If you get hurt at work, workers’ compensation insurance protects you. In Minnesota, almost all employers have an obligation to carry this important form of insurance. Those hurt on the job and those who developed a work-acquired illness can make a claim for benefits.
Workers’ compensation provides both health coverage and indemnity coverage. Health coverage will pay for the medical treatment someone needs because of a work-related medical condition like a broken bone or carpal tunnel syndrome. Indemnity benefits provide short-term and sometimes long-term disability coverage to workers who need a leave of absence because they got hurt or who suffer a reduction in their earning potential because of an injury on the job.
It can be a desperate scramble to try to continue covering all of your monthly expenses when you suddenly find yourself unable to work. Will the indemnity or disability benefits available through Minnesota workers’ compensation the enough to pay all of your bills?
The state limits what you receive in disability pay
You won’t receive the full amount of your usual weekly income through workers’ compensation disability benefits. In fact, the most you can hope to receive is two-thirds of your average weekly wage. However, even that reduced amount of income is subject to state limitations.
If your income is above the average weekly wage in Minnesota, what you potentially receive from workers’ compensation could be far less than two-thirds of your usual take-home pay. The state caps benefits at a maximum amount, although the amount does increase based on cost-of-living changes annually. Currently, the maximum weekly benefit is $1,256.64. For workers who usually make more than $1,885.96 a week, workers’ compensation will likely amount to less than two-thirds of their typical income.
Even at a reduced rate, disability pay can still help your family
Although you may not be able to balance your budget comfortably while receiving workers’ compensation benefits, those benefits do help your family cover at least basic expenses until you are able to go back to work.
Workers who understand the benefits that they should receive and the right way to apply for those benefits are in a good position to reduce the financial consequences their injury causes their family. Familiarizing yourself with the rules that govern workers’ compensation claims in Minnesota can maximize the benefits that you get after an injury on the job.