If you’ve ever been on a construction worksite, you know how dangerous it can be. However, there are certain measures you can take to help keep yourself safe from construction workplace hazards.

Read on to learn how you can keep yourself safe on a construction worksite.

Stay Safe as a Construction Worker

1. Become familiar with inherent fall hazards on the worksite. It is unwise to work in an area in which fall protection systems have not been installed. You should inspect personal fall arrest systems prior to each use so that you know they’re working properly and aren’t damaged.
2. Always wear your hard hat when working near scaffolds. Wearing your hard hat will protect you in the event something falls from above. In addition, wear your sturdiest, non-skid work boots as well as tool lanyards in order to prevent slipping and falling and for the protection of the workers below you. Never work on scaffolding coated in ice, water, or mud. Never go over the maximum load when you work on scaffolds. Never leave anything on the scaffold when your shift comes to an end. Don’t climb scaffolding anywhere other than the designated access points. Always have tools hoisted up to you once you’ve climbed the scaffold.
3. Support yourself with three points of contact while going up and down ladders. That means you should always have both feet on the ladder and at least one hand. Make sure the top of the ladder extends three feet above the work surface. In addition, never haul ladders above their rated capacity, including your weight, your materials, and your tools.

We’re Here For You

If you become injured in a construction site accident, you may wonder what your options are. The attorneys at Brand Peters PC are highly skilled in workers’ compensation law and have helped many other people, just like you. Don’t hesitate to contact our firm with your case right away.

Call the San Francisco Bay Area lawyers at Brand Peters PC today to speak with an accomplished attorney about your case.

Becoming injured is never favorable, but it can be even worse when your injuries are sustained at work and impact your ability to effectively do your job. Luckily, workers’ compensation benefits are granted to the majority of California employees.

According to the State of California Department of Industrial Relations, workers’ compensation benefits are “designed to provide you with the medical treatment you need to recover from your work-related injury or illness, partially replace the wages you lose while you are recovering, and help you return to work.”

Read on to learn more about workers’ compensation benefits in California.

What to Do if You Become Injured at Work

If you are injured on the job, you should take the following steps so you’re able to receive workers’ compensation benefits to help pay for your injuries:

1. Let your employer know about your injury or illness. It’s very important for the approval of your workers’ compensation benefits to tell your employer about your ailment right away. If your ailment developed over time, tell your employer as soon as you find out or suspect it to be the result of your work. If your condition is not reported to your employer within 30 days, it is possible for you to lose your right to obtain workers’ compensation benefits altogether.
2. Attain immediate medical treatment if necessary. Call 9-1-1 if it’s an emergency or visit an emergency room immediately. Be sure to let the medical staff know that your ailment is work-related. If you’re able to do so without exacerbating your condition, contact your employer for more information on how to proceed. If emergency medical treatment is not necessary, it’s a good idea to obtain first aid and visit a doctor if needed.
3. Once your claim is filed, your employer is obligated to provide medical care for you. You are entitled to medical care provided to cure or treat ailments you developed while working.

The Benefits You Are Entitled To

The workers’ compensation benefits you are entitled to are as follows:

• Medical treatment – Your employer is required to pay for your medical care that relates to your on-the-job injury. Including physician visits, treatment services, tests, drugs, equipment, and travel costs that are reasonably needed for the treatment of your injury.
• Temporary disability benefits – If you lose wages because you are unable to perform your regular working duties as a result of recovering from your injury, these benefits will be paid to you.
• Permanent disability benefits – If your injury prompts a lifelong loss of physical or mental performance that is measurable by a doctor, you will receive these benefits.
• Supplemental job displacement benefit – If you qualify for permanent disability benefits, your employer does not offer you work, and you don’t go back to work for your employer, you will receive a voucher designed to assist with payments relating to retraining or skills enhancement.
• Death benefits – If you die as a result of your working injury or illness, your spouse, children, or other dependents will receive these benefits.

