Most employers in Arizona are required to take out insurance to cover them if one of their employees suffers an injury while at work or becomes ill due to their job. If this is what has happened to you while you are at work, then you may be covered by your own employer’s workers’ compensation insurance. There is a fairly rigorous procedure involved and the state prescribes what can be paid out in compensation. This is normally restricted to medical costs and lost earnings. If you are unsure of the procedure, or unsatisfied, you may want to contact a worker's comp attorney. Employment in Arizona There are over 2,500,000 people in employment in Arizona engaged in hundreds of different types of work. There are 11 categories of employment in the state that have over 100,000 employees each. The most numerous category of employment is office workers. There are nearly 500,000 people working in this category. The next five main categories by the number of people working are: Sales staff Employees working in food preparation and similar jobs lie serving food Transportation and movement of materials Healthcare personnel Education, training and library staff The mean hourly income across all categories of employment in Arizona was $21.78 according to the Bureau of Statistic's 2015 data, while the mean annual income was $45,310. Workers’ Comp. Insurance Requirements in Arizona Arizona has quite strict workers compensation insurance requirements enforced by the state’s Industrial Commission. The majority of employers must take out workers’ compensation insurance for all of their employees, regardless of the job they do, how long the work and how many employees they have. Arizona’s workers compensation insurance legislation provides coverage for employees on a no-fault system. This means that it doesn’t matter who was at fault when the injury or illness took place. Even if the employee was to blame for his or her own injury they should be still covered by their employer’s insurance policy. This makes workers’ compensation insurance in Arizona different from ordinary premises liability insurance, for instance. The only exception to the no-fault rule is when it can be shown that an employee has deliberately set out to self-inflict harm on themselves in an attempt to gain compensation. Exceptions to the Requirement for Coverage in Arizona There are a few exceptions to Arizona's workers' comp coverage requirement, and they include: Sole proprietors in a sole proprietorship (but they must take out insurance for any employees they have) Casual employees who are not normally in the employer’s regular employment Independent contractors, but note there may be a dispute whether an injured person is actually an independent contractor or an employee. Employees can elect to reject their employer’s workers’ compensation cover but must state this in writing before any industrial accident or illness. The employee can also reverse the rejection at a later stage, but must also do this in writing before any industrial injury or illness. No employer can attempt to persuade any of their employees to reject coverage. Contact a Workers Comp Attorney if You Encounter Problems With Your Claim There can be problems that stall a compensation claim, such as discovering that your employer was not insured, or the award may be insufficient to meet the costs incurred. In any event where you are unsatisfied or perturbed about the way your claim is proceeding, or if it has been denied, talk to a workers’ comp. attorney. The attorney will have dealt with many such claims before and can provide useful legal advice and, if necessary, pursue the claim on your behalf.
