Legislators enacted statutes that provide a wide variety of benefits, medical treatment, and recovery, for people who have been hurt or become ill while on the job. One of the most significant of those is temporary disability benefits payments that you can receive while you are unable to return to work. However, there are limits to how much you can obtain based on your salary, as well as some time restrictions.
Temporary Disability (TD) benefits are payments you obtain from the employer or their workers’ compensation insurance company if you cannot do your usual job while recovering from your injury or illness. TD benefits are not taxable.
You may receive temporary partial disability benefits if you can do some work while recovering but earn less than before the injury.
You can also receive temporary total disability benefits if you cannot work while recovering . This is 2/3rd of your gross wages.
If you are injured on the job or fall ill, you need to know that the clock starts ticking. You have 30 days to notify your employer, who should then provide you with a form to fill out regarding your injury and what took place. You will then have to be seen by a doctor approved by the workers’ compensation insurer, who will assess your level of temporary disability and point you to options in terms of recovery and treatment.
You then need to submit that paperwork to the insurance company. They unfortunately have up to 90 days to determine whether they approve your claim. While you will still receive up to $10,000 in medical coverage during this period, you may have bills and other needs that you must address while you are unable to work. It’s for this reason that many people hurt on the job consider working with a workers’ compensation attorney in California.
Temporary workers’ compensation benefits in California should help you pay bills and expenses while you recover from your injury or illness. As such, you only receive them for up to 104 weeks (two years) after the initial approval of your claim for benefits from an insurance provider.
This does not mean that if you are permanently unable to work or are still struggling after that time period that you may be unable to receive further compensation. Rather, you may need to work with a workers’ compensation attorney in California to assess whether it makes sense to apply for permanent disability benefits or to see what other compensation packages are available.
The calculations for determining your temporary disability benefits may seem complicated, but the goal is simple: provide 60 to 70 percent of your regular income.
Clients of ours often become confused if they don’t have a regular salary or receive irregular payments. When that’s the case, the state uses the following formula (with a maximum weekly payment of $1,357 in 2021):
That number should be what you will be able to obtain for your temporary disability payments. For someone whose quarter falls in 2020, this would mean a minimum of $288 per week if working at minimum wage.
Hearing no when you are struggling with monthly bills can be frightening. After all, there are not a lot of options available if you cannot find work that you are able to do while you are injured. Thankfully, you still have options. Experienced workers’ compensation lawyers in California have filed for appeals and sought alternative examiners in numerous cases.
If you think that you are not getting the compensation that you deserve after being hurt on the job, consider speaking with someone who has experience within the legal system. You may never have to see the inside of a courtroom, but working with an advocate for your rights can help ensure that you get the maximum award for your pain and suffering.
The legal team at California Work Injury Law Center includes workers’ compensation attorneys in California with decades of experience helping clients like you obtain the temporary disability and related benefits that they merit. Call us today or use the contact form to schedule a no-cost, confidential evaluation of your potential case.
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