insurance providers would take one look at the bill from your doctors and your salary and pay...

Workers’ compensation is an important but field of law that enables injured employees to obtain financial compensation for the harm they have suffered as part of their work. But these cases are rarely cut and dry; this article dives deeper into California’s workers’ compensation system, explaining: What happens when you are partially at fault for the injury you incurred in the workplace? Why you might not need to have been physically at your workplace when you are injured. What should you do if you believe you have a valid workers’ compensation claim? What Happens If I Am Partially At Fault For The Incident That Caused My Injury? Accidents and injuries tend to be complicated and messy. The circumstances leading to...

If you have ever suffered a workplace or work-related injury, you know the struggle of trying to get the compensation you deserve out of your employer and their insurance through California’s workers’ compensation system. This article covers the essentials every employee or worker ought to know about workers’ compensation in California, including: What insurance employers are required to carry, and when they can be called upon after a workplace injury. When an injury is considered work-related and thus eligible for workers’ compensation. Key examples to help you understand when your right to compensation applies. Are All Employers Required To Carry Workers' Compensation Insurance In California? No matter what your job is, it is always possible to be injured in the...

Are Undocumented Workers Eligible For Workers’ Compensation? Undocumented immigrants are a substantial and important part of California’s workforce. However, undocumented workers are just as likely to suffer a serious work accident as their colleagues. Regardless of what you may have heard, undocumented workers are eligible for workers’ compensation. If you suffered a work injury and your immigration status is a concern, let Leep, Tescher, Helfman and Zanze help. Attorney Ben Helfman represents workers throughout Shasta County and the surrounding counties in California regardless of legal status. You likely have unique concerns about your career, your family and your home. You do have legal options, and an experienced lawyer can explain them to you. Know Your Rights – Even Without Documentation...

12 Reasons To Get A Lawyer On Your Side Do you really need an attorney to help you pursue workers’ compensation benefits? At Leep, Tescher, Helfman and Zanze in Redding, California, attorney Ben Helfman and his legal team certainly believe so. Here are 12 situations in which engaging the help of a lawyer can prove invaluable: Your employer tells you your injury isn’t covered by workers’ compensation. The insurance company denies your claim. Your current job made a pre-existing injury worse. You are currently receiving Social Security Disability benefits. You plan to use Medicare in the near future. You were laid off or fired immediately after your injury or accident. You don’t think you are getting all of the workers’ compensation...

If Your Claim Was Denied, Don’t Give Up If your workers’ compensation claim was denied, you’re not alone. More importantly, a denial doesn’t necessarily mean that your claim is invalid. The insurance companies have one goal: to keep as much money as possible. For this reason, they sometimes deny valid claims in the hopes that the injured individuals will simply give up. Don’t let them get away with it. Instead, consult a skilled workers’ compensation lawyer at Leep, Tescher, Helfman and Zanze for understanding counsel and vigorous representation. Attorney Ben Helfman is experienced in handling workers’ compensation issues in Redding, across Shasta County and throughout the surrounding areas of California. Additionally, he is a board-certified specialist, which means you can...

What To Look For In A Workers’ Comp Attorney So you were injured on the job and you know you need a workers’ compensation lawyer to help you get the benefits you deserve. But how do you select the right attorney? What should you look for when making such an important choice? At Leep, Tescher, Helfman and Zanze in Redding, California, the legal team believes that most injured workers are best served by choosing someone who is: Certified as a specialist in workers’ compensation – To achieve this certification, a lawyer must pass a rigorous examination, demonstrate a high level of experience, complete at least 45 hours of continuing education and be rated favorably by his or her peers. Attorney Ben Helfman...

The logging industry plays a vital role in the economy by providing firewood and lumber for buildings and other applications. Unfortunately, because of the nature of the industry, workers are at risk of suffering injuries. These hard workers face numerous hazards on a daily basis. Understanding them can help reduce the risk of an accident, but the onus to prevent injuries ultimately falls on employers, not the workers themselves. Cuts And Lacerations In the logging industry, cuts and lacerations are common injuries from using sharp tools and machinery, such as chainsaws and axes. The risk is particularly high during tree felling and limb removal, where workers are in close contact with sharp edges. Proper safety gear, including cut-resistant clothing and gloves and...

