Risk & Business Magazine Sterling Insurance Spring 2017 | Page 30

WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
BY: PAUL MATTES
STERLING INSURANCE
Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Five Surprising Things You May Not Know
W
orkers’ compensation
insurance is an
insurance program
mandated by states
that is meant to
provide monetary compensation for
employees who have been injured
during the course of their regular job
duties. While the federal government
often provides a comprehensive workers’
compensation program for federal
employees (and sometimes contractors),
every state has its own laws on the books
governing workers’ compensation.
Generally speaking, employees who
are injured on the job or suffer some
sort of work-related illness are going to
be eligible for workers’ compensation
benefits regardless of the party at fault
(employer, customer, third party, the
employee, or even a coworker). In
exchange for these benefits, employees
typically give up the right to sue the
employer for the injuries or illnesses that
were suffered.
• The costs of the medical care
stemming from the injury
• Compensation for injuries which are
considered to be permanent
• Survivor benefits for the families of
workers who were killed on the job
Here are five things you may not know
about how workers’ compensation works
which could affect your business:
•
• Volunteers are generally not going to
be considered employees. Therefore,
they are not going to be covered by
workers’ compensation laws.
• Wage loss benefits come wit