If you’re injured while working for General Motors (GM), you may be able to file a workers’ compensation claim. This specific type of injury claim is exclusively available to employees who are hurt while on the job. Filing a workers compensation claim allows you to receive benefits that help cover the costs of your accident-related expenses. This can include medical coverage and wage replacement if you’re unable to work. You may also be eligible for additional payments if you become temporarily or permanently disabled because of your work injuries. Gathering Evidence For a Workers’ Compensation Claim If you have been injured while working for General Motors, you may be entitled to file a workers’ compensation claim to cover the cost of medical treatment and loss of wages while being treated and recovering from your injuries. To ensure your WC claim is a success you will need to provide suitable evidence which proves you have been injured and the injury took place while you were working for GM. One of the commonest reasons for a GM WC insurer denying a WC claim is the lack of evidence proving the injury happened at work. Examples of Evidence That Can Be Used in aWC Claim Evidence that is acceptable by a GM workers’ comp. insurer could include any of the following: copy of report filed to your GM supervisor; eye witness reports from work colleagues; photographs taken by surveillance cameras in the workplace; doctor’s report indicating how the injury occurred; photographs of the injury and the hazard that caused it. What Are Some Potential Work Hazards at General Motors? General Motors is a global automobile manufacturer specializing in consumer vehicles like trucks, sedans, and SUVs. Since its creation more than 100 years ago, GM has grown to one of the largest companies within the automotive industry. To help keep up with demand of their popular automobiles, General Motors has more than 200,000 employees working in manufacturing plants and facilities around the world. If you work for GM, you may fill one of their many automotive manufacturing positions like: Paint Processor Assembly Line Worker Injection Molding Engineer Welder/Joiner Production Associate When you work in an industrial setting, like a General Motors automotive plant, you could be exposed to potential dangers on a daily basis. This can lead to on-the-job accidents and injuries such as: Breathing problems from exposure to paint fumes and industrial chemicals Back and neck strains while lifting heavy vehicle parts Joint damage from repetitive movements on the assembly line Serious cuts and crush injuries while operating heavy machinery Regardless of your position or job description, you may be eligible for workers’ compensation if you’re injured in any kind of workplace accident as a GM employee. General Motors Workers’ Compensation Requirements When companies have more than one employee, they are generally required to offer workers’ compensation benefits. The majority of states have these requirements in order to help injured workers, like you, recover from on-the-job injuries. A global company, like General Motors, may offer you benefits through their own private insurance policy or through your state’s workers’ compensation system. Either way, when you’re injured at work, you may be able to file a claim that provides you the benefits needed to cover the costs associated with your accident. General Motors Workers’ Compensation Claim In the Louisiana workers’ compensation case of Millican v. General Motors Corp, Ronald Millican injured his back while employed as a line worker at one of GM’s automotive plants. In addition to having his medical expenses paid for, Mr. Millican received weekly disability payments since his injuries required surgery and left him unable to work. How To File a Claim When you are injured while working on an assembly line at GM, operating heavy machinery, you should be entitled to workers’ comp. to cover the cost of your medical treatment and loss of wages while undergoing treatment and recovering from the injury. There are many types of injury that are possible as an assembly line worker such as getting a limb caught and mangled in machinery, broken bones, loss of hearing and vision as well as skin disorders from long term exposure to toxic substances. Whatever the injury the process is the same when filing a workers’ compensation claim. The first step following an injury is to get medical help as soon as possible. This could involve calling an ambulance to take you to the closest medical facility. Sometimes, companies like GM require you go to the medical facility of its choice while other times you are free to choose your own health care provider. To guarantee getting your medical treatment paid for you should make sure you know what GM’s policy is so you do not lose out. The second step is to inform your supervisor of the injury. If you or a colleague can write a report on your behalf there is certain information that will need to be included. Your GM employer may get you to complete an official claim form as part of the WC claim process. If this hasn’t taken place you should request one from the workers' compensation board in your state. Normally, the following information has to be included on the workers compensation claim form: type of injury; date, time and where on the assembly line the injury occurred; the names of other any people who were there on or near the assembly line when the accident took place; how the injury occurred; the medical treatment received for the injury so far. The third step is to file your claim for workers’ compensation. You can only start this process if all the evidence is available and cannot be disputed. At this point you may need a WC lawyer to help you through the process. He or she knows how important it is to file a WC claim form that can’t be disputed. Most states set a statute of limitations which restrict the time you are given to file a WC claim. If you exceed that time limit it is quite likely you will lose your entitlement to workers’ compensation. If the claim is successful, the WC settlement should include the cost of all your medical treatment up to the date of the claim and into the future, approximately two thirds of your weekly wage calculated based on how long you are estimated to be off work, any out of pocket expenses such as transport to and from the medical facility and any additional adaptations or care required in the home due to the effects of your injury. If your WC claim is denied this is commonly due to GM’s WC insurer not being convinced that your injury took place on the assembly line. You and your WC lawyer can lodge an appeal that may turn out successful for you. How Much Can I Get If I File A Claim Against General Motors? In most workers' comp cases, you would be able to claim for medical costs associated with your injuries, along with a portion of lost wages. However, it's always a good idea to get legal representation in cases where you're injured on the job, to ensure that you get a fair settlement amount. You can read more about the value of a workers' comp case against General Motors here: What's a General Motors Workers' Comp Claim Worth? Can An Attorney Help With My General Motors Claim? Often, legitimate workers’ compensation claims can be denied if you fail to file within a certain time or properly document your injuries. If this happens, you will need to go through the difficult and typically lengthy process of filing an appeal. Don’t try to navigate these complicated claims without the help of a workers’ compensation attorney. When you have the expertise of an attorney on your side, you stand the best chance of recovering the full benefits you deserve as an injured General Motors worker. *The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be construed as legal advice. If you file a claim against General Motors, you may not be entitled to any compensation.
