With the world grappling under the pressure of the coronavirus outbreak, individuals everywhere are in a state of perplexity regarding the actions they should take.
While a majority of the businesses have implemented remote work and ‘work-from-home’, a large number of industries have to continue with their functions. These industries could refer to the medical field, extraction or mining industry, agriculture and plenty more.
In fact, these make up the larger proportion of the workforce in general. As such, workers employed in these industries remain at the risk of being exposed to, or being infected with COVID-19 or coronavirus.
Coronavirus and the Workers’ Compensation Claim
The Workers’ Compensation Claim aims to help injured workers who have faced financial losses resulting from injuries sustained at work. In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, workers can now also file for claims in case they contracted the disease and lost their wages.
However, since workers cannot claim compensation for the ‘common cold’ or for temporary diseases, there has been some ambiguity with regards to compensation in cases of coronavirus.
What You Should Know about Filing a COVID-19 Worker’s Compensation Claim
The state of Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries announced on 5th March 2020 that, workers would be provided with benefits during their quarantine period, in case they have been exposed to the virus during duty.
The coverage will include:
Payments for medical testing
Treatment expenses in case of illness
Indemnity payments for those who cannot work due to the sickness
In order to file for the workers’ compensation claim, workers will have to show that:
