Workers’ Compensation

All employers with at least one employee in New Jersey must buy workers’ compensation insurance. This means you will likely be eligible for worker’s comp benefits if you are employed in the state.

State law uses two tests to determine whether the employer-employee relationship exists. If a worker meets either test, they qualify as an employee and can receive worker’s comp benefits for job-related injuries.

Under the control test, the state looks at who determines what the worker does and how, when, and where the worker performs their job duties. If the worker retains control, they may be an independent contractor. When someone else has control, the worker may be an employee.

Under the relative nature test, the state looks at whether the worker relies on the work for income and the business relies on the worker to operate. If a worker’s job meets both of these elements, the worker qualifies as an employee.

Once at least one of these tests is met, the employee will probably qualify for workers’ comp benefits, regardless of the nature of their employment. Specifically, you qualify for workers’ comp even if you:

• Work in New Jersey for an out-of-state employer
• Only work as a part-time employee
• Have a seasonal job
• Work for an independent contractor or subcontractor

New Jersey law only categorically excludes the following from the workers’ comp system:

• Unpaid interns
• Unpaid volunteers other than volunteer firefighters
• Independent contractors
• Sole proprietors with no employees

The system also exempts anyone covered by an alternative federal program. Thus, you will pursue a different type of claim under federal law for your injuries if you work as a:

• Federal employee
• Railroad worker
• Dock Worker

These workers can still pursue compensation for on-the-job injuries. But they must pursue a claim for federally mandated benefits rather than a claim under New Jersey’s worker’s comp laws.

Importantly, workers’ comp is a no-fault system. When you file a claim, you do not need to prove that your employer caused your injury. The insurer covers injuries caused by your employer’s negligence, your negligence, and those involving the negligence of third parties. It also covers injuries in which no one was negligent.

There are a few limits to the injuries covered by workers’ comp. Workers cannot get compensated for injuries that arise from:

• Being the aggressor in an assault
• Intoxication due to alcohol or illegal drugs
• Instigating horseplay that was a major deviation from work

In these situations, the cause of the injury was not work-related, even if the injury happened at the person’s place of employment. However, New Jersey law favors coverage for employees.

For example, New Jersey allows some instigators of horseplay to recover workers’ comp benefits when the horseplay was to be expected. Similarly, an intoxicated worker might still receive workers’ comp if the intoxication was not the cause of the accident.

If your claim is denied, you should speak to a worker’s comp attorney from Garces, Grabler & LeBrocq to discuss the arguments we can make to overcome the denial.

Workers’ compensation benefits cover work-related injuries resulting from several situations.

You can pursue benefits for injuries resulting from a single accident or traumatic incident. Some examples of incidents that can produce these injuries include:

• Motor vehicle crashes
• Falls
• Falling objects
• Power tool and machine accidents
• Building or trench collapses
• Burns
• Electric shocks
• Chemical spills and splashes
• Exposures to hot or cold environments

These accidents cause acute injuries like:

• Lacerations
• Muscle and tendon strains
• Ligament sprains
• Fractured bones
• Amputations
• Nerve damage
• Internal injuries
• Brain injuries
• Spinal cord injuries

As a result of these injuries, you may require emergency care, medical treatment, and therapy. You may suffer from long-term or even permanent disabilities that limit your ability to work in the future.

Your job may expose you to toxic substances that cause debilitating injuries. The nervous system is particularly vulnerable to toxic exposures, producing symptoms such as:

• Confusion
• Amnesia
• Weakness
• Loss of coordination
• Tremors

Toxic exposure can also damage the lungs and skin. For example, inhaling asbestos fibers can produce a condition called mesothelioma, in which cancerous tumors grow in the membranes that line your internal organs.

Some hazardous substances known to injure workers include:

• Paint fumes
• Asbestos
• Insecticides
• Herbicides
• Mold spores
• Petroleum products
• Coal dust
• Industrial solvents
• Radioactive materials

Injuries from exposure to toxins develop over time. In many situations, you might not exhibit symptoms for decades after exposure.

These diseases often have no treatment. As a result, you may suffer from symptoms until the disease eventually takes your life.

When you stress your body, you develop small cracks in your bones and small tears in your soft tissues. Rest allows your body to repair these microscopic injuries and even build back stronger.

If you repeat the stresses without resting, the injuries accumulate and propagate instead of healing. Some examples of repetitive stress injuries include:

• Strained muscles and tendons
• Sprained ligaments
• Stress fractures
• Herniated or bulging discs

Repetitive stress injuries can, in turn, cause other problems. Swollen or deformed tissues can press on nerves, causing nerve damage.

A common example of these injuries occurs in carpal tunnel syndrome, in which inflamed wrist ligaments press on the median nerve. Another example happens when deformed spinal discs press on nerve roots branching from the spinal cord. Nerve compression causes symptoms such as:

• Pain
• Muscle weakness and spasms
• Numbness or tingling

These symptoms affect an otherwise uninjured body part. Thus, a herniated disc in your lower back might produce symptoms in your leg, while carpal tunnel in your wrist can affect your elbow and fingers.

These injuries often require rest to heal properly. In some cases, you may also require surgery. During your recovery, your doctor may limit your work activities. If you are out of work for at least seven days, you become eligible for temporary disability benefits.

Occupational diseases come from your work environment or the tasks you perform. They can include injuries caused by toxic exposure(s) or repetitive motion(s). But they also include conditions that result from neither of these occupational hazards.

Two common examples of occupational diseases that result from something other than toxins and repetitive stresses include hearing loss from noisy environments and asthma or other respiratory conditions from dust.

By themselves, noise and dust are relatively harmless. However, exposure to these conditions for hundreds of hours per year can cause serious health problems.

Doctors can sometimes treat occupational diseases. But in most situations, you will suffer permanent disabilities that limit your ability to return to work.