MenuIf you’ve been injured in the course of your employment in Mankato or any place in Minnesota, you may have a remedy that is provided under Minnesota’s worker’s compensation law. Benefits available to you may include wage loss, medical care, money for a permanent injury, vocational counseling or training, and more.
The claim process is complex, and you may not get the benefits you deserve, especially if you choose to initiate the claim process on your own. As such, hiring a workers’ compensation attorney can help you take advantage of your rights and, at the same time, get the benefits you deserve.
That said, here are some of the benefits you may be entitled to in a Minnesota Workers’ compensation claim.
Types of Worker’s Compensation Benefits in Minnesota
After a workplace injury, there are typically three types of compensation benefits that an injured worker can receive in Mankato, Minnesota. These types of compensation include:
Medical expenses are considered one of the significant financial setbacks after an injury. However, Minnesota’s workers’ compensation statutes set out to remedy this by providing that an injured employee is entitled to reasonable and necessary medical treatment to relieve the effects of a work-related injury.
Under section 176.135, subd.1 of the Minnesota Statutes, the employer is required to furnish treatment to the employee. This includes surgical, psychological, and hospital treatment. In addition, they are responsible for repairing or replacing any dentures, glasses, hearing aids, or canes that are damaged due to a work injury.
The medical benefits also cover all expenses incurred by or on behalf of the employee in providing treatment. This includes travel costs, costs of medical reports, and other related costs.
Wage-Loss Benefits
The effects of an injury may lead to missed work, which translates to missed wages.
Minnesota workers’ compensation benefits provides wage loss benefits designed to cover some of your lost wages. The wage loss benefits provided by the law include:
Temporary Partial Disability Benefits: This type of benefit covers a person who has a disability that prevents them from working fully until they recover from the injury. Put simply, you are able to work but not in your previous capacity and must work in a less paying job.
If this is the case, you are entitled to compensation that typically covers two-thirds of the difference between your current and previous wages before the injury. However, it is essential to note that this compensation only lasts for a maximum of 225 weeks.
Temporary Total Disability Benefits: Unlike temporary partial Disability, this type of disability prevents you from working completely. Although you are likely to recover from this disability, you are not able to work until you recover completely.
In such a case, you can only receive two-thirds of the wages you earned before you sustained the injury. There is a maximum of 130 weeks of these benefits.
Permanent Partial Disability Benefits: These types of benefits are awarded to any person who suffers from a permanent injury (Disability) from which they can’t recover from. However, this disability doesn’t prevent them from returning to work.
As such, the amount of compensation is computed based on the percentage of disability.
Permanent Total Disability Benefits: These types of benefits are typically awarded to workers who have an injury that leads to a permanent disability. Therefore, they are unable to work completely.
In these cases, the amount of compensation tends to be two-thirds of your previous wages, and you are eligible to receive compensation until you reach retirement age. In some cases, this benefit is more than 2/3 of your wage.
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Section 176.102 of Minnesota statutes envisions the provision of vocational rehabilitation services for injured workers. The aim of rehabilitation services is to restore the injured worker to a job related to their former employment or return the injured worker to another position that produces an economic status close to what they would have enjoyed without the injury.
That said, in order to qualify for vocational rehabilitation benefits, you need to work with a qualified rehabilitation consultant (QRC). In essence, the QRC will help review other opportunities with your current employer or look for jobs with other employers that are similar to what you did before the injury.
If there are no available options in the job market, the QRC may recommend a retraining program to help you enroll in a new line of work.
However, it is essential to note that your previous employer may fight requests for training due to the related costs and other malicious reasons. Therefore, it is vital to have an attorney who can protect your interests at all costs.
Need help? Contact a Mankato Minnesota Workers Compensation Attorney
The role of an attorney is important in any workers’ compensation case. What’s more, it is important to note that the claim process is complex, and you may have a hard time navigating it. As such, you can only obtain the right amount of compensation by hiring a qualified and competent attorney. We help employees from Mankato and all over Southern Minnesota.
Contact us today for a free case evaluation.
Contact A Mankato Workers' Compensation Lawyer Today
Contact the law office of Chesley, Harvey & Carpenter today at (507) 625-3000 for a free case review. We are located in Mankato, Minnesota.