After you’re injured on the job, you could obtain workers’ compensation benefits. Those benefits include payment for lost income if you cannot work due to your injury. The total amount of wage replacement benefits depends on the severity of the injury and your average weekly wage.
Do All Employers in Georgia Have to Carry Workers’ Compensation Insurance?
In Georgia, any employer with three or more workers must carry workers’ compensation insurance to cover all employees, including part-time or seasonal workers. However, state and federal law exempts certain employers from the requirement to have workers’ comp insurance, including:
- Sole proprietorships with only one or two workers other than the owner
- LLCs and partnerships that do not have three or more workers other than the company’s partners or members
- Railroad companies
- Employers of farm and domestic workers
- Government agencies
How Is the Amount I Would Receive in Lost Wages Determined?
The Georgia workers’ compensation system calculates lost wage benefits based on your average weekly wage before suffering a work-related injury. You can receive two-thirds of your average weekly wage. Workers’ comp looks at the last 13 weeks you worked before suffering a work accident to determine your average weekly earnings.
Is There a Cap on What I Can Receive Weekly?
Georgia law places a maximum cap on the lost wage benefits you can receive. For total disability benefits, the state currently has a cap of $725.00 per week if your injury happened on or after July 1, 2022. Temporary partial disability benefits have a maximum weekly benefit of $483. The state adjusts these caps regularly to account for inflation.
Will Overtime Wages Be Included in My Lost Wages?
Although you cannot request “overtime” benefits even if you would have worked overtime had you not suffered an injury, any past overtime wages you earned during the 13-week period for calculating your average weekly wage get counted as part of your wages. Your average weekly wage can include vacation pay, holiday pay, and incentives or bonuses you received during the lookback period.
What Are the Different Levels of Disablement for Workers’ Comp?
The Georgia workers’ compensation system provides injured workers with four types of lost pay benefits. The levels of benefits include:
- Temporary total disability (TTD) – For TTD, you are completely unable to work, but only temporarily. These benefits pay you two-thirds of your average weekly wage for a maximum of 400 weeks from the date of your injury. Eligibility for temporary total disability benefits begins after missing work for seven consecutive days.
- Temporary partial disability (TPD) – These benefits pay two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury average weekly wage and your reduced wages while working as you recover from your injury. TPD covers a maximum of 350 weeks following the date of your work injury.
- Permanent total disability (PTD) – You must have a total and permanent loss of wage-earning ability for PTD. When you suffer a catastrophic injury or disability, you may have the right to lifetime payments as long as you cannot perform any work.
- Permanent partial disability (PPD) – On PPD, you are partially disabled on a permanent basis, and part of your wage-earning capacity is lost. The number of weeks you may receive benefits will depend on which body parts have suffered permanent disability and the rating your doctor provides. This is not a wage replacement benefit. Permanent partial disability is meant to compensate you for your loss of use of a body part or system.
Am I Required to See a Doctor to Get My Worker’s Comp Benefits?
Georgia law requires an authorized treating physician to certify that you have suffered a work-related injury to obtain medical benefits through workers’ compensation. Your physician must also verify that you have suffered a disability requiring your absence from work before you can receive lost pay benefits.
The state requires you to seek workers’ compensation-covered care from a physician approved by your employer. Your employer may compile a panel of six physicians or more – including at least one orthopedic physician – from which you can choose. You may switch to another physician on the panel once without your employer’s permission.
Alternatively, your employer may contract with a Georgia Workers’ Compensation Board-certified managed care organization that maintains a list of eligible medical service providers that you may choose from. You can switch to another eligible physician once without your employer’s permission.
How Soon Must I Report My Injury to My Employer?
Georgia’s workers’ compensation law obligates you to report a work accident or occupational injury to your employer immediately after the accident or injury. However, you should not wait longer than 30 days to report your injury to your employer. If you do, you may jeopardize your eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits. Not reporting your injury to your employer may also cause a delay in receiving critical workers’ comp benefits, such as payment of medical care.
Do Workers’ Compensation Payments Come by Paper Checks or Direct Deposit?
Traditionally, lost pay benefits get paid via paper check. However, many workers’ compensation insurers have begun offering injured workers the option to receive their payment via direct deposit. Direct deposit avoids delays in receiving payment or the risk of a paper check getting lost in the mail or stolen.
Once you have missed at least seven consecutive days from work, you should expect to receive your first check within 21 days of the date you suffered your work injury.
Contact a Georgia Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
If you have more questions about the lost pay benefits you might receive from workers’ comp after sustaining a work-related injury, contact Sherrod & Bernard, P.C., today for a free, no-obligation consultation. A Georgia workers’ compensation lawyer from our law firm can help you understand your legal rights and discuss what you can expect at each step when you pursue a workers’ comp claim.
