Gym Teachers’ Injuries

Chicago Attorneys for Gym Teachers’ Workers’ Compensation Claims

As a gym teacher, you may have been aware of the risks of your students becoming injured. However, you may not have been aware of your risks on the job. Dangers can come from workplace violence, slip and falls, repetitive stress, or transportation problems. You should seek legal counsel if you are concerned about gym teacher injuries. The seasoned Chicago workers’ compensation lawyers of Katz, Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca possess more than 60 years of experience fighting for workers who’ve suffered because of significant and disabling job-related injuries. We also handle third-party personal injury lawsuits and SSDI benefits claims. Give us a call.

Gym Teachers’ Injuries

Gym teachers can face numerous work-related injuries that can result in severe disability. As a gym teacher, you might injure your back and spine while moving heavy equipment for sports, trip and fall while transporting heavy equipment, thereby sustaining paralysis or crushing injuries, be exposed to bloodborne pathogens when caring for a student, or face student violence. In light of all these risks, you may be concerned about what your recourse is. Most employees in Illinois, including gym teachers, are covered by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act, which generated a no-fault system for workers to obtain benefits. When seeking these benefits, you do not need to show the accident that caused your injuries was anyone’s fault, and likewise, the school could not get your benefits reduced by showing you were to blame for your injuries as a gym teacher.

While the system was intended to make it easier for employees to obtain some form of compensation, in practice, it can still be a challenge to obtain the benefits you need. Most gym teachers do not have enough saved in case of injuries, and it becomes imperative to seek an advocate who is on your side and understands how to establish entitlement to a wide range of benefits.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Gym Teachers

The workers’ compensation benefits to which you’re entitled will depend on the nature and severity of your injuries as a gym teacher. These can include necessary medical expenses, permanent total disability benefits, temporary total disability benefits, permanent partial disability benefits, temporary partial disability benefits, and vocational rehabilitation. Medical benefits may include medical mileage and the cost of medical devices if you need them.

Your treating provider may need to give an opinion about the extent to which you’re able to work and whether you could work with restrictions at the school or whether you’d need to do a different job altogether. For example, suppose you suffered a disc rupture that causes extensive back pain, leaving you unable to work as a gym teacher. However, you may be able to do another job for which you need training. In that case, you may be able to obtain medical benefits, temporary total disability benefits, and vocational rehabilitation benefits. On the other hand, if you were attacked and left permanently unable to work and needed several surgeries, you may need both medical and permanent total disability benefits.

It is important to report any injuries you sustain as a gym teacher to the school that employs you as soon as possible. While you have 45 days to provide notice to preserve your claim, it is wise to give written notice as soon as possible to avoid any doubts about whether your injuries were work-related or not.

Consult a Seasoned Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

If you have job-related gym teacher injuries, you should discuss whether you have a claim with the experienced Chicago workers’ compensation lawyers of Katz, Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca. Our lawyers represent gym teachers in workers’ compensation, personal injury, and SSDI claims. We have clients in Rockford, Champaign, Quincy, and Aurora, as well as Sangamon, Winnebago, Kane, Cook, and Adams Counties. Call us at 312-724-5846 or complete our online form.