What Should You Know About Worker's Compensation Insurance

If you are running a business, you should know why Louisiana workers compensation is crucial to protecting your business.  It doesn't matter the type of business you are running or your business's size; understanding worker insurance basics is necessary for every company with employees.

Most business owners understand the basics of worker compensation; which is to compensate workers if they are hurt on the job.  But did you know that this is just one aspect of Louisiana Workers comp Insurance?  In this post, we are going to look at some of the most important facts about Louisiana worker's comp insurance.

Workers Compensation Insurance can protect your company from time-consuming lawsuits after an accident.

Before the introduction of the worker's comp insurance in Louisiana, employees that were injured on the job were paid directly by the employer, and such cases were mostly settled in court; This resulted in companies losing billions of dollars, and the process was onerous.  With the introduction of workers compensation insurance in Louisiana, companies were removed from direct involvement in the payment of compensation.

Employees obtain compensation for the loss of wages and medical bills.
Injured employees that require extensive recovery receive a percentage of their salary during the period they are recovering from their injury.  Through the compensation insurance program, the employees are compensated for temporary partial disability and temporary total disability to sustain the employee during the recovery period.  In addition, the injured employee will also receive medical coverage for all reasonable medical expenses.

Worker's compensation negates lawsuits.
Worker's compensation is a sort of trade-off for the employees and employers. An employee who has been injured while on the job will receive compensation for the loss of wage and medical expenses removing the need to sue the company for the injury.  But this should not be construed as the employee can never sue his or her employer.  If the injury was due to lack of employer safety precautions, or reckless endangerment of the employee, intentional or otherwise, then the employee can pursue additional compensation in court.  

Not every employee is covered by workers' compensation.
State laws vary on workers' compensation.  Some states require workers compensation for businesses with one or more employees while others require the purchase at different levels of employment or the risk associated with the job, etc.   Many states do not require or provide workers compensation insurance for seasonal or volunteer workers, including farmworkers.  If you own a small business, it is best to consult with your state's employment governing body or a worker's compensation provider to understand worker compensation status in your area.

All incidents are not covered.
There are many incidents of injury on the job that are not covered under the worker compensation insurance.  If an employee is found under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of the injury, then his benefits under worker compensation will be forfeited.  In addition to this, if an employee is found to have intentionally hurt him or herself to obtain compensation, his or her rights under the insurance policy are also forfeited.

Understanding worker compensation insurance is as necessary as buying it from the right worker's compensation provider - like Kelly Lee Insurance. Use this blog post as your guide to worker compensation and know your rights and responsibilities as a business owner.

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