Southern Illinois Workers’ Compensation Basics

Southern Illinois Workers’ Compensation Basics

Illinois workers’ compensation benefits^[1] provide money and medical benefits to an employee who has an injury as a result of an accident or occupational disease on-the-job.  Workers’ compensation is designed to protect workers and their dependents against the hardships from injury or death arising out of the work environment. Disability Benefits The primary role of disability benefits is to compensate an individual for wages lost while the injury or illness made it impossible to work. Disabilities fall into one of four categories depending on whether they are total or partial, temporary or permanent.

1. Temporary total disability:  Prevents an individual from working for a limited amount of time. The vast majority of Southern Illinois workers’ compensation disabilities fall into this category.
2. Temporary partial disability: A disability that prevents an individual from doing some of the duties of the job for a limited amount of time.
3. Permanent total disability: Disability that prevents an employee from ever returning to work.

4. Permanent partial disability: Occurs when the damage is permanent, but only partially impairs the ability to work.

If an employee’s injury or illness places them in any one of these categories, they are entitled to some form of disability benefit. The exact benefit that the employee will receive is based on the amount of money that they were earning prior to the injury. Marion Death Benefits The Illinois workers' compensation program provides a death benefit to people who were related to the deceased worker, such as a spouse, child or parent, and were financially dependent on that person. The main purpose of the benefit is to compensate dependent family members for the loss of financial support. Dangerous Southern Illinois Occupations Leading to Injury There are many occupations in Southern Illinois, some of which are more likely to result in a life-altering workplace injury including:

• Contractors
• Manufacturing
• Hospitality
• Medical
• Transportation
• Farmers

Contact a Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Because of the complexity of the laws applicable to workmen’s compensation, if you, or someone that you know, sustain an injury while working, it is important to speak with a workers’ compensation attorney to discuss your rights and legal remedies. At the Lawler Brown Law Firm we understand how difficult it can be after sustaining a work-related injury. Our attorneys can assist you in every step of the workers’ compensation process and help you to receive the compensation that you deserve. Call us today to discuss your work-related injury during a free consultation at 618-993-2222. References: [1] http://www.iwcc.il.gov/benefits.htm