The majority of people probably think of industrial injuries when they hear of workers’ compensation, such as falls from scaffolding or being crushed by machinery. Though major accidents are not the only thing that workers’ compensation covers.
An employee may be qualified for benefits under the workers’ compensation plan of their employer if they become ill at work or sustain an injury there. In rare circumstances, a person who contracted a mental illness because of their employment may also be eligible for benefits. Read on to learn more and then contact PLBH at (800) 435-7542 if you would like help from an employment law attorney.
A wide range of illnesses and injuries can be covered by workers’ compensation
Any kind of illness or injury related to your job may be covered by the California workers’ compensation system, entitling you to payments. This can include illnesses or injuries to your emotional or mental health that you experience as a result of your profession, depending on the specifics of your claim.
Qualifying mental health injuries and illnesses
Not all mental health injuries or illnesses will be eligible for workers’ compensation payments, according to a California workers’ compensation attorney. It must be serious enough to hinder your capacity to do your duties. For instance, if you have been given a diagnosis of work-related stress or anxiety, you must be able to demonstrate that it is so severe that it prevents you from performing your job duties.
You must also be able to demonstrate a connection between your mental health issue and your job. This may be as simple as mentioning a traumatic work experience for some employees. It is easier to establish a connection between the occurrence and a mental health diagnosis in these more extreme situations, such as a workplace shooting. However, in other circumstances, rather than being the product of a singular incident, a diagnosis can be the outcome of a continuing challenging work environment.
An emergency medical technician, for instance, can experience anxiety after working shift after shift in stressful or life-threatening circumstances. The EMT may be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits for their medical care and lost income if their capacity to work is impaired as a result of their diagnosis of anxiety.
The difficulty in proving work has caused a mental health condition
Proving a connection between a mental health illness and your profession can frequently be challenging. This is particularly true given that many mental health injuries develop over time rather than as the result of a single incident. It might be difficult to distinguish between troubles at work and issues in your personal life that might increase your stress or anxiety.
For instance, you might have a boss that demands unreasonable deadlines from you and yells at you all the time, but you might also be dealing with problems at home like having to care for an elderly parent. It can be challenging to demonstrate in these circumstances that your tension or worry was solely brought on by your job.
You can demonstrate that your anxiety is related to your job by working with a California workers’ compensation attorney. This can be achieved by keeping a record of both your diagnosis and the working conditions. You stand a stronger chance of being granted workers’ compensation for anxiety by gathering evidence in this manner.
We at PLBH are committed to supporting workers in California who are unable to work due to an illness or injury. Call (800) 435-7542 or email info@plblaw.com right once to make an appointment with a member of our staff.