The workers’ compensation system is designed to provide essential financial support, along with other kinds of assistance, to employees who suffer work-related injuries or illnesses. The supplemental job displacement benefit (SJDB) is one of the lesser-known forms of assistance injured workers can receive. When a complete recovery from an on-the-job injury or illness isn’t possible, SJDBs can provide new hope – and a chance to learn new skills – for workers who want to return to work, even if they can no longer go back to their old professions. The Key Features Of Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits The supplemental job displacement benefit is a unique provision within California’s workers’ comp system, in line with this state’s commitment to look after its workers’...

Despite the fact that workers’ comp can provide medical and financial lifelines for injured workers, few people want to be off work any longer than necessary. However, part of the workers’ compensation process is determining whether you need temporary or permanent work restrictions once you return. What Are Work Restrictions? Work restrictions are medical guidelines established by the doctor in charge of your care that are designed to modify or limit your work-related activities. Work restrictions are important to: Employee safety: The primary goal of work restrictions is to prevent you, the injured worker, from engaging in activities that could cause you additional harm. Faster recoveries: By tailoring your job duties to accommodate your condition, work restrictions help speed your...

There are two pressing financial factors that tend to affect those who have recently been hurt on the job in California. The first is the cost of medical care, which can be significant if an individual’s injury or medical condition is particularly severe. The second is the possibility of lost wages because someone cannot do their job as normal due to their medical condition. The California workers’ compensation program helps to reduce that financial stress on employees by providing them with benefits. Workers can typically receive full medical coverage for necessary treatment and disability benefits until they can return to work. However, many injured workers find themselves disagreeing with their employers about whether they are ready to go back to...

Being injured on the job is never an easy experience for you. Depending on the severity of your injury, your life could be dramatically impacted by your injury, and it may take you years of therapy and medical treatment in order to recover. When you are injured, you rely on the workers’ compensation system in order to get the help you need. Called the Great Compromise, workers’ compensation provides you with the right to receive medical care from your employer if you are injured while at work during the performance of your work duties. However, what happens when the system is not working the way that it is intended, and you are struggling to get the help you need? For...

Thousands of workers hit the road as part of their job every day in California. There are numerous professionals whose job consists almost exclusively of driving. Some people drive their own vehicles, while others operate vehicles from a fleet maintained by their employer. From those who operate school buses to those who provide rideshare services or deliver pizzas, many workers are on the road for almost their entire shift. There are countless other employees who have to run errands or drive to client locations as part of their jobs. A manager at a restaurant might need to drive to the bank to get change or to a supplier to pick up heavy cream when the kitchen runs out unexpectedly. Plumbers...

The average person might not understand how demanding restaurant work can be, let alone how dangerous it often is. Many fail to understand the skill required to handle the constant pressure that comes with restaurant jobs. The professionals that serve in the restaurant industry often work long hours to provide service for customers, and they also frequently put themselves at risk of serious injury. What makes restaurant work so dangerous? Slip-And-Falls People can slip and fall in any environment, but a restaurant is a perfect storm of dangerous conditions. People have to move at a quick pace, and there are constantly liquids and other items getting transported. All it takes is someone spilling a drink or dropping a few candies...

There are many different kinds of jobs, but no matter what kind of work people have, there’s always the chance of injury. Workplace injuries happen much more often than people realize. There’s nearly an accident every minute, with millions of accidents happening across the country every year. Every job has its own unique struggles. And, while each injury is unique, many of them fit into a few categories. Here are the most common workplace injuries: Slip And Falls People slip and fall at home all the time, so it’s only likely people will have the same issues in uncontrollable environments such as work. A slip and fall accident can lead to serious head and spine trauma. Some injuries may only cause minor...

If you were off the job due to a work-related injury and were receiving workers’ comp, you may have reasonable concerns about going back to work. Will you be able to perform the job successfully? Will you aggravate the injury you just recovered from? Will your employer be flexible if you have certain physical restrictions on what you can safely do? All these worries are quite understandable. As much as you want to get back to work, you want to do so in a manner that protects your physical well-being. While You Are Healing While you are getting better, your doctor will likely communicate with the claims administrator. The doctor will give you the green light to resume your job...

