Fighting for Your
Workers' Compensation Rights
Workers' Compensation Rights
Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
For more than 30 years, our highly skilled Boston workers’ compensation lawyers at Kantrovitz & Associates have exclusively represented individuals injured during the course of their employment, ensuring that they receive their right to compensation.
The Massachusetts workers’ compensation system is a “no fault,” comprehensive program that requires employers to have insurance in place for the protection of workers who suffer a job-related injury or disabling condition. In essence, a worker who is hurt on the job becomes eligible for medical benefits and, in many cases, disability benefits that replace lost wages. Benefits also are available to a surviving spouse and dependents if a worker is killed due to a work-related accident or illness. Vocational retraining is available, too, in many cases where an on-the-job injury prevents a worker from returning to the worker’s previous occupation.
Kantrovitz & Associates is one of the most well respected workers’ compensation firms in the Commonwealth for good reason: Because we fight for injured workers and we get results! Our goal is to make sure that you get the compensation that you are entitled to. Based in Greater Boston, Massachusetts, the workplace injury lawyers at Kantrovitz & Associates, P.C. have helped injured workers across Massachusetts, including but not limited to Boston, Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk and Plymouth. We also help Rhode Island and New Hampshire residents who were hurt on the job in Massachusetts. For a free, no obligation evaluation of your workplace injury, please contact us online. You may also call us toll free at 800-367-0871.
No Fee Policy
At Kantrovitz & Associates, If we don’t win, we don’t get paid. Yes, that’s right! The fees in a workers’ compensation claim are contingency based. Meaning, we don’t get paid unless we are successful. You pay nothing up front for our services. If your case resolves by way of a lump sum settlement, the attorney’s fees and expenses are deducted from the proceeds of the settlement. You pay nothing out of pocket. For a free legal consultation regarding your workers compensation claim, please contact us to speak with an experienced Massachusetts workers’ compensation lawyer.
Injured on the Job? Contact Our Workplace Injury Lawyers
Massachusetts workers’ compensation provides benefits to all injured workers who need medical treatment, and those who become disabled or unable to earn their full wages for five or more calendar days, or who die, because of a work-related injury or disabling condition. Benefits are available to workers who suffer physical injury, and also those who suffer from work-related mental or emotional disabilities, and occupational diseases. So what types of benefits might you be eligible to receive? That depends on your situation. There are a wide variety of benefits available to injured employees in Massachusetts and in some cases, an injured employee may even have rights and remedies above and beyond what’s available through the scope of the Massachusetts workers’ compensation system. At Kantrovitz & Associates P.C, our Boston workers’ compensation attorneys are here to ensure that you receive the maximum benefits you are entitled. The specific types of benefits available to injured Massachusetts employees, depending on the type and severity of the work-related injury or illness, are included below.
Medical Benefits
If you require medical treatment because of your injury at work, you can receive treatment from the doctor of your choice. Sometimes, you may have to have an initial consultation with a physician specified by your employer, but afterward you can be treated by a doctor that you choose. You also can be reimbursed for your expenses related to medical treatment, including certain travel costs.
Temporary Total Disability Benefits
Temporary Total Disability Benefits are calculated at 60% of the gross average weekly wage you earned before your injury. When calculating gross average weekly wage, all earnings of the injured worker are taken into consideration, including but not limited to wages from overtime as well as bonuses. It should also be noted that if an employee works more than one job, the wages from all jobs must be included in the average weekly wage calculation.
Permanent and Total Incapacity Benefits
If your work-related injury or illness results in a total and permanent disability, you become eligible to receive 66.67% of your gross average weekly wage, with a potential yearly cost of living increase.
Death Benefits for Survivors and Dependents
A surviving spouse can receive up to 250 weeks of a deceased employees’ workers’ compensation benefits, plus annual cost of living increases. Those benefits can extend beyond that time if the surviving spouse has not remarried or is not yet self-supporting when the 250 weeks expire. The employer’s workers’ compensation insurer also must pay up to $4,000 for burial expenses.
Partial Disability Benefits
You may be eligible to receive a weekly partial disability benefit if your injury at work results in a partial disability. This would be measured at 60% of the difference between the wages that you earned before and after your accident.
Permanent Loss of Function and Disfigurement Benefits
If your work injury causes a permanent loss of function, or certain types of scars or bodily disfigurement, you could be eligible for a monetary benefit for those losses.
Subsequent Injury Benefits
If you receive workers’ compensation, then return to work for two months or more and are subsequently re‐injured, you can receive compensation at the rate in effect at the time of the new injury (unless the old injury was paid in a lump sum settlement, which is a one-time payment in place of receiving ongoing benefits.
Vocational Training
You might be eligible for Vocational Rehabilitation, meaning job retraining , if your injury at work results in a permanent inability to perform the essential functions of your job. This can include job placement services, and retraining or education for new work, all paid for by your employer’s workers’ compensation insurer.
Workers’ Compensation Trust Fund
The Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act creates a Trust Fund that makes payments to injured workers whose employers fail to obtain workers’ compensation insurance. The Trust Fund steps in to act as the “insurer” in place of the workers’ compensation coverage that an employer failed to provide. The Workers’ Compensation Trust Fund, within the Department of Industrial Accidents, administers benefits paid from the trust fund.
