What Do You Think

[brandon.wall]

Back on 6-23 I got hurt at work, lower back injury. I have been working Lite Duty since the injury. Yesterday I am going into work, and my badges wont let me go inn. So I had to go talk to HR, they inform me that there is no more work there for me , and I have 1 year to return with no restrictions. I do have a WC Lawyer, a DR who seems to hate Walgreen's. So here I am told I am not allowed to work unless I am back on "FULL DUTY" . Does wc have to pay me since walgreens wont let me work?

[stitchmeupdoc]

brandon.wall, what is Y O U R lawyer telling you? I would think the lawyer would be your first line of defense. Good Luck!

[brandon.wall]

They have a meeting in Mt. Vernon today All he said is, they cant do that. I'm just worried about getting paid.

[Hurt_Soldier79]

Don't worry about it brandon. What your employer is doing is only hurting themselves. Your attorney will and should take care of everything that you don't see on the surface of the case.

[BvIA]

Listen to your atty.
When your treating physican allows a return to work, ''light duty'', your ER either can/can not make the light duty or modified job avaiable... if not, you return to your PTP, and get your status changed from the light duty, back to TTD/Temp Total Disability. Your wage loss benefits should continue until you are released at MMI.

Your ER really can't just say 'there is no work for you, until you are 100% with out restrictions". There are federal laws, namely ADA, that prohibit discrimination to a person fitting the criteria defining a ''disability'' under ADA rules.

The ADA defines "disability" as: (1) a physical or
mental impairment that substantially limits a major life
activity, (2) a record of such an impairment, or (3) being
regarded as having such an impairment. Impairments resulting
from occupational injury may not be severe enough to
substantially limit a major life activity, or they may be only
temporary, non-chronic, and have little or no long term impact.

Read more on ADA here http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/workcomp.html

When you are returned to work at MMI, and request a reasonable accommodation from your ER, it must be granted, OR the ER show a financial hardship for not doing so.