When an employee becomes ill or suffers an injury due to the setting or condition of their workplace, they are usually entitled to financial relief through a workers’ compensation program. Most Georgia employers must have workers’ compensation insurance to provide medical and indemnity benefits for employees injured on the job.
The outcome of workers’ compensation involves complex processes and rules. Sometimes, this system can be unfair to injured and sick workers because insurance companies understand it and know how to manipulate it. That is where the qualified and experienced Fayetteville workers’ compensation attorneys at the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition come in.
If you sustained an on-the-job injury, and are pursuing your workers’ compensation benefits in Fayetteville, GA, our attorneys can assess every aspect of your case and fight for the maximum benefits you deserve. Contact the attorneys at the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition in Fayetteville at 470-518-5026 to schedule a free initial consultation.
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Workers’ Compensation Benefits Limits
Georgia places limits on the amount of workers’ comp benefits you can receive.
- TTD Benefits: The maximum amount you can get for temporary disability benefits is two-thirds of what you averagely made in a week prior to your workplace injury, up to a legal limit that’s adjusted yearly. As of 2019, the income limit for temporary disability benefits per week is $625 for a maximum of 400 weeks.
- TPD Benefits: Injured workers can receive a maximum of $450 in weekly benefits for a maximum of 350 weeks.
- PPD Benefits: Employers can recoup up to a maximum of $650 in weekly benefits.
- PTD Benefits: You can receive as much as your temporary disability rate, which is two-thirds of what you averagely make.
Types of Workers’ Compensation Benefits in Georgia
In Fayetteville, GA, workers who suffer on-the-job injuries qualify for different types of workers’ compensation benefits. The type of benefits that a worker can receive depends on how severe their injury was and how long they were away from work. To get any of these benefits, workers must file a workers’ compensation claim. Workers’ may qualify for any of the following benefits:
Temporary Total Disability Benefits (TTD):
Employees who need time off work to recuperate from their on-the-job injuries or illnesses are eligible for temporary total disability workers’ compensation benefits. These benefits will not be available for the first seven days unless the injury or illness keeps them off work for a period exceeding 21 days.
Temporary total disability benefits will continue coming for up to 400 weeks or until:
- Your doctor allows you to go back to work
- Your doctor determines that you will not get better even with further medical treatment.
- You’ve exceeded the time limit for receiving temporary disability benefits.
Temporary Partial Disability Benefits
TPD benefits are awarded if a doctor determines that a worker will not get better even if they get further treatment (a point known as maximum medical improvement or MMI) but allows you to resume work with some restrictions, e.g., Not doing heavy lifting. Workers can receive temporary benefits for up to 350 weeks.
Permanent Partial Disability Benefits
When the timeline for receiving TTD or TPD expires, A worker can be eligible for permanent partial disability benefits if a doctor determines after a medical assessment that they have permanent partial impairment due to their workplace injury. The doctor will rate their impairment from 1-100%. This rating will determine how long the worker will receive permanent partial disability benefits.
Permanent Total Disability Benefits
Employees who get hurt on the job can also receive permanent total disability benefits after reaching Maximum Medical Improvement and being rendered permanently unable to work. If the employee is found to be capable of working within a 50-mile radius of their home, they will no longer be eligible for permanent total disability benefits.
Medical Benefits
On top of wage loss reimbursement, injured workers can get medical benefits to cover all necessary and reasonable treatment for their on-the-job injuries or sickness. An assigned WC doctor must do the treatment.
Rehabilitation and Career Training
If an injury prevents an employee from resuming their previous job duties, they may be eligible for compensation to help them acquire new skills to work in a different capacity or industry.
Death Benefits
If an employee dies due to a workplace-related accident, or their injuries aggravate an existing ailment to the point of demise, their surviving family members are eligible for compensatory benefits.
Mileage Expenses
Injured workers also get compensation benefits for travel costs to and for doctor’s appointments.
How Are Workers’ Compensation Benefits in Georgia Calculated?
Here is how workers’ compensation benefits in Fayetteville, GA are calculated.
- Temporary Total Disability
TTD benefits begin when an injured employee misses seven days of work. You receive two-thirds (66% or 2/3) of your average weekly pay for the 13 weeks of wages before your injury or illness.
- Temporary Partial Disability
TPD is equal to 2/3 or 66% of the difference between your current wage and you’re your earnings after injury, i.e., the amount earned after resuming a light-duty job.
- Permanent Partial Disability
PPD benefits continue at 66% of your average weekly wage. However, how long an employee receives permanent partial disability benefits will depend on whether the injury/illness affects a part of the body, such as a hand, that shows up on the state’s scheduled members.
- Permanent Total Disability:
PTD will be the same as the employee’s temporary disability rate, which is 66 2/3% of their average weekly pay. The employee will receive PTD benefits for life.
Are Workers’ Compensation Benefits in Georgia Taxed?
Most of the benefits awarded to injured workers via the workers’ compensation insurance program are not taxable at the state or federal level. Thus, workers’ compensation benefits for job-related injuries or illnesses are free from taxation.
Get Full Workers’ Compensation Benefits in Fayetteville, GA!
At the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition in Fayetteville, GA, we have been helping workers pursue workers’ compensation benefits for a long time. Our attorneys are vastly experienced in workers’ compensation claims and can counter the underhand and exploitative tactics that insurance companies use to avoid paying benefits. If your employer tries to claim that you had a pre-existing condition, we can help you prove that your injuries were not a result of a pre-existing condition.
Our attorneys provide powerful and aggressive advocacy to help you recoup compensation for your job-related injuries. We will try to get you the maximum compensation to cover your lost wages, medical expenses, therapy, prescription drugs, and permanent impairment.
Call us today for your free, no-obligation consultation.
