Work-related injuries or illnesses can prevent you from performing your job. If you do not recover completely, returning to your former employment may not even be possible.
In that case, your employer’s workers’ compensation insurer may offer vocational rehabilitation. If you need help or advice regarding vocational rehabilitation in Glendale workers’ compensation claims, get in touch with the legal team at Glauber Berenson Vego. Our workers’ compensation attorneys have substantial experience handling these types of cases.
When your doctor determines that you have a permanent partial disability, they notify your employer and the workers’ compensation insurance company. Your employer has 60 days to offer you a modified or alternative job.
A modified job usually has the same title and wages as your previous job, but with modified responsibilities to accommodate your disability, while an alternative job is a completely different job within the company. An alternative or modified job must pay you at least 85 percent of what you were making previously, and it must be within reasonable commuting distance.
When your company cannot provide you with a modified or alternative job, you are entitled to vocational rehabilitation. The workers’ compensation insurer must provide you with the information necessary to claim your vocational rehabilitation benefits within 20 days of the expiration of the employer’s deadline for offering you modified or alternate employment. If you are seeking vocational rehabilitation in a workers’ compensation claim, speak with a Glendale attorney if you believe your employer or insurance company violated these timelines.
Vocational rehabilitation is retraining that equips a worker, who is unable to return to their former job, with the skills necessary to perform a different one. It leverages your skills, interests, and current abilities, allowing you to continue full-time work with a different employer or in a different field. The formal name for vocational rehabilitation is the Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit (SJDB).
SJDB is given in the form of a voucher, which eligible workers can use for career counseling, tuition, a computer, tools, and professional certifications. SJDB recipients must use their vouchers at approved or accredited schools and training programs. According to California Code of Regulations § 10133.31(g), they are valid until five years after the date of the injury or two years after issuance, whichever is later, offering a crucial resource for vocational rehabilitation in workers’ compensation claims in Glendale.
SJDB is not an option for every injured worker. There are specific requirements you must meet to be eligible for vocational rehabilitation.
Your physician must have certified that you have reached the point of maximum medical improvement (MMI) and have a permanent partial disability due to your work-related injury or illness. The disability must also prevent you from returning to the job you had before you were injured.
Your employer must have declined to offer you an alternative or modified position you can perform with your current limitations. However, if you decline your employer’s job offer, you are not eligible for vocational rehabilitation benefits.
If there are ongoing disputes about any of these issues, you may not have immediate access to SJDB, or vocational rehabilitation could be included as part of a larger settlement. For example, you could dispute the doctor’s opinion about whether you have reached MMI or claim that the job your employer offered did not meet the workers’ compensation requirements for modified or alternate positions. Always work with an experienced Glendale workers’ compensation claims lawyer when disputing a decision that impacts your vocational rehabilitation benefits.
Vocational rehabilitation can be a valuable benefit if your work-related injury does not allow you to resume your former employment. However, you should discuss all your options with an attorney before accepting it.
Meet with us today to learn whether SJDB is right for you and how to receive vocational rehabilitation in Glendale workers’ compensation claims.
