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Collecting Unemployment or Social Security Disability While Claiming Michigan Workers’ Comp Benefits
In certain situations an injured Michigan worker can receive Unemployment or Social Security Disability benefits while also collecting workers compensation. These are similar but separate and unique programs.
Each program is designed to provide some form of wage loss to individuals who are not currently working. Unemployment is intended to provide benefits to individuals who are willing to work but cannot find gainful employment. Social Security Disability pays benefits to individuals who cannot work because of sickness or injury. Workers compensation provides benefits to individuals who suffer an injury at work and have a reduction of wage earning capacity.
All of these wage replacement programs have their own specific requirements and can be collected at the same time under certain circumstances. If you were injured at work and filing a claim for workers compensation, the key is to understand how these benefits are coordinated to maximize your recovery and avoid losing a claim.
The difference between Social Security Disability and Workers Comp claims
Workers comp is a type of insurance that almost every employer in Michigan is required to carry by law. Your employer pays the cost of workers comp insurance and it is intended to protect you in the event of a work injury. You can receive wage loss, medical treatment, and vocational rehabilitation under workers comp.
Social Security Disability pays monthly benefits to individuals who cannot work because of sickness or injury. It does not matter if you hurt yourself at work. You can qualify for disability benefits under two separate programs.
The first program is commonly known as Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and eligibility is based upon past work credits. When an individual is working and paying taxes, he or she is essentially buying disability insurance through the federal government. Medicare is also available under this program.
The second program is Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and eligibility is based upon disability and financial need. Even if an individual has paid very little taxes or never worked before, he or she may qualify for monthly payments when certain income and asset restrictions are met. The receipt of workers comp benefits may exclude you from collecting SSI because you will be earning too much money.
Maximizing your recovery for Workers Comp and Social Security Disability
If you receive workers comp and Social Security Disability at the same time, you will be subject to an offset – a reduction in a portion of your reimbursement to ensure the combined benefits from workers comp and Social Security are not excessive. The intent of these programs is to replace your lost wages. These benefits offset each other so there is no double recovery. You should not be earning more on disability than if you were working
Social Security will reduce your monthly benefit if your combined workers comp payment and Social Security payment exceed 80 percent of your average current earnings. This means that you might not be getting all the benefits that you deserve.
You can avoid the offset by settling your workers comp case. You can prorate the settlement over your lifetime reducing or in most cases eliminating the offset.
**Do not apply for Social Security Disability until you have spoken with an experienced workers comp attorney**
You could affect your ability to settle your workers comp case if you apply for Social Security Disability benefits too soon. You could end up with a great workers comp settlement and not be able to use it for anything but medical treatment. An experienced workers comp attorney can point you in the right direction.
The difference between Unemployment and Workers Comp claims
Workers comp attorneys are frequently asked about whether an individual can collect both unemployment and workers comp at the same time. This situation usually arises when the injured worker loses his or her job for whatever reason and workers comp has denied the claim. The injured worker has no income and must use unemployment to support his or her family.
Unemployment requires that you be available and seeking work. Workers comp requires that you are disabled and cannot work. There is an obvious conflict between claiming unemployment and claiming workers comp.
You can collect both unemployment and workers comp only under certain circumstances
A situation could arise where you are disabled from one job but are able to do another. You might not be able to do heavy work but you could do light work if available.
The idea is that you are looking for light work within your medical restrictions but you still have a loss of wage earning capacity because of your work injury. Under the above circumstances, you might be entitled to unemployment and workers comp.
There are consequences though for collecting unemployment benefits while claiming workers comp. Be mindful that the receipt of unemployment benefits can affect your workers comp case. The court can consider the receipt of unemployment benefits as evidence of the lack of disability. You could end up losing your entire workers comp case for a few weeks of unemployment benefits.
Additionally, unemployment benefits received for the same period of time and chargeable to the same employer can be offset with workers comp. You might end up trading one dollar for another.
An experienced attorney can help you navigate the confusing world of workers comp. The goal should always be to maximize the amount of recovery that you collect.
For additional information on Michigan Workers Comp law including time limits, and what to do if your claim is denied, visit the Michigan Workers Comp Lawyers website.
About the Author
Alex Berman is an attorney with Michigan Workers Comp Lawyers – a Michigan based law firm exclusively representing injured and disabled workers for more than 30 years. Alex has helped countless people get workers compensation benefits and never charges a fee to review a case. Contact the law firm for a free consultation at 855-221-COMP or 248-254-8094.
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