Working in a retail environment such as JC Penney’s can bring about risks. If you were to get hurt during your shift, would you know what to do? If you couldn’t work because of your injuries, would you be able to pay your bills? Every state provides a safety net for workers who are hurt on the job. Workers’ compensation insurance is required by state law for most employers to carry. After a workers’ compensation claim is filed and approved, it helps injured workers pay for needed medical care and can also provide a portion of your lost wages if you’re unable to work because of the severity of your injury. Company Profile: JC Penney’s JC Penney’s is a retail establishment that has around 1,000 stores in the United States. They sell clothing, shoes, bedding, makeup, and other lifestyle products. The corporate headquarters is located in Plano, Texas. JC Penney’s hires sales professionals, cashiers, warehouse workers, and in some locations, hairstylists and photographers. JC Penney’s Employees Face Unique Risks Because JC Penney’s hires people to fill different types of positions, the risks associated with working will vary. Common risks include: Warehouse workers and other employees who deal with retail items may hurt their back, neck, or other soft tissue when they move a heavy box. Retail and warehouse workers may slip and fall due to a spill and break a bone or hit their head. Workers who use the cash registers who spend large amounts of time folding or hanging clothing may suffer from repetitive stress injury. Employees who assist with cleaning or who work in the salons may be exposed to chemicals that burn the skin, throat, lungs, or eyes. How to Protect Your Legal Rights If You’re Hurt on the Job Getting hurt on the job can be a scary experience. It can be hard to know what to do. You may be worried about losing your job. Follow these steps to help protect your legal rights. If you’re hurt, stop what you’re doing and immediately inform your supervisor or the store manager on duty. Don’t wait until the end of your shift. Continuing to work can make an injury worse. If you’ve burned your skin or eyes with a chemical, call 911. If you slipped and fell, your manager should be informed so that the spill can be cleaned up before coworkers or shoppers are hurt. Talk to your supervisor and HR about starting your workers’ compensation claim. You will need to fill out an accident report, even if you were not at fault. Do this as soon as you can. If you called 911, the police will respond and give you a report number. You can get a copy of the report within a few days. Get medical care as soon as you can. Although many injuries may not seem all that bad or stop you from working, they can be made worse if you don’t get help. Ask how you can get an appointment with the doctor listed on the workers’ compensation policy. That particular doctor is generally free of charge. If you pay out of pocket to see your own doctor, keep your receipts because you may be reimbursed. Talk with a workers’ compensation attorney to learn about your rights. Do not sign anything. The adjustor may try to pay you as little as possible or deny your claim. It’s important that you have an advocate on your side. Gathering Evidence for a Workers’ Compensation Claim One of the key things to include in a J C Penney’s workers’ compensation claim is sufficient evidence to back up the claim. The reason for this is that workers’ compensation insurers are notorious for denying claims because the evidence provided doesn’t fully support eligibility to claim workers’ compensation. This typically means a number of things, such as there is no proof that the injury took place at work, the injury was obviously a pre-existing condition and so wouldn’t support eligibility for workers’ compensation, a accident report was not completed by the company’s stipulated due date or the claim itself was after the deadline specified by the state’s statute of limitations for filing workers’ compensation claims. If the claimant was partly responsible for the accident and injury, this isn’t a reason for denying the claim as workers’ compensation is a no-fault insurance. Of course, if the claimant is deliberately negligent and the insurer has the evidence to prove this it might be sufficient grounds to deny a workers’ compensation claim. You don’t want to be in the position of your claim being denied as even though an appeal is possible it is a drawn out affair and doesn’t usually end in a successful result. There is a lot at stake to winning a successful workers’ compensation claim because it includes the cost of all medical treatment and two thirds of wages until returning to work. Partial and permanent disability payments are also covered by workers’ compensation. Bearing the above points in mind it is essential to provide as much evidence as possible to support the workers’ compensation claim. This should include all of the following documents, if possible: eye witness’ written reports; a certified copy of the accident report submitted to the supervisor at JC Penney; the physician’s report, including diagnosis, further treatment required and likely recovery time; results of scans and x-rays; details of prescription drugs including time frame and cost; receipts for medical treatment paid for; invoices for unpaid medical treatment; photos taken by the victim and eye witnesses; video footage retrieved from surveillance cameras. proof of out-of-pocket expenses like cab fares to a doctor’s appointment. Potential Settlement for a Workers’ Compensation Claim There are various benefits available for injured workers. The first kind is when the victim becomes totally disabled for a short period of time such as traumatic brain injury which involves a number of symptoms like reduction in co-ordination, confusion, memory loss and difficulties with speech. A calculation is made for the cost of all medical treatment until the victim is considered fit enough to return to work and two thirds of wages that were being received at the time of the accident. If it is a mild TBI in the first 3 months the most rapid recovery takes place. By the time 6 months has passed most of the TBI symptoms will have disappeared and the victim should be able to return to work in his or her usual job. Breakdown of a Workers’ Compensation Claim For a Shelf Filler At JC Penney’s Cost of ambulance = $300. Emergency room visit = $1,200. X-ray and scans = $1,500. Medication = $1,000. Follow up doctor’s visits 4X $200 = $800. A shelf-filler’s wage is $10 per hour, $400 for a 40 hour week, $10,400 for 6 months. Two thirds of $10,400 = $6,530. Total workers’ compensation = $6,530 + $4,800 = $11,330. If the TBI is more serious, the workers’ compensation could be a lot higher. Typically, if it’s a permanent total disability it means compensation will last for the remainder of the person’s life. There is also workers’ compensation available for permanent partial disability when the person experiences numbness to the face due to the TBI and a complete cure is unlikely to take place. What Can Speed Up or Slow Down a Settlement? There are a number of reasons that could slow down a workers’ compensation claim. Often the insurer is bogged down with a large number of claims so it takes a lot of time to process each one. Once it gets to your claim the insurer may discover some missing information in the evidence to back up the claim. It will request this information from you, which will add further delays to the process. It might be that the contact details of your eye witnesses have been left off or the medical report from your physician has not been dated. That is why it is so important that all the documentation is completed in full in the first place leaving no doubt in the insurers mind that the workers’ compensation claim is valid. If the insurer thinks that alcohol or drugs were being consumed at the time of the accident this is a good reason to delay a workers’ compensation claim but it may take time for the insurer to gather the evidence to prove this. Sometimes if the insurer is in any doubt about the diagnosis it will ask for the claimant to be examined by another doctor which will confirm or refute the diagnosis. This could add considerable time to the processing of the claim. It is possible to speed up the workers’ compensation process by hiring a workers’ compensation attorney to go through the documents that are providing the evidence. The attorney can quickly pick out any ambiguities or missing information, which could delay the claim. This won’t eliminate the long wait times but it is reassuring to know that there will not be any other hold-ups in processing the claim. You will just have to find an alternative means of financing your life while waiting for approval of your workers’ compensation claim. Don’t Wait If you’re hurt on the job at JC Penney’s, you shouldn’t wait to file your workers’ compensation claim or to talk with a workers’ compensation attorney. Claims are time sensitive. Protect your rights. *The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be construed as legal advice. If you file a claim against JC Penney's, you may not be entitled to any compensation.
