Dirty Tricks Employers Use To Keep You From Getting Benefits

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Tom’s post on how to protect your rights is crucial for every worker to read before they get hurt at work. Know your rights, and beware these dirty tricks that employers use to keep you from getting your benefits.

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Today’s post is by our colleague Tom Domer from Wisconsin.

Over the course of 35 years representing injured workers, I have heard some whoppers – Employers’ questionable tactics that make even my jaw drop.

With all the insurance company generated blather about “employee fraud”, incidences of employer fraudulent tactics abound.

Workers beware of the following:

  • Recorded statements taken by worker’s compensation carrier adjuster while employee is under medication or in the hospital still suffering from the injury. Questions such as “It’s true you had (low back pain, arm pain, fill in the blank pain, etc.) before your work injury, correct? You’ve had lots more pain from (your motor vehicle accident, sports injury, etc.) than you’re experiencing from your work injury, correct?”
  • Employer “channeling” a worker to its “Return to Work Clinic” (doctors on company payroll whose opinion is “like some athletic coaches, ‘rub some dirt on it and get back in the game’.”
  • Telling employees to take sick leave rather than claim worker’s compensation.
  • Telling employees to file medical bills under their group insurance, not worker’s comp.
  • Nurse Case Manager who initially befriends the employee, but later makes every attempt with the worker’s doctor to prematurely return the worker to the job before a healing occurs.
  • Employer paying worker in cash with no payroll stub (or gives workers a Form 1099 rather than a W-2).
  • Employers who cultivate a culture of non-reporting of injuries to tout “number of work days without an accident” (I’ve had employees report they have actually amputated part of a finger, wrapped it up in a handkerchief, put it in their pocket, and not reported the injury to get a cooler of beer as a premium for work days without an accident).
  • Employers who on a First Report of Injury do not add in overtime hours to artificially diminish a worker’s Average Weekly Wage (in my experience, this happens in a majority of cases).

I am growing weary of hearing about “employee fraud” at every social gathering, cocktail party and seminar I attend. Employees should be vigilant regarding these employer tactics and contact an experienced worker’s compensation attorney concerning their worker’s compensation rights.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

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2 thoughts on “Dirty Tricks Employers Use To Keep You From Getting Benefits

  1. Loretta Pitt

    My Case worker Dora Pontor that works for Williamson County Tennessee is friends with DR Robert Clendening. I hurt my back bad once in 2010 and again in july 22 2013. Dora got Dr Clenecing to release me back to work with no restriction and they also set me up and sent me to a fuction capitable test, they said I test poorly. But he wrote I could not pick up 25 lbs and alot of restrictio. After 3 weeks of the County lawyers and the dirty case worker and the doctor, they sent me back to work (no restriction) and the new claim they said was due to the old claim. They closed out this case. This is all BULL because I can’t hardly walk, bend, pick up anything. I am in pain all the time. I didn’t have a chance going up against Williamson County Tennessee and Dirty doctar in their pocket. Wow by the way the case worker and doctor has kwon each other for years. DIRTY DIRTY… POOR WORKING WOMAN!!!!

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  2. Lg

    Fraud is the adjusters and the money they waste. I was sent for emergency surgery after triage- sent home no explanation. Even though it was already accepted. 2 doctors and 6 months later I had a dr touch me. His report showed new trouble because I needed emergency surgery. Duh. And it was still denied. Finally got it about 6 weeks later. Point is- I would have been off 3 months and suffered much less. Now almost 11 months. And since I can’t do a thing about it I told my employer to get his money back because it’s senseless. Can you say oversite?

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