DEALING WITH INSURANCE COMPANIES

CHICAGO LAWYERS FOR STAFFING COMPANIES

The work performed by temporary employees is often difficult or dangerous or involves repetitive motion. Staffing company workers are often temporary and not given as much training and support on the job as full time, permanent workers are. As a staffed worker, you may be at greater risk of injury than a permanent employee, but you may not be certain of who is employing you or what your rights on the job are, especially if you’re in an accident. The third party company that’s “borrowing” you may tell you that you aren’t covered by their workers’ compensation insurance, but like other employees you are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for work-related injuries and illnesses, though the benefits must be paid through the staffing agency’s insurer, not the third party company. If you are concerned about dealing with insurance companies as a staffing company worker, you should call the seasoned Chicago workers’ compensation lawyers of Katz, Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca. We have more than 60 years of experience.

DEALING WITH INSURANCE COMPANIES

When you first start working as a temp in or around Chicago, you may not be thinking much about the possibility of injury on the job. However, it’s important to be aware that temps are typically the employee of the staffing agency rather than its third party client. Therefore, the staffing agency should obtain workers’ compensation to cover you, other temps, and any other employees in case they are injured or made sick on the job.

Illinois law entitles you to no-fault benefits. In other words, our attorneys do not need to establish another party’s fault in order to secure benefits on your behalf the way we would in civil court. However, you do need to provide notice to the staffing agency of your work-related illness or injury and should do so as soon as possible. Notice is especially important in these cases because the staffing agency likely does not have supervisors on site who might observe your incident and report. You have until 45 days after the injury to report your injury, but it is a good idea to provide notice of any injury-causing incidents to the staffing agency as soon as possible after it happens. You may also need to provide the third party client for whom you are performing work information for its incident report, and you should be aware that this incident report can be used in your Chicago workers’ compensation claim.

Once you provide notice, the staffing agency, not the third party client, should report your injury to its workers’ compensation insurer. The insurer should accept or deny your claim or request further information to process it. You can only obtain disability benefits after you’ve been unable to work for three days due to a work-related injury. While you may start to receive disability benefits, you should be aware that insurance companies sometimes begin paying benefits, but this payment does not necessarily constitute an acceptance that will lead to payment of all benefits to which you are entitled; the insurer may pay temporary total disability benefits yet continue to investigate and conduct surveillance to determine whether to accept or deny the claim.

Furthermore, conflicts and problems can arise down the road as a claim becomes more expensive. For example, an insurer may pay certain benefits, such as emergency care and first aid that are reasonably necessary, along with temporary total disability benefits, but then refuse to pay for more expensive treatments such as surgery and permanent total disability benefits. You may be asked to go back to work before you’re ready because the insurer disputes whether you are as injured as your Chicago treating physician finds you are. Disputes may need to be submitted to the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission (IWCC) for decision.

The workers’ compensation insurer may fight you through this process and has greater resources, in most cases, than temps, which makes it important to seek a knowledgeable Chicago workers’ compensation attorney.

HIRE A CHICAGO STAFFING COMPANIES LAWYER

As a staffing company worker or temp, you may worry about the ramifications of reporting a work-related injury. Your position as a temporary worker may feel precarious and tentative. If you are injured, you should retain a law firm with to represent you in your claim. Our attorneys represent construction workers in Quincy, Rockford, Champaign, and Aurora, as well as Kane, Sangamon, Cook, Winnebago, and Adams Counties. Call us at 312-724-5846 or complete our online form.