If you have suffered an injury at work or on the job, you may be entitled to receive additional benefits through workers compensation. In North Carolina, this may include time lost from work, disability (full or partial), and medical bills.
When an employer or an insurance company tries to return an injured employee to work, one of the biggest issues is whether the job constitutes “suitable employment.” In many (but not all) situations, injured workers must accept suitable employment, and if they don’t, they run the risk of having their workers’ comp benefits suspended or terminated.
Effective June 24, 2011, the General Assembly made some substantial legislative changes to North Carolina’s Workers’ Compensation Act, and many of these changes were directed towards “suitable employment.” In addressing suitable employment, one of the preliminary considerations is whether the job is being offered before or after an employee reaches maximum medical improvement (“MMI”). MMI occurs when an employee completes all injury-related medical treatment and is released by his or her doctor. Under the new law, there are two types of suitable employment – pre-MMI and post-MMI suitable employment.
Under the new law, if you are offered a job before reaching maximum medical improvement (i.e., pre-MMI), you will generally have to accept it so long as the job serves a legitimate business interest and is within your doctor’s work restrictions. For example, if your doctor restricts you from lifting 30 or more pounds, you will most likely have to accept any job that requires lifting less than 25 pounds, regardless of whether you’re trained or qualified for that job. The job can even be a position that is not available in the general labor market, which is what we refer to as “make work.” If you refuse the work, the insurance company can move to suspend or terminate your workers’ compensation benefits.
After you’ve reached maximum medical improvement (i.e., post-MMI), “make work” is no longer suitable, and any job offer must take into consideration your pre-existing and post-injury physical and mental limitations, your vocational skills, education, work experience, and more. Under the old law, the job also had to be at a wage rate that was as close as possible to what you were earning at the time of the on-the-job injury . However, under the new law, the wage component of suitable employment has been removed for all claims arising on or after June 24, 2011. Therefore, the job’s pay no long has to be as close as possible to the worker’s previous pay rate. However, the General Assembly did increase the number of weeks an injured worker is eligible for wage-difference benefits from 300 to 500 weeks. An injured worker , who returns to work and earns less than he or she was making before being hurt on the job, may elect to receive wage difference benefits in lieu of disability benefits.
In addition, if the new job pays you less than 75% of what you were making before you were injured, you are now entitled to have the insurance company pay for vocational rehabilitation. This can involve having the insurance company pay for additional education or retraining which will help you secure a higher paying job.
The changes to suitable employment are important. Trying to make sense of the law and your rights alone, without consulting a lawyer, could greatly impact—in an unfavorable manner—the outcome of your case.
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"Thank you John, and all the staff at The Law Offices of John M. McCabe, P.A., for all your help over the years since my accident and for your friendship! I am truly grateful!"
At The Law Offices of John M. McCabe, P.A., we have extensive experience in representing injured workers. We will work hard to protect you from the insurance company's tricks and traps.
