What to Do if You Are Injured at Work

Depending on how your injury occurred and who or what caused it, you have two main sources of compensation for an on-the-job injury in Minnesota:

Workers’ Compensation Claims

Most Minnesota workers, including most part-time and seasonal employees, qualify for workers’ compensation benefits. Workers’ comp is a no-fault system, meaning you don’t need to prove someone else caused your injury to claim your benefits. All that matters is whether your injury occurred at work or while you were performing a job-related task. If you meet those conditions, you likely qualify for benefits, which could include:

• Medical benefits – Workers’ comp medical benefits cover the full cost of all reasonable treatments related to your injury. This includes the cost of hospital stays, doctor’s visits, prescription drugs, physical therapy, and more. You do not have to pay any deductibles or co-pays for your treatments. Your employer may have the right to choose who you see for your initial evaluation, but you can choose your own providers for most of your treatments unless your employer participates in a certified managed care plan.
• Temporary Partial Disability Benefits – Temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits apply if you can work after an injury but earn less than before. The benefit amount is two-thirds of the difference between your pre- and post-injury income. These benefits usually last up to 275 weeks, but you must use them within 450 weeks of your injury date.
• Temporary Total Disability Benefits – TTD benefits replace a percentage of your lost wages (up to certain limits under Minnesota law) while you heal if you can’t do any work. These benefits pay two-thirds of your average weekly wage at the time of your injury. TTD benefits usually start on your fourth day of missed work. However, if you cannot work for 10 consecutive days, you’ll also receive payments for those initial three days. Most workers can receive up to 130 weeks of TTD benefits.
• Permanent Partial Disability Benefits – Permanent partial disability (PPD) benefits compensate you for permanent impairment of your body. To calculate your PPD benefits, your doctor will assign you a percentage-based rating reflecting the extent of your disability. That rating is multiplied by a dollar amount based on the state’s disability schedule.
• Permanent Total Disability Benefits – Finally, you might qualify for permanent total disability (PTD) if your injury is so severe that you cannot work at all for the rest of your life. Like most wage-loss benefits in Minnesota, PTD benefits pay two-thirds of your average weekly wage at the time of your injury. These payments may continue for life. As you’d expect, qualifying for PTD is often challenging, as insurance companies usually contest these claims. It’s essential to have strong medical documentation and legal support to claim these benefits.

Third-Party Injury Claims

The Minnesota workers’ compensation system usually bars you from suing your employer for workplace injuries. However, you might have a case against someone else who contributed to your injury, such as the manufacturer of defective equipment. These third-party injury claims can compensate you for losses that workers’ comp benefits don’t cover, such as:

• The full amount of your lost income
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Damaged personal property (if applicable)

Unlike workers’ comp claims, third-party injury claims require you to prove how someone else caused your injury. These claims also involve different deadlines. In most circumstances, you must file a personal injury lawsuit within six years of your injury to preserve your right to compensation.