More Details

As long as you give your employer the name and address of your primary care physician in writing before you are injured, you are allowed to see your personal doctor or medical group immediately after sustaining your injuries. Providing your employer with your doctor’s information prior to becoming injured is called “predesignating.”

We Can Help

If you’ve been injured at work and would like to obtain workers’ compensation benefits, our skilled attorneys at Brand Peters PC can help. Our team has helped many other people just like you obtain the benefits they deserve. Don’t hesitate to contact our office with your case right away. After all, it’s your health on the line.

Call the San Francisco Bay Area lawyers at Brand Peters PC today to speak with an accomplished attorney about your case.

California requires household employers to carry Workers’ Compensation insurance for their household employees such as nanny, senior caregivers or housekeepers working more than 52 hours per quarter (90 days).

Labor Code Section 3352(h) excludes from the definition of “employee” under workers’ compensation: “ Any person …who was employed by the employer to be held liable for less than 52 hours during the 90 calendar days immediately preceding the date of injury… or who earned less than one hundred dollars ($100) in wages from the employer during the 90 calendar days immediately preceding the injury.”

Thus, to be classified as an employee and receive workers’ compensation benefits, a nanny or other household worker must pass either the 52 hour test or the $100 wage test. An employee should always ask whether a potential employer has the proper insurance coverage to protect against an injury sustained on the job site and Labor Code Section 2810.5 requires employers to provide minimum notice to household workers. Typically, the insurance is obtained as a rider on the employer’s homeowner’s insurance policy.  Under Insurance Code Section 11590, all homeowners insurance companies are required to offer a workers’ compensation endorsement that provides compensation for household employees that are injured in the course of their employment.

What if the Employer Failed to Secure Workers Compensation?

If it is determined the employer failed to obtain workers’ compensation coverage, and the injured worker is determined to be an employee for workers’ compensation purposes,   after serving the employer with the Application, the injured worker could request joinder of the Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund (UEBTF) under Labor Code Section 3716. If the employer does not have the funds to cover the Awarded amount in ten days, the Award would come from the director of the UEF.

Self-Employment and Workers Compensation

Workers compensation insurance is optional for most self-employed workers. If you are a roofer with a C-39 license, or a self-employed individual in other hazardous fields, you may need to obtain a workers’ compensation policy for your own injuries. This is outlined in the Business and Professions Code Section 7125.

Brand Peters PC is here to help. Contact us today!

Senate Bill 899 created a new procedure described in Labor Code Section 4062.2 to obtain medical legal reports through the Panel QME process for injuries after 1/1/05. The idea of having one doctor to evaluate an injured worker instead of two doctors with diametrically opposed views seemed like a good idea at the outset. However, the PQME process in place has proven to be flawed and ineffective for many trying to navigate the system.

Over time, the parties have encountered flaws when using the PQME process and have availed themselves to the right to request a replacement panel under 8 CCR Section 31.5(a). This has led to significant delays, additional discovery costs and misuse of Board time. There are sixteen different reasons enumerated under Section 31.5(a) for a party to request a replacement panel. Numerous panel requests have led to cases having more than five panels issued and delays of upwards to a year in scheduling a panel evaluation from the date the original panel was requested.

Have you been denied an expeditious panel process under Labor Code Section 4062.2?

Under Labor Code Section 5701, the Appeals Board may from time to time direct any employee claiming compensation to be examined by a regular physician. We have successfully petitioned to the WCAB for the appointment of a medical-legal evaluator under Labor Code Section 5701 in cases where the medical legal process has been unreasonably and unnecessarily delayed beyond the control of the parties despite their efforts. An example is when multiple Panel’s have issued over the period of one year and after the striking process was completed, the remaining physician was unable to schedule the examination within the statutory time frame, and the parties were unable to agree upon an AME. The WCJ in the interests of expediting resolution of the medical-legal process, pursuant to Labor Code 5701, appointed a physician to resolve the medical-legal dispute. A significant amount of litigation continues to exist with selecting and obtaining a Panel QME. If you are experiencing delays in the panel process, Labor Code Section 5701 may offer a more expeditious resolution of the medical-legal process.

