1. What should I do if I am hurt on the job?
First, you should report your injury as soon as you are hurt to your employer's Human Resources representative. There is a form (DWC1) they may have you fill out and do so. Ask for a copy of it. Try to keep a copy of all forms that you fill out. If you need medical attention, again, you have a choice of your own doctor to go to. You should not and need not follow the orders of your employer to go to a specific doctor of their choice. That is illegal.

If you go to a doctor and that doctor decides you cannot go back to your job until you recover, you should receive your benefits within 14 days of the injury. If you do not receive those benefits, this may be the time you need to consult an attorney. Keep good notes on everything that happens to you. Keep records on everything that happens. Make sure that if your co-workers have seen the accident, that you get their name and their telephone numbers so that they can act as witnesses for you if necessary.

Do not give statements to anyone. Do not make any tape recordings with anyone. What you say and what you have recorded may and will be used against you if litigation is necessary. If you are out of work for an extended time, the employer may very well try to have an undercover fraud investigator follow you. That undercover investigator may have a camera and take pictures of you so that later on you may be questioned about your activities and if it is contradictory to the pictures, your case may be damaged. Therefore, if you are off the job and the doctor says you should not participate in certain activities, follow that doctor's advice. Do not go beyond that advice. Do not go and mow the law if your doctor tells you not to.

2. What happens if the benefits are not paid on time?
Your attorney will work for you to get your workers' compensation temporary disability benefit. If it is delayed, you may be able to receive other temporary disability benefits. In most states there is a temporary disability benefit that is administered by the state. In California, it is called "State Disability Insurance" (SDI). If you have not received your workers' compensation benefits by the 14th or 15th day, then contact your doctor and tell him that you need to fill out forms for State Disability benefits and that will start fairly soon. You also may be entitled to short term or long-term disability benefits through a private policy that you or your employer has provided. You should check with your personnel officer or Human Resources Office about this.

3. Will my employer fire me if I file a Workers' Compensation claim?
It is against the law to fire an injured worker or to harass an injured worker for filing a workers' compensation claim. Section 132A of the California Labor Code provides for penalties and reinstatement if you are fired. In addition, the law calls for civil penalties and or criminal penalties if an employer or it's insurance company falsely misrepresents a material fact to deny you your benefits. Attorneys can protect their clients against these illegal actions by employers. You should not be hesitant in filing a claim with your attorney as there may be a statute of limitations that might apply.

4. What about Social Security Disability?
You may be entitled to Social Security Disability benefits if you have been off the job for a year because of an injury or are expected to be off the job for a year or more. If that is the case, then you should go to your local Social Security Office and fill out an application for Social Security Disability benefits.

5. Can I get Unemployment Insurance while I am out?
If your doctor has decided that you can no longer do your job and has put you on temporary disability, then it is contradictory to go to an unemployment office and fill out a form for unemployment benefits in which you would indicate that you are available for work. If a doctor has released you to go back to work but not your old job, you may be entitled to unemployment if you can apply for other jobs.

6. How long will my case take to settle?
It is hard to say how long a workers' compensation case may last. It depends on the type of injury. It depends on the response of the employer or the insurance carrier. Most importantly, it depends on how long the hearing process takes place because until an injury stabilizes and a doctor can say that the employee has reached maximum medical improvement, permanent disability cannot be evaluated. Of course, even after that point when permanent disability has been evaluated, the insurance company or the employer may not accept what the injured worker decides is fair compensation. At that point, the claim may have to go into the litigation stage which draws it out even longer. Although it is sometimes very difficult for an injured worker to bear with the long process, it may be necessary in order to obtain 100% of the benefits they deserve.

7. Are there Workers' Compensation injuries that I might not be aware of?
The most commonly overlooked workers' compensation injury is what is called a "cumulative" injury, one that takes place over a period of time where the injured worker has been hurt in a series of micro-traumas to a particular body part. A common example of a cumulative injury is one for carpal tunnel syndrome. In carpal tunnel syndrome, an area in the wrist has become inflamed because of repetitive use of those wrists and hands. You usually cannot point to one specific time when the injury took place, but it is a legitimate injury taking place over a period of time, which is called a cumulative injury.

Another type of injury that is often overlooked is one that is caused by toxic fumes or substances in the workplace. Often times injured workers will go to their doctors' with complaints about shortness of breath, skin problems, or brain disorders for which they cannot account. Upon questioning, it is found that they are using substances like solvents, paints or other strong chemicals in the workplace on a daily basis. Doctors have found that the exposure to these kinds of chemicals may indeed cause long lasting problems that are serious in nature. So it is common for the injured worker to be unaware of the fact that their toxic exposure has endangered them.

Another common cumulative injury is hearing loss. In this injury an employer has subjected the employees to loud noises in the workplace. After a period of time these loud noises damage the workings of the inner ear and, therefore, hearing suffers. If hearing has suffered as a result of work and of loud noises on the job, then that worker is entitled to workers' compensation, which is determined by how much hearing loss has been suffered. Injured workers should go out and get what is called an "audiogram" from their private care physician. If they belong to Kaiser, this has never been a problem. Once the audiogram is done, it tells the degree of hearing loss, and a claim based on that may be initiated. If you are having trouble obtaining a hearing test, most hearing aid offices administer these tests for free.

In some cases this type of hearing loss can lead to a condition known as "tinnitus", a severe ringing in the ears which in some cases can become very debilitating and lead to psychological difficulties as well.

8. Do I need an attorney and how does he get paid?
This is a complicated and sometimes misunderstood area of Workers' Compensation law. Injured workers may expect their employer and its' insurance company to take care of them, but often times there are disputes and disagreements that the insurance company or the employer have decided are important enough to litigate, and, therefore, benefits are not being paid or given. In situations such as this where there is an argument about benefits, an attorney would be helpful to the injured worker. An experienced Workers Compensation attorney can help the injured worker navigate through the maze of rules and regulations and be able to understand what is going on as well as dealing with the insurance companies and their large contingent of lawyers. The advantages to having a lawyer are numerous and under the California Workers Compensation system, the injured workers' (applicants) attorney is paid from a percentage of the permanent disability settlement at the settlement of the case.

9. Why are Workers' Compensation benefits so minimal?
Unfortunately, workers' compensation is subject to the political process as well as the legal process. Lawyers can only work within the system that is given to them by legislative mandate. It is up to injured workers and others to change the political system so that injured workers receive better benefits. It is up to you. Your attorney has no more voice in changing the law than you do. Injured workers should band together with other injured workers and demand that benefits be raised to an adequate level.