Employers have a number of rights and responsibilities under the workers' compensation system.
Employer Rights
Your employer has the right to:
- Investigate how your accident happened.
- Offer you a light duty job, if available, during a time when you might be unable to do your regular job.
- Allow someone else to do your job while you are out of work.
- Stop paying your salary if you are unable to work.
- Continue paying your salary and ask for the money to be reimbursed by the insurance carrier.
- Have you examined by an independent medical examiner.
- Request that the insurance carrier challenge the compensability of a claim, where appropriate.
- Request a workers' compensation hearing.
- Attend your workers' compensation hearings.
- Review your case file.
- Report suspected workers' compensation fraud to the Fraud Inspector General.
- Appeal a Board decision.
Employer Responsibilities
Your employer is required to:
- Provide workers' compensation coverage.
- Post a document in your workplace that has the name, address, and phone number of its workers' compensation insurance company, and its policy number.
- Records the fact that you had a work-related injury, and to keep that record for 18 years.
- Report your injury to the Board and notify their insurance carrier, within 10 days of the injury or illness if you require medical treatment beyond first aid or have lost at least one day from work other than the date the injury or illness occurred.
- NOTE: The fact that your employer has reported your injury, does not mean that your employer and its insurance company are agreeing that your injury is covered.
If you wish to pursue workers' compensation benefits, you must file a claim.
- NOTE: The fact that your employer has reported your injury, does not mean that your employer and its insurance company are agreeing that your injury is covered.
- Report changes in your pay or your work status caused by the injury.
- Report your salary for the determination of your Average Weekly Wage.
Your employer is not allowed to:
- Ask you whether you have any outstanding workers' compensation claims before hiring you.
- Discriminate against you because you have filed, or are planning to file a workers' compensation claim.
- Example: Your employer is not allowed to fire you because you have filed a workers' compensation claim.
However, the Workers' Compensation Law does not require your employer to hold your job for you if you are not able to work because of an injury, and your employer needs to fill your position for business reasons. For example, the employer does not have enough other employees to cover your job while you are out.
- Example: Your employer is not allowed to fire you because you have filed a workers' compensation claim.
- Tell you which health care provider to go to, unless your employer participates in a Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) or Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) program.
- Discuss your injury or treatment with your doctor without your knowledge.
- Prevent you from filing a workers' compensation claim.
- Ask you to pay for workers' compensation insurance coverage.