People working in Georgia who suffered from an
injury at work is eligible for their workers compensation benefit. Georgia’s
Board of Workers Compensation is currently administering the workers
compensation in this state.
It is best to know some basic of the rules so
that when you happen to need to file a workers’ compensation Georgia claims,
you know what to do.
The first thing that you should know if you
suffer an injury while working is its categories. Workers compensation
Georgia categorizes injuries into 4: These are the occupational
disease, mental injuries, repeated trauma and traumatic physical injuries.
Traumatic physical injury is the most common compensation claim because they
are classified as single accident that occurs in the workplace. Repeated trauma
is a type of injury that occurs when a worker perform his job repeatedly
causing constant damage to his shoulders, hands or arms. He is also entitled to
compensation claim if he suffers from mental injuries. These injuries occur if
a worker suffers emotional trauma cause by serious physical injury such as
amputation.
In case an employee suffers injury while working at
Georgia, he may submit claim to ask for assistance for medical costs and
disability (permanent or partial) benefits. The state workers law states that
the monetary amount to be given to the worker will be dependent on the
classification of his disability. To illustrate, a worker who suffers from
total disability and renders him out of work for the rest of his life can
receive up to 2/3 of his average weekly wage. On the other hand, if a worker
was injured in the performance of his task, the state puts a specific time on
how long a worker will be given benefits; this will depend on the type and
extent of his injury. If the claim is properly filed, a worker should wait at
least seven days before receiving his benefits but when the disability lasts
for 21 days, a worker may receive a back pay for the first seven days
known as retroactive pay.
A worker who suffers from an injury while working
should tell his employer about it as early as possible because under the workers compensation
Georgia law, you are given 30 days to report your injury to
your employer. Failure to do so within the specified time allot will result of
you not being able to get benefits. You have one year after your injury to file
a workers’ compensation claim with workers compensation Georgia board
to receive benefits or one year from the date where your employer last provided
you with treatment. Failure to follow this rule will mean that you cannot get
your compensation benefits. The employer will then notify its workers’
compensation insurer. If they both accept the liability, the claim will be
processed and your claim will be given to you. If in case, they both denied the
claim, the worker can submit the papers to the proper authority. You can also
hire a workers’
compensation Georgia attorney to help you with your benefits
claim.
