Workers’ compensation is a great way for you to recover from a workplace injury without sinking your finances. It is designed to get you back on your feet as soon as possible, so you can get back to work. But does it say anywhere that you have to return to your current job when you’re healthy to work again?
While you are receiving workers’ compensation from your current employer, you are allowed to apply for new jobs at other places of employment. Nowhere does it say in any workers’ compensation insurance policy that applying to other workplaces will end your benefits. If it does say that, then there is probably an insurance lawsuit waiting to happen. Indeed, many people who go on workers’ comp will apply elsewhere because they no longer feel safe in their current workplace.
What you can’t do while receiving workers’ compensation is start a new job elsewhere without risking some sort of change to your benefits. They might not end completely, but modifications can and often do occur because a workers’ comp claimant starts a new job at another company.
Three situations to keep in mind if you start a new job while getting workers’ comp are:
- Your medical benefits should continue as normal unless your new job requires you to perform actions that had been prohibited by your medical provider.
- Your wage benefits could be reduced or ended early if you make more at your new job than your previous job, and you work for both employers now.
- Your disability benefits should continue uninterrupted, assuming you don’t begin to complete new work that should be impossible or unsafe due to your disability.
Because the situation can quickly get complicated, it is always advised you speak with a workers’ compensation attorney in your area about what could happen to your benefits if you change jobs while receiving workers’ comp benefits. You can make a better decision about whether or not it is worth it to seek new employment or wait until your benefits end or you are required to return to work.
Kentucky Injury Law Center can help you understand your options when you’ve been hurt at work. Contact us for more information from a team of attorneys who you can trust.