Contact Brand Peters PC to receive your free initial consultation today with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney.

Catastrophic work injuries can be debilitating, and the treatment needed to recover from these injuries can be complex. Examples of catastrophic injuries include:

• Head or brain injuries
• Back, neck, and spinal cord injuries
• Loss of vision in both eyes
• Paraplegia or quadriplegia
• Severe burns
• Multiple amputations

These types of injuries are life altering for both the injured worker and their family. If you or a loved one have suffered a major injury at work, it is important to have a clear treatment and home care plan that will allow you to move toward functional independence. Because most workers with catastrophic injuries are unable to return to their jobs, home care becomes a very important factor in their daily life.

Many times, family members are used to provide home care services to the injured worker. In fact, it is not uncommon for the spouse of an injured worker to serve as the home health care provider. This is often a preferable option because it is more economically feasible than paying for an assisted living facility.

Can I Be Reimbursed for
Home Health Care Services?

Under Senate Bill 863, an injured worker’s primary treating physician must write a prescription for home health care services. The employer of the injured worker is not liable for any services that are provided more than 14 days prior to the date of the employer’s receipt of the prescription. In addition to requiring a prescription, home care services must be reasonable and necessary to cure or relieve the symptoms of the injury.

It is also important to note that Labor Code Section 5307.8 states that only services that were not provided to the injured worker before they suffered an injury are eligible for reimbursement. For example, if a husband prepared all of his wife’s meals before she was injured, he would not be eligible for reimbursement for preparing her meals after the injury.

Providers of home health care services are required to submit the following things with their request for reimbursement:

• An itemized list of the services provided
• The charge for each service
• The prescription or referral from the primary treating physician
• Any authorization for the services that may have been received

Get Help From Our Workers’ Comp Lawyers

At Brand Peters PC, we are dedicated to helping injured workers secure the compensation that they deserve for their catastrophic injuries. Our lawyers can ensure you get the treatment you need and that any home health care services are properly reimbursed in a timely fashion. We will work with you, your family members, and medical providers to make sure your case is successfully resolved.

Contact our Walnut Creek catastrophic injury lawyers to set up your free case consultation today.

Temporary disability benefits are payments you receive while recovering from an industrial injury under the certification of a physician. If you have been injured on the job you can be entitled to temporary disability benefits if a workers compensation physician determines you have to miss work for three or more days. These disability benefits are paid bi-weekly and are limited to 104 weeks per injury.

How to calculate temporary disability benefits?

A general rule is that temporary disability benefits amount to two-thirds of the gross wages you would have earned if you were not injured in the workplace. Gross wages are the total amount you are normally paid before any taxes, deductions, and payroll withholdings. The maximum weekly amount of temporary disability benefits is capped by law and there is also a set minimum weekly amount. In 2018 the minimum weekly rate is $182.29 per week and the maximum weekly rate is $1,215.27 per week. Temporary disability benefits are not subject to state, federal or local income taxes and you do not have to pay Social Security taxes, retirement fund contributions or other taxes on the benefits.

Each workers’ compensation case is unique and there are factors which can make the process of calculating temporary disability benefits more complicated. Some of these factors include: if your you had seasonal work, whether you had more than one employer at the time of injury, if you also earned other income such as tips, bonuses or other benefits, etc. Do not blindly accept the employer’s or insurance carrier’s calculation of average weekly wages. Housing allowances, car allowances, and per diem allowances can be used to increase one’s average weekly wages. It is helpful to keep and scan wage statements and W-2 forms to use as evidence to increase the average weekly wages.

How to calculate temporary partial disability?

If you are able to return to work but only for a limited amount of hours or limited duties at a lower wage, you may be entitled to temporary partial disability or wage loss. Usually TPD benefits are equal to two-thirds of your lost wages, subject to your maximum TD rate. Your lost wages are the difference between your average weekly wages and the amount you are earning by working part-time.

What happens if you were working more than one job at the time of injury?

