The system explained under the Massachusetts workers compensation laws is managed by the State Department of Industrial Accidents. Attorneys, businesses, claimants, and workers can contact the department to access relevant resources. If you have got injured while at job, the department can assist you with how to move ahead and file a claim of occupational injuries.
Occupational Injury Insurance Is Mandatory For All Employers
All employers who are running their various operations in the state of Massachusetts are legally obligated to provide insurance coverage to their employees against work-related injuries and illnesses. However, some waivers are also provided to them. Employers have an option to get self-insured or use a private insurance carrier for this purpose. Even domestic and agricultural workers may also qualify for such benefits provided the employer is duly covered under the Massachusetts workers compensation laws and the workers have worked at least sixteen hour per week.
Who Chooses The Doctor?
Unlike other states that leave it up to the employers to choose the doctor for the treatment of the injured worker, Massachusetts gives this right to the employees. When you get injured at the workplace, you do not have to wait for anybody; you can go ahead and get medical treatment immediately with any doctor of your choice.
Waiting Period And Retroactive Compensation
Like the laws in other states, Massachusetts workers compensation laws also impose a waiting period before an injured employee qualifies to receive the compensation benefits. As per the laws, an injured worker must wait for five days before he or she can start receiving the payments for occupational injuries. If the injured employee gets recovered within less than five days and the doctor certifies that he or she is fit enough to return to work, no compensation benefits come into action. However, if the injury or the disability caused by it continues for longer than 20 days, the compensation becomes retroactive.
Death Benefits
In cases, where an employee dies because of occupational injuries, employers must make payments to the dependent family members (such as, surviving spouse and children) of the deceased. The amount of the payments is determined on the weekly wages that the deceased had been earning before the date of the accident.
The Massachusetts workers compensation laws have also imposed a certain maximum limit on the fee that a lawyer can charge for handling an occupational injury claim, you can
view the site to learn more about the occupational injury claims and as per the laws, a Massachusetts workers compensation lawyer must work on a contingency fee basis (no win no fee) and that their commission must not exceed two times the average weekly wage in the state.