Workers’ Compensation Vocational Rehabilitation
A vocational rehabilitation specialist may be assigned in workers’ compensation cases where your doctor releases you for light-duty employment or you cannot return to the position you had at the time you were injured. The workers’ compensation insurance company will hire a vocational rehabilitation specialist whose job is to help you find a job that fits your doctor’s restrictions.
The first step in this process is a vocational rehabilitation interview. This interview is not a medical evaluation. It is a meeting at which you and the specialist discuss your doctor’s restrictions and the types of employment that may be available. If you are assigned to a light-duty position that pays a lower wage, you will continue to receive workers’ compensation benefits to make up the difference between your pre-injury wage and your current pay. This is called Temporary Partial Disability (TPD).
Vocational rehabilitation plays a large role in injury cases involving workers' compensation in the process of recovering from a serious on-the-job injury. Disputes that arise during the vocational rehabilitation phase of the workers' compensation can quickly spin out of control, sometimes resulting in complete loss of your workers’ comp benefits and possibly loss of your job. You must cooperate with the vocational rehabilitation specialist in order to fulfill your obligations under North Carolina workers’ compensation law. An experienced workers’ comp attorney can help you through this process.
Raleigh, NC Workers’ Compensation Attorneys
If you have questions about vocational rehabilitation in your workers’ comp claim, contact the North Carolina workers’ compensation attorneys at the law firm of Hemmings & Stevens, PLLC today. We offer free initial consultations and work on a contingent fee basis, which means there are no fees unless we make a recovery for you. You can call us at 919.277.0161 or contact us online.
This article regarding vocational rehabilitation in North Carolina workers’ compensation claims is for informational purposes only and is not legal or medical advice. You may need to seek the advice of a workers’ compensation attorney at the law firm of Hemmings & Stevens, PLLC that has experience in these matters, if you are having trouble with your workers’ comp vocational rehabilitation.