Construction is a very dangerous profession, which is one reason why employees in this industry qualify for very competitive pay and excellent benefits. Employers often seek to help offset the risk that workers assume by compensating them appropriately.
Workers who make their own safety a top priority can often navigate construction work safely for decades and retire without incident. However, not all construction professionals are that fortunate. Some workers end up hurt due to machinery malfunctions or mistakes made by their co-workers. Others end up hurt due to unsafe conditions at a work site. Thankfully, most Iowa construction professionals do benefit from the right to compensation if they get hurt on the job.
Claiming workers’ compensation benefits
In Iowa, every business with employees will generally need to carry workers’ compensation insurance coverage. If someone gets hurt on the job, they can file a claim for no-fault coverage that can pay for medical treatment and provide them with disability pay if they cannot work because of their injuries. Workers’ compensation will potentially pay for the full cost of someone’s medical treatment without passing any expenses on to them, and it can replace a sizable portion of someone’s lost wages. A worker won’t have to prove that the company was at fault to get benefits, and the fault of an employer will not lead to additional compensation.
Even in scenarios where an employer did something obviously unsafe, like failing to provide safety restraints for those working at a significant elevation or inadequately maintaining heavy machinery, the workers injured on a construction site will generally not be able to pursue a lawsuit against the company. However, there are sometimes scenarios in which a third party may have liability that opens the door to litigation. Defective products are one example of an issue that might allow a worker hurt on the job to pursue a lawsuit against a third party. Otherwise, seeking and maximizing workers’ compensation benefits may be the only way for a construction worker hurt due to unsafe work conditions to cover their losses.
Learning more about the protections available for employees after a job injury can help people reduce the financial impacts that occur after a work injury.
