Somerville Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

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If you suffer from a work-related injury or illness in Somerville, you may be entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits to cover medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages. It is not necessary to file a lawsuit to obtain these benefits, but it can be very helpful to work with a Workers’ Compensation lawyer.

The process of obtaining benefits often involves complex administrative proceedings. A mistake during these proceedings can lead to a denial of your claim. An experienced Workers’ Compensation attorney can not only provide advice throughout the process but also serve as your advocate to help you obtain full benefits for which you may be eligible. To file a claim, you must be an eligible employee with a work-related injury. Independent contractors are typically not considered employees and may not be covered by Workers’ Compensation. Common work accidents involve injuries from tools or machinery, falling accidents, and generally unsafe or unclean premises at work.

Call our Workers’ Compensation attorneys at the Law Office of John J. Sheehan for a free case evaluation at (617) 925-6407.

How to Tell if You Are Eligible for Workers’ Compensation in Somerville

Not everyone who gets hurt may be eligible for Workers’ Compensation. While there are more than a few legal hurdles to clear on your way to being approved for benefits, there are generally two major criteria that must be satisfied. First, you must be an eligible employee who is covered by Workers’ Compensation. Second, your accident and injuries must be sufficiently work-related.

Employment Status

To be eligible for Workers’ Compensation, you must be considered a covered employee. While this seems like a no-brainer, do not be so sure. According to Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 152 § 1(4), the legal definition of an employee is quite broad and tends to include many, if not most, people working in service of another for payment. However, the law specifically excludes a few groups of workers, such as seamen working on ships engaged in foreign or interstate commerce. On top of that, independent contractors are usually not legally considered to be employees.

Depending on the nature of your work and how you are paid, you might be a bit unsure of whether you are an employee or an independent contractor. The law provides us with a list of criteria that define someone as an independent contractor under Ch. 149 § 148B(a). For example, someone who controls when and how they work, decides their own payment, and performs work that is outside the business customarily done by the person paying them may be considered an independent contractor.

Work-Related Injury

Your injury should be related to your job in order for you to be eligible for Workers’ Compensation. While this seems a bit obvious, there are numerous situations in which injured employees are unsure whether their accidents are related to work. If you think your case toes the line between what is and is not work-related, ask an attorney for guidance.

Your injuries must be related to your job. For example, if you accidentally fell down the stairs in your office building while on the clock and broke your leg, your case may be eligible for Workers’ Compensation. However, if you fell down your front steps while rushing out the door to get to work on time, your accident likely is not sufficiently work-related.

The situation may be less clear if you are technically on the clock but not at your normal place of work. Maybe you are traveling as part of your job and get hurt in the airport before your flight. In a way, you are both on the clock but not at work. Generally, if you were acting in furtherance of your job duties, your accident may be deemed sufficiently work-related.

Common Workplace Injuries in Somerville That Might Warrant Workers’ Compensation

What kind of accidents make a person eligible for Workers’ Compensation? As mentioned before, some accidents are clearly related to work, while others are harder to determine. Below are some common workplace accidents that often result in Workers’ Compensation claims in Massachusetts.

Tools and Machinery

If your job involves using powerful tools or heavy machinery, injuries with this equipment might be very possible. If proper safety protocols are ignored or some other worker is negligent, you might be badly hurt. Jobs on construction sites or in factories often see a lot of these kinds of injuries, and injured employees may be eligible for Workers’ Compensation.

If possible, try to document the scene and your injuries as best as you can. You might be in a lot of pain immediately after the accident, but you should try to look around and take note of who is present. They may provide witness statements we can include in your application for benefits. We should also get security camera footage, if it exists, to back up your claims.

Falling Accidents

Injuries from falling are also very common in most workplaces. You do not have to fall from a great height to be badly hurt. Maybe you fell on the stairs in your office building and broke your ankle. You might slip in a spill that nobody cleaned up and hit your head against the ground. Anything is possible, and even one nasty tumble could lead to serious and painful injuries.

