worker's comp

Running out of Sick Days? How to Balance Chronic Illness and Work

April 30, 2019 by Tim McMahon

Most companies today allot a certain number of PTO (Paid Time Off) days or hours for their employees. However, many employees may suffer from a chronic illness that requires them to miss more work days than normally allowed. If you’re running out of paid sick days for the year, following these tips can help you balance chronic illness and work and may keep you out of financial hardship.

Get a Proper Diagnosis

You may assume that you’ll be fine with time, but you could be suffering more than you have to if you don’t get the correct diagnosis from a doctor. Your doctor may even be able to write a note to your employer explaining your situation if you have a proper diagnosis, and this may help you get extended sick pay. The information that you receive about your diagnosis from your doctor can also be used to let your employer know exactly how much more time you expect to miss from, and this can be effective in bridging better communications with your boss. Not only that, but getting an official diagnosis can make it a great deal easier to get the care you need to fully recover.

Track Your Triggers

Certain triggers may be behind your symptoms, and eliminating these triggers can allow you to recover faster. Allergies caused by certain foods and environmental factors often lead to chronic illnesses, and an allergist can test you to determine if you’re suffering from allergies. Food allergies and intolerances that aren’t life threatening are often overlooked as being symptoms of something completely unrelated. Because of this, it’s important to be aware of any history of auto-immune disorders or food intolerances in your family history. On the other hand, environmental factors such as workload and even flickering lights can trigger debilitating effects. If your chronic illness is related to stress, methods like yoga, meditation or counseling can help you maintain your mental and physical health. No matter what the cause, however, tracking the factors surrounding episodes of illness are important to help your doctor make a proper diagnosis. [Read more…] about Running out of Sick Days? How to Balance Chronic Illness and Work

Lost Wages? How to Get the Compensation You Deserve

December 9, 2018 by Tim McMahon

Missing time at work could put you at a serious disadvantage when it comes to being able to pay your bills. If you’re missing work due to an injury or an accident, you may be entitled to receive some compensation. Here are some of the ways that you can go about getting the compensation that you deserve.

There are a variety of different types of accident and unfortunately each one may require a different approach to getting compensation. For instance an injury sustained on the job will require that you proceed with a “worker’s compensation” claim. In this case it is important that you give both your employer and the Doctor that this is a work related injury.

If it is another type of injury such as an auto accident then you must take slightly different steps. Of course you still need to notify your employer that you are injured and can’t work but you must document different things. [Read more…] about Lost Wages? How to Get the Compensation You Deserve

4 Ways Workers’ Comp Can Impact Your Personal Finances

July 18, 2017 by Guest Contributor

Getting injured on the job can have some serious implications for your career, personal life, and finances. For severe injuries, you may struggle with the downtime as you recover. What’s more, your workers’ compensation claim may be delayed or denied depending on several factors. A workers’ compensation claim can cause substantial financial difficulties as you may not be able to work because of the injuries. Here are four ways in which workers’ comp can impact your finances and how you can safeguard your finances.

Medical Care Payments

Most workers’ compensation claims can take months to get resolved, particularly if there are disagreements between you and the company’s insurance companies. Conflict may arise if the insurer disputes the accident or the extent of the injuries. This can happen if [Read more…] about 4 Ways Workers’ Comp Can Impact Your Personal Finances

What Happens to Your Finances When You Go out on Workers’ Comp

June 3, 2017 by Guest Contributor

Workplace injuries can and do happen to many people each day. While those who work in high-risk or dangerous jobs are more likely to suffer from a workplace injury, the reality is that issues like falling, tripping and more can happen to any worker at any time. Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to help injured workers pay for their expenses while they are recovering from an injury. However, it is important to understand more fully what happens to your family’s finances when you are out on workers’ comp. This understanding may inspire you to take action to address a possible issue before you find yourself in dire financial straits.

Your Medical Expenses May Skyrocket

Many workplace injuries result in substantial medical bills in a very short period of time. These bills may [Read more…] about What Happens to Your Finances When You Go out on Workers’ Comp

Keeping Worker’s Compensation Insurance Affordable

September 30, 2012 by Jorgen Rex Olson

How Business Owners Can Keep Worker’s Compensation Insurance Affordable –

With the recent hits to the economy, changes in law, and other sorts of changes in the workplace, costs of maintaining workers compensation insurance for companies, and in particular for small businesses, are rising unpredictably. Some of this can be caused by your state’s assigned risk pool, some by the increase of high-risk situations, and some by other factors. However, there are things that you as a business owner can do to help reduce the rates of workers compensation insurance for your company.

1. Preventative Measures

First, there are some preventative measures you can take in the area of safety that may help to reduce workers comp insurance rates in the future. Whether you’ve had problems with worker safety in the past or not, being safe certainly doesn’t hurt. Depending on your line of work, you may want to look into safety precautions at workstations, or even establish a group to keep an eye on workplace safety within your organization. The more you can reduce the risk of accidents, the better you’ll make out in the long run.

2. Experience Rating

You’ll also want to check out your experience rating or experience modifier. This compares your claims history to that of other organizations in your industry. You can check out your rating by looking at worksheets from the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI). Make sure that your rating is accurate, as your rating could save you as much as 45% on your Compensation Insurance.

3. Relationship

Establish a good relationship with a healthcare provider. Sometimes you can use managed medical care to treat your workers. The more quickly you can get injured workers back to work, the better it is for your organization, and the better [Read more…] about Keeping Worker’s Compensation Insurance Affordable