Illinois workers’ compensation – Can I quit my job?

I’m lucky in that I love my job.  I’m my own boss though so if I have a problem with who I work for then I have real problems.

Most people who contact me like where they work and we do whatever we can to make sure that filing a workers’ compensation claim will involve us dealing with the insurance company and lawyers with little to no contact with the actual employer.

But some workers hate their jobs.  It may be that they work at a terrible place.  It may be that their injury makes doing their job a real problem. Some don’t hate where they work, but have sought out and found a better opportunity working some place new.

No matter the reason, they always ask us if they can quit their job while their workers’ compensation case is still going on.  The answer is that it depends.

You don’t want to quit your job if you are getting TTD benefits because if you do then you likely won’t get them any more. You also don’t want to quit if there is a chance you will get them in the future.  In other words, if you might have to have surgery and you quit, you better be prepared to have no income coming in.  You’d only get TTD benefits if your doctor restricts you from any work at all.  Otherwise they can say they would have had a light duty job for you had you not quit even if that is a lie (which it usually is).

You also don’t want to quit before we know what your final condition will be.  If you find yourself in a situation where you are going to have permanent restrictions, quitting your job will greatly impact what your case is worth and will also take away a lot of your leverage.

In addition, sometimes when you want to quit, they want to get rid of you too.  In some cases we’ve been able to get severance agreements for our clients which could put a lot of money in your pocket.  If you quit you lose out on that opportunity.

One thing quitting shouldn’t do is effect your right to receive medical benefits for your injury.

All this said, you have to live your life and some things, such as sanity, are more important than money.  We also understand that there are times when quitting the job can help you improve your health and of course there is nothing more important than that.

What we advise anyone who is considering quitting is to talk to an experienced work comp attorney before they do so. You want to make an educated decision no matter what you do, not a rushed or emotional one.  We are happy to discuss this with you at any time to try and help you make the right decision for your unique situation.