February 12, 2020 Slip, Trip, or Fall Chris Stolmeier

San Antonio Slip and Fall Lawyers

Worker’s Compensation

If you are an employee who gets injured on the job you may be wondering if you can sue your employer for causing your injuries. This answer depends on whether or not you are covered by worker’s compensation. If you are covered by worker’s compensation you CANNOT sue your employer for causing your injuries. However, just because you cannot sue your employer for causing your injuries does not mean you are out of luck. You can still file a compensation claim with your employer. 

Starting Your Employment Compensation Claim

In Texas, most employers are not required to have compensation insurance. Rather, private employers can decide whether or not to enter into the worker’s compensation system. According to the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), if you are an employee covered by worker’s compensation and injured during the course of your employment, you should:

• First determine if your employer is in the Texas worker’s compensation system;
  • Employers are required to provide this information to you.
  • You can also find this information here.
• Immediately report your injury to your employer;
  • You should report your injury to your employer as soon as possible but no later than 30 days. If you wait longer than 30 days you could lose your right to claim benefits.
  • Any appeal to your first impairment rating must be made within 90 days of the rating’s issuance.
  • As a note, the longer you wait to report your injury, the more suspicious your employer will become.
• File a formal claim with your employer;
  • A formal claim must be filed with your employer within one year of your injury or illness
  • If the injury was not immediately apparent to you, the deadline to report the injury to your employer and the deadline to file a formal complain will begin at the time you should have known about the injury.

Injuries Covered by a Worker’s Compensation Claim

In order for you injuries to be covered by your employer’s compensation program, the injuries must occur during the course of your employment. Injuries resulting from employee horseplay, intoxication, or criminal acts will not be covered by worker’s compensation.  

Worker’s Compensation Benefits

The types of compensation benefits you can receive include:

• Medical benefits;
• Income benefits; and
• Death benefits.

However, just because you are granted compensation benefits does not mean you will no longer have to perform any duties for your employer. Your compensation benefits can be limited or denied not only if you do not comply with the strict reporting and filing requirements, but also if you decline to perform low impact, low stress, or any other replacement job or job your employer asks you to complete that does not aggravate your injuries. 

Contact Stolmeier Law, San Antonio Slip and Fall Lawyers

We are San Antonio Slip and Fall lawyers. If you are injured on the job and your injuries are covered by employment compensation, you may want to handle the issue on your own. However, there are many aspects that are involved in successfully filing a compensation claim and ultimately receiving the appropriate amount of compensation for your injuries. Stolmeier Law is an experienced compensation law firm that can assist you in maximizing your worker’s compensation claim. Stolmeier Law has over 35 years of experience serving worker’s compensation claimants in San Antonio, South Texas, and the Greater Texas area. So if you or a loved one has been seriously injured at work and need to file a worker’s compensation claim to obtain benefits, contact Stolmeier Law, San Antonio Slip and Fall lawyers. Slip, Trip, or Fall? Call Stolmeier Law.