Nursing can be a very dangerous industry to work in. Nurses spend every day working with sick and injured patients, and this can sometimes create a dangerous environment. They need to be wary of the injury risks. It’s impossible to predict all of the different ways people can be hurt on the job, but you can look at overall trends and statistics to find out what happens most often. Below are a few examples of the common injuries that nurses suffer every year in the United States. Overexertion Injuries These often happen when nurses are asked to lift patients or help move them. Patients may weigh more than the nurses themselves, but there’s no way to provide care without helping them move...

In many cases, an injury at work is something that takes place all at once. A worker is completely healthy, for instance, and then they suffer a head injury in a fall. They get rushed to the hospital and it’s clear that they’ve been injured that very day. However, there are a lot of workplace injuries that are a bit more cumulative in nature. The effects build up over time. This doesn’t make them less serious, but it does sometimes cause workers to overlook the issues. They simply don’t realize that they’re being harmed in the same way. One example of this is hearing loss. A Permanent Issue One potential problem with work-related hearing loss is that there’s often nothing...

It is estimated that more than 2,000 workers in the U.S. injure their eyes so severely on the job that they require medical treatment. Unfortunately, eye injuries are not only somewhat common, but they can also be serious and lead to lifelong issues. Learn more about work-caused eye injuries here. Workplace Eye Injuries There are two main causes of work-caused eye injuries. One is because workers fail to wear eye protection, and the other is if they wear the wrong type of protection for their work. When this happens, their eyes are at risk of being burned, penetrated, struck or scraped. Employers and managers must take an active role in ensuring workers wear the proper eye protection. Some of the available...

If you suffer injury or illness at work, you probably know you can claim workers’ compensation. Most California employers must hold it, and as it is no-fault insurance should cover most cases. What you might not know is what workers’ compensation covers. Is it just your medical bills? Or more? Here is what workers’ compensation could cover in California: 1. Medical Treatment Depending on the extent of the injury or illness, you could require considerable medical treatment, as well as rehabilitation. The cost of ongoing medical care can be costly, and you might require care for a considerable amount of time. 2. Lost Wages Because You Cannot Work Temporary disability benefits cover wages lost while you are off work recovering. Permanent...

Back pain is a very common health issue that affects people from all backgrounds and professions. Certain professions do have higher risks. If you work in health care, for example, you have roughly a 70% chance of developing back issues. Anyone who lifts or twists on the job could suffer a serious back injury. Despite their prevalence and how much they can affect someone’s quality of life and ability to work, back injuries are among the medical issues people are most likely to ignore or downplay at first. A surprising number of adults try to continue working when they have intense back pain on the job and may put off getting medical care. Doing so could be a major mistake. Back Issues...

If you are injured at work and make a claim to obtain workers’ compensation, there is a chance that you will need to see a medical professional for a qualified medical evaluation. This evaluation can be requested when your claim is denied or delayed and you’d like a medical evaluation to determine if the claim should be payable. Additionally, you can ask for the evaluation by a qualified medical evaluator, or QME, if you disagree with your current treating physician’s thoughts on your condition or if you want to find out if you are permanently disabled and may need future medical treatment. In California, you are able to see a  list of QMEs to choose from, so you can select someone...

You do a lot of manual labor, which means that you’re frequently exposed to working conditions and jobs that put you at risk of various injuries – and, one day, your luck runs out. You get hurt. Your boss, however, tells you that you’ll just have to go home and rest until you heal because you aren’t entitled to any benefits under workers’ compensation since you’re “just a seasonal or temporary” worker. On top of that, you’re an immigrant without documentation. Don’t Listen To Your Employer’s Attempts To Hide The Truth Immigrants are an important part of California’s labor force. The law recognizes that by making discrimination against injured workers illegal – regardless of whether they have legal documents or not. In...

When you are hurt at work, you might be inclined to believe you will automatically receive the financial restitution you need to recover from your injuries and pay for the other damages. After all, workers’ compensation claims are meant for just that, taking care of injured workers. However, it helps to understand that multiple factors come into play when determining the compensation you will receive following your workplace injury. Some of these factors include the extent of your injury as well as the nature of treatment you will need. Here are two questions that can help you negotiate a better settlement for your workers’ compensation. Are Your Injuries Permanent Or Temporary? Workers’ compensation settlements can be awarded in lump sums or...