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Every business that has employees, even one, must take out a workers compensation policy. If you’re a small business owner like a sole proprietor, partner, or LLC member then you would generally add yourself to the policy at that time.

You don’t have to, of course. It’s an optional thing, and it’s not done automatically.

Yet you probably should. 

After all, you’re just as likely to get hurt on the job as your employees are. In some cases, you may even be a “key” employee, as in your business cannot easily survive without you. While workers compensation won’t help with that (that’s what key employee insurance is for) your duties do help to demonstrate that as a small business owners you may well be taking actions, every single day, that could mean you get hurt.

Even office workers and telecommuters can get hurt on the job, after all.

When you take out the policy you have to use a payroll amount. Payroll can be a little fuzzy for small business owners, but New Jersey law has a solution. You must use a minimum payroll amount of $34,320 for the purposes of calculating both your premiums and your eventual benefits in the event that you get hurt.

Of course, you may not want to use the minimum. You may make significantly more than that. 

If that’s the case, the you should know that there’s a maximum payroll of $127,400 for the purposes of calculating premiums. Good news for you if you …

Many people in New Jersey work multiple jobs, or work part time in the gig economy while working full-time at more traditional pursuits. Yet many don’t know that having multiple jobs can complicate workers compensation.

The first thing you have to know is that if you get injured on the job you only get workers compensation for the job you were injured at. This means if you get injured on your part-time job you’ll only get replacement wages for the part-time job, while being forced to quit work at your full-time job. 

Life can get even more complicated if your problem is a repetitive stress injury. In that case you might have sustained the injury on both jobs but would have to prove it, with each employer trying to shift the responsibility to the other employer.

Your full-time job will also be under no obligation to hold your job or put you on light duty the way they would if you’d been injured at their workplace.

This means holding on to two jobs provides an additional layer of risk that many people are not aware of.

In addition, if you’re injured on your full-time job you cannot keep working your part time job. If you do, you will be accused of workers compensation fraud. You are also likely to lose your benefits.

These realities can add an additional layer of struggle at a time when families are already struggling, but it’s important to understand them so you don’t threaten …

One reason some workers are reluctant to claim workers compensation benefits is they feel as though the accident was their fault. Sometimes anyone can have an off day and work a little clumsily, forget a vital safety precaution, or otherwise create a condition which can lead to an accident or an injury.

Fortunately, New Jersey’s workers compensation system is a no-fault system. For the most part, the only condition you will have to meet to be eligible for benefits is to be injured at work and to report that injury.

What Disqualifies You From Workers Comp?

The first thing that can disqualify you is willful misconduct. That is you were horsing around, abusing alcohol or drugs, or were willfully ignoring or violating company policies. A self-inflicted injury also won’t be covered by workers compensation, i.e., slitting your wrists while you’re in the workplace bathroom.

You can also lose your workers compensation by failing to report the injury in a timely fashion. Some employees do this because they fear retaliation or other consequences. It’s important to remember that retaliating against an employee for claiming workers compensation benefits is against the law.

What is Considered an On-the-Job Injury?

Any injury that occurs while you are working, or while you’re at work. This covers almost any injury that takes place at the workplace location, during working hours, or while performing activities that are within the scope of your employment.

This can even include things you are doing while working from home, so …

Any job can put a lot of stress and strain on the body. In both industrial jobs and office jobs, there are opportunities to incur repetitive stress injuries.

Under New Jersey laws these are known as “wear and tear” injuries. While this terminology may make you feel a little bit like you’re being treated like an apartment or a car, the fact is that the law does allow you to receive compensation when work inexorably robs you of your health. It doesn’t all come down to traumatic accidents or chemical exposure.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a well-known example, but there are others, such as rotator cuff injuries. Some of these injuries can have a severe impact on a person’s ability to function in their day-to-day lives.

However, you do have to take the appropriate steps to get the compensation you deserve. 

First, you’ll need to provide your employer with written notice, just as if you’d suffered from an accident at work. This can be as simple as a dated letter which says, “I have begun experiencing severe wrist pain on the job, the result of a work-related repetitive stress injury. I would like to start the workers compensation process.”

At that point your workplace should assign you to a doctor or a medical facility who will provide you with a diagnosis and treatment. Be sure to bring a copy of your job description with you to your appointment. 

Somewhat suspicious of an employer-run clinic? It’s not a bad idea …

Right now, New Jersey workers compensation does allow for claims related to the Covid-19 virus. There’s just one problem.

In most cases, employers and their insurance companies don’t have to pay the claim if you can’t prove there was a direct line from your job to your infection. Because Covid-19 is so ubiquitous, and capable of spreading through asymptomatic carriers, this can be very difficult.

Currently, many essential workers are having to turn to other New Jersey programs liked paid sick leave to try to bridge the gap. For some, this aid will be enough. For others it won’t, especially if the infection lands them in the hospital. 

Many essential workers are uninsured, which means Covid-19 could cost them up to $75,000. Going to the ICU or being put on a ventilator is extremely expensive. 