Speak With an Experienced Workers’ Compensation Attorney
If you have suffered an injury at work, or you’ve developed a disabling condition because of your job, you may have questions about the Massachusetts workers’ compensation system. The attorneys at Kantrovitz & Associates P.C. would be glad to meet with you at your earliest convenience to go over your basic legal rights with respect to your work related injury. Our Boston workers’ compensation lawyers believe in a hands-on approach, providing individual attention to every client we represent. Call us for a free case evaluation at 800-367-0871 or contact us online so we can get to work for you.
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Our Videos
Were You Injured at Work? Workers' Compensation Explained
If you have been injured at work, and are unable to earn your full wages for five or more days, or require medical treatment as a result of an accident at work, you become eligible to receive Workers Compensation Benefits. Workers compensation laws are written and exist in every State of the Union, but differ from State to State. However, all workers compensation laws are designed as “no-fault” laws for the benefit of the injured worker. Additionally, all employers are mandated by law to carry workers compensation insurance for the benefit and the protection of each and everyone they employ. Massachusetts law provides a “no fault” insurance system that protects employers from personal liability for an employee’s job-related injury. Regardless of who was at fault for the accident, injured workers may recover workers’ compensation benefits rather than suing for personal injury damages in court.
Massachusetts workers face numerous dangers every day on the job. They spend more time at work than in any other place and are more likely to be injured there. Whether employees are hanging from bridges or sitting behind a desk, they all suffer some “wear and tear,” and often push through discomfort to get the job done. Workers with pre-existing conditions are also eligible for workers compensation benefits, but must show that a job-related injury aggravated or somehow worsened their condition to be eligible for workers’ compensation. In other words, the workplace accident must have directly caused the exacerbated harm, requiring compensation for new medical treatment or disability leave. If you have suffered a workplace injury, the experienced Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyers’ at Kantrovitz & Associates can help.
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MA Workers' Compensation System
Simply stated, the Massachusetts Worker’s Compensation Statute is a “ No Fault“, wage replacement system designed to pay the injured worker both medical benefits and lost wages during his or her period of incapacity from work. In many cases, an injured worker is also eligible to receive vocational retraining, if their injury at work prevents them from returning to their previous occupation. As a “No Fault“ Statute, the injured worker is not able to sue their employer or co-workers for the civil negligence damages called pain and suffering. While the Workers Compensation Statute was designed to protect interests of the injured worker and his or her family, disputes between the injured worker, his or her employer and the workers compensation insurer often arise, which undoubtedly make an already difficult situation more troublesome. The workplace injury attorneys at Kantrovitz & Associates, P.C. exclusively represent individuals injured in the course of their employment. Our Massachusetts workplace accident lawyers believe in a hands-on approach, providing individual attention to every client we represent.
Massachusetts workers’ compensation provides benefits to all injured workers who need medical treatment, and those who become disabled or unable to earn their full wages for five or more calendar days, or who die, because of a work-related injury or disabling condition. Benefits are available to workers who suffer physical injury, and also those who suffer from work-related mental or emotional disabilities, and occupational diseases.
Therefore you’re entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for your injury at work if:
A. Your injury is a work-related injury or condition;
B. Which makes it impossible for you to earn any or all of your wages for at least five full or partial calendar days or more; or
C. Requires medical treatment as a result of the work-related accident or condition.
That depends on your situation. There are a wide variety of benefits available under the Massachusetts workers’ compensation system. The primary benefits are weekly compensation for lost income during the period an injured employee cannot work, and coverage of medical expenses associated with the injured worker’s reasonable and necessary medical care. The following headings discuss the specific types of benefits available to injured Massachusetts employees, depending on the type and severity of the work-related injury or illness. For assistance with your workers’ compensation claim, please contact us online or call us toll free at 800-367-0871 to speak with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney at Kantrovitz & Associates, P.C.
Is My Injury Covered By Workers' Compensation?
With few exceptions, Massachusetts requires that all private employers provide workers’ compensation insurance for all employees, with coverage beginning from a worker’s first day on the job. Covered employees generally include anyone who earns a salary or wages from their employer, whether employed full-time or part-time. This includes domestic servants, such as housekeepers or nannies, who work for their employer at least sixteen hours per week. It also includes undocumented workers. A business owner is eligible for workers’ compensation benefits, if the owner exercises his or her option to be considered an employee for workers’ compensation purposes.
In addition, the great majority of government employees in Massachusetts are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits upon suffering a job-related injury or disabling condition. This includes state government workers, and most county and municipal employees.
What if My Injury Was Caused By
Someone Else?
If you’re injured at work by someone other than your employer or one of your co-workers, then you probably have the right to assert a claim against the third party for payment of damages. You can still collect your workers’ compensation disability and medical benefits under your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance, and you also may file a damages lawsuit against the third party.
Potential Legal Problems or Frequently Asked Question You May Have Regarding Your Case
Click here to read about the potential legal problems you may have with your case. For other questions and inquiries or for a free case evaluation of your workers’ compensation claim, please contact us online or call us toll free at 800-367-0871 to speak with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney at Kantrovitz & Associates, P.C. We have almost 30 years of experience fighting for the rights of individuals injured in the course of their employment. By concentrating on workers’ compensation claims, we have developed a thorough expertise in this area of law and understand the complex legal and medical issues that can be associated with claims. Contact one of our MA workers’ compensation lawyers today to help you navigate the system.
Potential Legal Problems
The 8 Most Common Mistakes When Filing Your Compensation Claim
Why Are Workers’ Compensation Claims Denied in Massachusetts?
Workers’ Compensation FAQs
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