Calculate your average weekly wage by adding your wages from all jobs. The rate will be equal to two-thirds of the wages from all jobs combined. Keep in mind that your gross income includes all jobs that are affected by your inability to work based on the advice of your treating physician.

How to obtain temporary disability benefits?

If an employee sustains an industrial injury, certification by a primary treating physician is a critical first step in determining eligibility for temporary disability benefits. In the current system, employees must select a primary treating physician off of the employer’s Medical Provider Network. If the primary treating physician determines the injured worker cannot return to work, due to the effects of their injury, they are entitled to temporary disability benefits. In order to receive ongoing benefits the injured worker must submit ongoing certification from the physician every 45 days. If the physician indicates the injured worker is able to return to work with restrictions, and the employer cannot accommodate these restrictions, then the injured worker is entitled to temporary disability benefits.

The first payment for temporary disability benefits must begin within 14 days after the employer learns that you have a job related injury and that your doctor has stated you are temporarily disabled.

Since 2004, there is a two year limit on the receipt of temporary disability benefits for each injury and the benefits must accrue within five years of the date of the work injury.

Temporary disability benefits cease once a doctor certifies the injured worker as having reached Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) status.

Denied claims

If the industrial claim is denied by the employer or its workers’ compensation carrier, the State of California provides an alternative benefit through the Employment Development Department (EDD). The rate of EDD benefits is often similar to the rate of TTD benefits had the claim been accepted. A treating physician must certify the injured worker for benefits and the EDD form must be transmitted to the EDD for processing. EDD benefits can last up to one year. EDD places a lien on the injured worker’s workers’ compensation case and seeks reimbursement from the workers’ compensation carrier if the claim is ultimately accepted or determined by a WCAB Judge to be industrial.

Are you entitled to temporary disability benefits for time missed from work to attend doctor appointments, depositions, medical-legal evaluations?

The analysis of whether the employee is entitled to receive temporary disability once the employee returns to full-time work, but then has to miss time from work due to legitimate and authorized medical treatment appointments, can become very complicated.

Recently, a panel of commissioners with the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board concluded that even though the employee’s condition had not yet become permanent and stationary and despite the fact that the employee had to miss work so as to attend medical appointments, that the employee was not entitled to receive temporary disability (Skelton v. Department of Motor Vehicles, 2018 Cal. Wrk. Comp. P.D. LEXIS 417). The majority in Skelton relied on the California Supreme Court case, Department of Rehabilitation v. Workers’ Comp. Appeals Bd. (Lauher) (2003) 30 Cal. 4th 1281, for the proposition that the employee cannot receive temporary disability for missed time due to appointments once the employee become permanent stationary. However, Lauher specifically did not address the scenario where applicant was not yet P&S.

Instead of citing to any precedential authority, the panel in Skelton cited to a writ denied case, Ward v. Workers’ Comp. Appeals Bd. (2004) 69 Cal. Comp. Cases 1179 (writ den.), arguing that any wage loss after the employee returns back to work full-time is “not compensable”. But this blunt statement only begs the question, why would it not be compensable when Labor Code Section 4654 specifically creates an obligation by the employer to pay temporary partial disability if there is weekly wage-loss caused by an industrial injury prior to the employee becoming permanent and stationary?

Like so many issues related to the worker’s compensation process, this could very well be an issue that the appellate courts will have to clarify. Until that time comes, however, cases like Skelton will make it more difficult for an employee who is not P&S but who has returned to work and has to receive ongoing medical treatment to receive temporary disability benefits.

If you do have to miss time from work to attend a deposition, under Labor Code Section 5710(b)(2) you are entitled to reimbursement for any loss of wages incurred during attendance at the deposition.

If you need to miss time from work to attend a medical-legal evaluation such as a Panel QME or an Agreed Medical Evaluation (AME) you are entitled to temporary disability benefits for the time you missed from work due to the evaluation under Labor Code Section 4600.

Unfortunately, unless you are off work and certified as temporarily disabled by a physician, you will not be entitled to temporary disability benefits for the time you take off work to attend hearings at the WCAB.