Down Under and Loving It

I received a bad injury at work and have been receiving workers compensation.

What other benefits am I entitled to through this system if I am unable to return to work (bit green in this area).

I am a member of a Union who gives out free advice, is it normal to go and see the Union Lawyer if you are already receiving workers comp. We don't know the system here at all so any help appreciated from anybody who knows the system or have been claiming it.

ABCDiamond

If in the Union, then Yes, ask them what is best for you.

Down Under and Loving It

did ask them they wont give any advice they forward you to their lawyer.Got to sign official release forms before the laywers will talk to you.Didnt want my gaffer to get wind of it cause he's not being bad with me.I didnt want to come across as a scrounger,wondered if any one had gone through the process from start to finish and would share their experience good or bad.Got to say if you are injured at work here,it is a far better system than uk IMHO

The Bloke

Ask the Workers Compensation Board or whatever they are called in the relevent state your in. In Qld it's called Q-Comp. www.qcomp.com.au

ABCDiamond

All that official stuff would put me off too.

I remember one girl, having a claim after getting RSI from too much typing, and she ended up having over 6 months off work on WC. I don't think she needed anything else on top of the Compensation.

The employers insurance paid out so we weren't overly bothered about the financial aspect.

However, that was back in about 1995 so things may have changed.

2B HAPPY

I have workers comp but do not know what it entitles me to, i had to take it out when working for a company, could someone explain

Thanks

FiP

It really depends on what state you are in as the rules/benefits vary.
The list of Workers Comp sites with what you can claim for in each state are here: http://www.business.gov.au/Business+...+territory.htm

Generally, if you are permanently disabled you can claim a lump sum compensation, it is not as easy as claiming if you cannot go back to work or work in the same job doing the same type of work any longer.
This type of claim would involve a review by a medical board to determine if you are permanently disabled under the criteria each state uses and usually (depending on the injury) there is an elapsed time condition whereby you have to wait to prove the disablement is permanent and there is no likelihood of the condition improving eg. 2 years from the date of accident in some states.

There is usually as scale of payment for the type of disablement . eg loss of sight, loss of limb, muscoskeletal conditions

It also depends on how old you are in some states eg. over 55, different rules apply.

In some states you can get Top-up Payments following a return to work.
Once you return to work, you may not be able to do all the things you did before your injury and you may be earning less than your average weekly earnings prior to the injury. In this case, you may be entitled to ‘top-up’ payments.


Most of the Workers Comp is insured (I know this as I used to arrange the insurance programmes for Workers Comp and deal with claims when I was in the UK) but some isn't and is classified as 'self insured' and the costs are borne by the employer. However, they still have to pay in accordance with the state rules for Worker Comp as if it was insured, they just choose to not to buy insurance for it.

If your employers Workers Comp is insured then you should have a case worker in your state programme/insurance programme who you could contact for advice.

If your employer does not insure they are still obligated to pay out and you can still see what you could claim online. Hopefully you can find more info online without ruffling any feathers anywhere!

Hope this helps.