In fact, if your symptoms aren’t severe it’s usually best to just isolate at home, drink lots of water, and wait it out, or to use telehealth or other, less expensive services than the ER if you’re not sure. 

Nevertheless, workers compensation was created to help pay for worker medical bills when their jobs expose them to a hazard.

Public safety workers like fire fighters, EMTs, nurses, and medical technicians are protected by a presumption that if they contract Covid-19 in the middle of a pandemic while responding to the pandemic then that relationship exists. They’re entitled to workers compensation benefits without having to offer any other proof that the infection came from their …

Many employers will do just about anything to save a buck, even if it means sacrificing employee well-being. If that weren’t the case, there’d be no need for workers compensation lawyers or lawsuits. 

Some tricks are common and even expected. You can watch out for them if you’ve taken the time to educate yourself about New Jersey workers compensation law.

Trick #1: Misreporting 

After you report your injury to your employer you should receive a First Report of Injury form back from the insurance company. It’s important to scrutinize this document closely to ensure the facts listed on the document match the facts of your case.

Don’t just look at the injury description, since employers sometimes misreport wages too. This is especially common in cases where employees often work overtime. The employers “forget” to include that overtime when calculating average weekly wages.

Trick #2: Failing to Report the Injury Fast Enough

You are responsible for reporting the claim to your employer right away. Your employer is responsible for making the claim with workers compensation.

Some fail to do so fast enough, delaying the process and giving the workers compensation insurance company leverage to deny the claim. Some fail to do it at all, and claim you never reported the injury to them.

Some will try to convince you they shouldn’t report the injury, assuring you they’ll pay your medical bills out of pocket instead of filing the claim. They may even channel you to on-site clinics with doctors …

You may be eligible for workers compensation if you contract COVID-19, or if you’re exposed to it. But where you contract the virus will matter.

You will only be able to use workers compensation if you were exposed on the job. That is, you waited on someone with the virus, or worked with someone who had the virus. 

In either case you can use it if health staff told you to self-quarantine as a result, whether you’re showing symptoms of the illness or not. You will have to provide the documentation from the medical doctor who gave the order. 

It is also a good idea to be prepared with evidence that the job was the source of the problem. If you were using social distancing off the job, for example, and thus did not come into contact with anyone else, then that would be vital evidence in your COVID-related workers compensation case. 

New Jersey is asking you not to apply for benefits if your employer voluntarily pays you during your time off due to COVID-19. Yet you might still need workers compensation for medical care, especially if you end up needing intensive care.

If you were exposed off-the-job there may be other programs that can help you. Earned sick leave, temporary disability, family leave insurance, and the FMLA may all help. If your employer closed due to COVID-19 you should be able to collect unemployment. If there is any way you can work from home the DoL and …

Medical marijuana is a hot topic in NJ workers compensation law right now. A recent case in the New Jersey Appellate Division mandated that employers should reimburse employees for medical cannabis use related to a workplace accident. 

In the case, Hagar vs. M&K Construction, M&K argued that the Federal Controlled Substances Act makes it a crime to manufacture, possess, or distribute marijuana, and that federal law should preempt the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act. They further argued that forcing them to pay for medical marijuana would force them to aid and abet in Hagar’s possession of an illegal substance, and that they should be treated like private health insurers who are not required to reimburse medical marijuana costs.

The court ruled in favor of Hagar. In his opinion, Judge Currier wrote:

“We conclude the order does not require M&K to possess, manufacture, or distribute marijuana, but only to reimburse petitioner for his purchase of medical marijuana…we discern no conflict between the CSA and MMA. Furthermore, M&K’s compliance with the order does not establish the specific intent of an aiding and abetting offense under federal law. We also conclude M&K is not a private health insurer. Therefore, it is not excluded under the MMA from reimbursing the costs of medical marijuana.”

“Here, where petitioner has demonstrated the severity and chronic nature of his pain, his attempts to unsuccessfully alleviate the pain with multiple surgeries and medical modalities, and the validated efficacy of the prescribed medical marijuana, we find …

First, let’s talk about when you should think about hiring an attorney.

Unless your injuries are minor you should think about hiring an attorney even before shenanigans begin. While you might be in the small minority of people who never have a problem working their way through the process, the truth is you’re far more likely to deal with an employer who is going to try to make life hard for you.

Employers want to fire you quickly if you’re on workers compensation, just as soon as they have a legal reason to do so. They want to pay as little as possible for your injury. If you try to return on light duty there are employers who will ignore the doctor’s instructions and put you on unsuitable tasks in an attempt to pressure you into a “take it or leave it” situation.

In short, employers are not your friends, no matter how nice Bob was at the company Christmas party this year.

It’s also very easy to make mistakes. There are dozens of forms to fill out and mistakes could cost you the entire case. 

With those caveats out of the way, let’s talk about the process. 

1. You and the attorney will have an initial consultation. This is a good time to explain your situation, but also to ask questions. You might ask: will you inform my employer on my behalf if I am hospitalized and can’t make the call? How will you communicate with me, and how