Those working in certain fields, like construction, might be at even greater risk of falling injuries. If you work from ladders or scaffolding, a fall could not only be painful but fatal. If you work from even high places, like rooftops or high windows, it is extra important that safety precautions are taken.

Unsafe Premises

Other accidents might be a bit less predictable and stem from any number of unsafe conditions at your place of work. Maybe the work environment is dangerously unsanitary, and you became ill. This is a common issue when workplaces become infested with something like mold. You might instead be injured by some falling debris. Something from a high shelf might have fallen on you, or a loose ceiling tile might have struck you on the head. Even electrical issues that you have no way of knowing about might lead to a nasty electrical shock and painful injuries. While these might seem a bit farfetched, these kinds of injuries happen all the time, and you may be eligible for Workers’ Compensation.

Types of Benefits Available Through Workers’ Compensation in Somerville, MA

Workers’ Compensation is a protection plan that provides compensation benefits to employees when they suffer injuries at work. This concept is designed to simplify the process of obtaining medical and wage benefits without the need for a long and complicated lawsuit.

However, the trade-off is that employees are barred from suing their employers for work-related accidents in most cases. Benefits provided through Workers’ Compensation may not be as comprehensive as those potentially available through a lawsuit. Even so, benefits may cover a number of expenses and losses.

Lost Wages

A major concern among injured employees is their income. If you cannot work, you cannot be paid. Workers’ Compensation provides benefits for a portion of your lost wages. Exactly what these benefits are worth depends on your income and your capacity to continue working.

Temporary total incapacity benefits are paid to those who are completely unable to work due to their injuries but are expected to recover and resume working eventually. According to Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 152 § 34, you may receive benefits worth 60% of your average weekly wage for up to 156 weeks.

Temporary partial incapacity benefits are available for injured employees who are still able to work while injured, albeit to a lesser extent. As a result, they may lose income. Under § 35, benefit recipients may receive 60% of the difference between their current wage and the wage they were earning before becoming injured for up to 260 weeks.

Permanent and total incapacity benefits are paid to those who are permanently injured and cannot work indefinitely. They are not expected ever to be able to return to their jobs. Under § 34A, these injured workers may receive two-thirds of their average weekly wage for as long as their condition persists.

Medical Needs

Benefits also include medical expenses. The key factor here is that only treatment that is considered reasonably medically necessary to your recovery may be covered by Workers’ Compensation. If you receive unnecessary treatment (e.g., cosmetic procedures) or treatment that may be helpful but not totally necessary, the insurance company could refuse to cover it. If you are having trouble getting medical bills paid, talk to a lawyer immediately.

Specific Injuries

Specific injuries mentioned under § 36 may be compensated a bit differently. Instead of weekly payments for these injuries, injured workers are usually paid a single lump sum. How this lump sum is calculated depends on the type of injury involved. For example, the permanent loss of bodily function, permanent scarring and disfigurement, or the loss of vision or hearing may be compensated. If the accident cost you one of your eyes, you may receive a payment worth your average weekly wage multiplied by 39. Other injuries are also specifically mentioned within the statute, and each has a unique multiplier factor based on the gravity of the injury.

How to File a Somerville Workers’ Compensation Claim

A Workers’ Compensation claim is initiated by the employer after an employee reports an on-the-job injury or illness. The employer is also supposed to file a claim with the Workers’ Compensation insurance provider. If the employer fails to do so, or if the insurer denies the claim, the employee may file a claim with the state Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA). The DIA could hold a conciliation meeting in which their attorney and your Workers’ Compensation lawyer could try to reach an agreement regarding benefits.

If they are unable to do so, a conference would be scheduled with an administrative law judge. As a result of the conference, the judge may issue an order, or the case may go to a full evidentiary hearing. This hearing is held like a trial and it is the last stage where new factual evidence should be introduced. While the results of the hearing may be appealed to the DIA Reviewing Board or even to the Massachusetts Court of Appeals, decisions would be reviewed on legal arguments rather than factual grounds.