More questions (lawyers and back to work stuff)

[Bummer Knees]

I will e-mail you with some info.

[whatamess]

queenbee Wrote:My employer fired me and they stopped my payments , this was back in January, I have an attorney but obviously I am getting no where with them.
good luck

Queenbee,

If you don't mind me asking, why were you fired? Did the employer say "voluntary abandonment" and therefore you aren't entitled to comp benefits?? Just cause they fire you doesn't necessarily mean you are no longer entitled to weekly compensation benefits under workers' compensation...I am not trying to be nosey, just curious...my husband was fired also and his employer is fighting everything so far.........I truly understand.

[NewDriver]

Ksgirl, Your state web site gives you acces to the Ombudsman Unit that should be able to clarify these questions for you. The website itself has some information and alludes to the question you have about TTD vs TPD. It appears to me that there is a different rate if you are released to restircted duty. Unfortunately the information is not clear as to what happens if the employer can not or will not accomodate your restrictions. In GA TTD is still paid for 52 continous weeks or 78 weeks in the aggragate if PD is interupted by periods of TD for return to work with restrictions that are not accomodated by the employer.

Start interviewing attorneys now and that way if you have the need you will already have that out of the way.

If both you and the employer qualify for federal FMLA I advise you to immediately get those forms, fill them our, and get them to your HR dept ASAP. For federal FMLA the employer must have 75 or more employees within a 75 mile radius of the work location. For the employee you must have been employed there for a minimum of 12 months and have worked at least 1250 hours in that past year. Lastly you must have a serious health condition or need to be with an immediate family member who has a serious health condition that keeps you from working. This isn't very hard to meet the requirement for leave and your doc must certify the need to FMLA.

FMLA protects your job and any benefits through your job for up to 12 weeks. The 12 weeks can be intermitent or continous but you are limited to 12 weeks of job protection. When released to return to work after the 12 weeks your employer is required to place you in your same position or one at least of equal pay and benefits as you were working prior to taking leave. FMLA and WC are seperate issues, however it is always best to CYA with the FMLA if you are out of work for any length of time.

You may also have FMLA at your state level that may be more favorable to you than the federal level.

As for the ulcer issue, if the ulcer is casued or aggravated by the WC covered injury, treatment, or medications used for the WC injury it is a subsequent injury and must be paid for by WC.

These are all issues best addressed with by an attorney that specializes in WC law in your state. He/she will know exactly what to do for you in each instance. As far as what level of WC the attorney deals with, personally I would want him/her to primarily do WC and certainly no less than 50% or their case load should be WC. I agree that the larger firms aren't always the best choice, pros and cons with both large or small firms. The biggest issue I would have is hiring a frim that does a bunch of TV advertising. Their advertising budget eats up so much of their resourse that these types of firms notoriously have the, GET IN, GET OUT, AND GO HOME ATTITUDE, that does not always get you the best DEAL where WC is concerned. Might be okay for a real estate investment group refirbing house to have this attitude but you certainly do not want it when you are dealing with the human anatomy. Another thing to ask is how many cases have they taken to trial and how many of those have they won. If they have never gone to trial with a WC case and always settled run the other direction. Not ever case in WC can be settled without a trial and this indicates that they are willing to sell you short to avoid the cost and time of going to trial. Lastly I would get a commitment up front that your calls, (within reason of course they can't call you once a day every day), will be returned in a timely manner and by an attorney not an office flunky. I would also expect that the attorney should meet with you in person ro at a minimum over the phone at least once a month on a regular basis for updates and or questions/answers for non pressing issues with your case. If you were to find an attorney that is willing to commit to the aforementtioned atributes, snag 'em up. They will prove to be worth their weight in gasoline if not gold, ohh wait a miniute ounce for ounce gasoline may actually supercede gold before long .. At any rate you get the drift.

Good luck to you KSgirl.

This is the link to KS WC
http://www.dol.ks.gov/WC/HTML/wc_ALL.html

Ombudsman Unit
Kansas Department of Labor
Workers Compensation
800 SW Jackson, Suite 600
Topeka, KS 66612-1227
(785) 296-2996 or (800) 332-035

[ksgirl]

I found an attorney today. He worked for the insurance companies for 30 years and has worked for injured people for 10 years now. I don't impress very easily, but I liked him. I asked many questions and he answered them in a way that I could understand, but he was not condesending at all. He said it seems like a very straightforward case. I feel very relieved right now. Of course things can change at any time.
I want to thank everyone for all of thier help.
BTW I found him on this site.

[queenbee]

whatamess Wrote:

queenbee Wrote:My employer fired me and they stopped my payments , this was back in January, I have an attorney but obviously I am getting no where with them.
good luck

Queenbee,

If you don't mind me asking, why were you fired? Did the employer say "voluntary abandonment" and therefore you aren't entitled to comp benefits?? Just cause they fire you doesn't necessarily mean you are no longer entitled to weekly compensation benefits under workers' compensation...I am not trying to be nosey, just curious...my husband was fired also and his employer is fighting everything so far.........I truly understand.

BETH
THEY SAID IT WAS JOB ABANDONMENT - UNEMPLOYMENT SAID THEY FIRED ME WITHOUT JUST CAUSE. DATE OF BEING FIRED WAS DAY BEFORE DOCTOR ALLOWED ME TO RETURN TO SEDENTARY WORK NO LIFTING AND NO REPETITIVE MOVEMENT. DR. TOLD ME HE TOLD MY EMPLOYER THIS THE DAY BEFORE MY VISIT- WHICH IS ALSO DATE OF TERMINATION- WHO KNOWS - DON'T TELL ME TO GET AN ATTORNEY I HAVE ONE AND THEY HAVE ALL THIS INFO. BUT I THINK THEY HAVE BEEN ABDUCTED BY ALIENS HAVEN'T HEARD OR SEEN THEM FOR QUITE AWHILE.