Are stress injuries compensable under Illinois workers compensation law
A reader asks:
I am a store manager and it is in the worst part of town, it has been robbed before and they have had gang shoot outs where employees cars were shot. 12-24-10 i put the deposit bag in my right front pocket and walked 10 feet to my car. As soon as i got there a black male pulled a gun on me and told me to give him the cash, which i did. i went in the store called 911 and my dm, I can't sleep and i am very scared to go to work, can u help me?
In general, every day stress cases under Illinois workers compensation law are not covered. If your boss yells, if you have a lot of work piling up, if it's too much for you to handle, usually there is nothing that can be done if you just have a mental injury.
On the other hand, if what you experience is sudden and shocking then you might have a case even if there is no physical injury. Our reader would probably have a case because what happened to him doesn't typically happen to the general public. If he went to a psychologist who felt he should be off of work he would likely get workers' compensation benefits for both his medical care and his time off of work.
Moral of the story is that you should never assume you don't have a case. These cases are much tougher to prove than if you got hurt lifting a box, but legitimate cases should and usually do prevail. So if you aren't sure if you have a case or not just ask us.
We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys. Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.
For the past 2 weeks my boss/company owner has been yelling and swearing at me in front of my crew,this is causing me a lot of anxiety and stress. I am told that legally nothing can be done because as longas he does descriminate,hecan callme all the MF, he wants. But can i claim a stress related leave and get workmans. Comp.Do i need to be under a doctors care
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WE REPLY: This does not appear to be compensable under IL laws.
I work for a WC firm. For the past three months I have been taking extra work from other attorneys in the office and thereby causing me to fall behind on my regular work. On April 12th, I woke up and felt the room spinning with nausea, I went to the ER and was diagnosed with Benign Vertigo. I notified my manager. I was out the whole week. When I returned, my boss was on vacation, a new case call with a prior attorney came in through an existing client. I missed giving it to the attorney on time. Now I am in the process of being terminated. I was overwhelmed with work. I have been there 10 years and they are using the excuse that I didn't hand the new case to an attorney in time. On May 7th I went for a f/u appt to my own family doctor who diagnosed me with stress. Do you think I have a WC case?
WE REPLY: Stress that leads to a physical injury can sometimes be compensable. We'd have to speak with you to learn more. Please e-mail a number or call us at (312) 346-5578.
I had two panic attacks at work within a weeks period in which an ambulance had to be called due to the extent of the anxiety attack. This has only happened at work and my dr. has stated that it appears to be work related and advised that I take at least a week off of work while the medication he prescribed took affect. Would this be eligible for workmans comp?
WE REPLY: Only if there was something shocking that had happened that is unusual (the common examples are being robbery victims or seeing a worker get seriously hurt) or if something physical (e.g. your boss pushed you, you hurt yourself while working, etc.) happened.
If the job is just very stressful, even with long hours, it's probably not a case.